#3 a lot with strumming is becoming easier and easier, just as an example I learned the song that weāll sing at our school Christmas party in such short a time! The variations to the main pattern all came by feeling - I had to stop and think āthis sounds cool, what am I doing with these ups and downs?ā also an accent on beat 2 that makes the differenceā¦ I can do it spontaneusly!
#2 I can arrange short and simple Chord Melodies, which means short classical or well known melodies as well as choruses or chuncks of songs - not a whole song, because a whole song requires dynamics (that I can hear and feel) and dynamics require techniques that I havenāt developed yetā¦my Wind of change unfinished project is an example of what I mean.
#1 Ta-daa! My Nuovo Cinema Paradiso Love Theme Duet that I arranged by myselfā¦ when I realised that I had the right key and that I could hum the melody over a strummed chords progressionā¦that was absolutely the highest Ephifany moment of the yearā¦then the fyngerstyle arrangement easily followed!
Now your turn, this is a space for self- celebration, if youāve worked hard to improve give it a little of thoughtā¦whether it comes easy or not for you to identify your top 3 achievements I canāt wait to read about them!
Congrats, Silvia, and thanks for sharing. Looks like the whole lot of effort you had put into your guitar learning began to pay offā¦
Unfortunately, just the 2024 hasnāt been particularly revolutionary in terms of achievements in my playing skills. Of other things, I think I could safely mention two: #1 The fact that I renewed my acquaintance with Justin Guitar site; #2 Iāve finally found the sound I like to hear from my monitor and in my recordings.
Regards
Tomasz
This is a nice topic. Definitely good to reflect on progress made and give yourself a pat on the back. Weāre generally reluctant to do that but should do so a little more often
My first is that 2024 is the first year Iāve ever played guitar all the way through, I donāt think thereās been more than a few days gone by without me playing guitar. Even last year which was my best up until that point had a significant break in the middle of the year following illness and just not getting back to it
I also have to include strumming. In the past month or two itās really come on. Some 1/16th note patterns, keeping my arm moving and also getting some variation in it without losing the rhythm of the song Iām playing. This is actually probably the really big one of the year for me.
I still donāt know how to play a huge number of songs but I do now feel that I do have something of a repertoire of songs under my belt now which is another step away from being a real beginner and being able to say that I can play a guitar. I doubt Iād have said that 12 months ago
#1 for me is that I started to play the bass guitar, and I spent most of the second half of the year with working on my bass skills. I managed to pick out about 2 dozen basslines that include quite simple and repetitive ones as well as more complicated songs. Tonight I cracked my 1st Beatles tune, Fixing a Hole, and I can play it all the way through with the original recording. In the past 2 weeks I focused on Motown basslines, mainly in songs by The Temptations. Theyāre a lot of fun to play once I get the hang of them.
#2 is sort of a result of #1 which is that Iām getting better at ādecipheringā basslines and other melodies by ear only (on the guitar as well). Iām reluctant to say transcribing because I hardly ever write these down. Unless the melody is very fast and complex, Iām positive that I can transcribe it without much difficulty and also correct the mistakes I may make during the process.
If a #3 is needed, it would be my continued interest in music theory. Iāve recently purchased 2 books (yes, real printed books) in Hungarian on the topic. One of them is a short preparatory work for harmonic analysis from the 1910s. Despite the B vs H note naming madness and the somewhat dated language, I was very happy to find most of the book understandable after having completed c. 4 and a half modules of the PMT course. The other book is a somewhat newer and heavier-duty work on classical harmonic analysis which Iām saving for later.
Hi Silvia,
I had asked this 2 weeks ago and I couldnāt have completed them so,
But now I do: last week I started learning Wonderwall in one morning and last two weeks I learnd a song every morning Since we joked about no cleaning jobs in the house and that you learn best in the morning ā¦I canāt listen to the original because of that voice, but what a wonderful rhythm guitar and very confrontational a while ago when I was working on it for a few minutes because playing rhythm guitar with a pick is not my strongest thing, but I showed it to my wife and she was completely happy with it as I and said how easy it looked, and when I explained the rhythm in slo-mo with the ups and downs and the changesā¦ she was amazed and I myself too actually ā¦but without a pick Iām starting to be really happy with almost all strokesā¦but thatās because Iām practicing so much with a pick at the moment
the second is knowing that with a new (improved) learning method next year I can really put together a good blues solo with confidence if my hands are left between my wheels and the door frame for a reasonable amount of time
But
The absolute joy lies in being able to learn Justinās blues arrangements so quickly, I had them at home for years, but like the steady blues Thumb really seemed a few steps too far away last year and now in a few weeks the first Thumb one and being able to play the second one in a few days at a reasonable level and most of the time the third too fills me with enormous joyā¦
and the space and peace that this gives while playing is something that I can see very well when I look at old recordings or when I watch the latest ones.
I really enjoy accelerating the learning curve
I listed my top 3 achievements back in April (mods maybe merge threads?) and am afraid giving a different answer here, for fear of from the low countries pointing out āinconsistenciesāā¦ so I only dare cut & paste
Ooo you are absolutely right and I had completely forgotten about itā¦ luckily my āIām so happyā hasnāt changed ā¦ But the Top 3 are something that made me think harderā¦ at least an extra minute or so
Great stuff Sylvia, youāve done really well to get that lot under your belt!
For me myā¦ā¦. #1 is my songwriting, itās giving me so much joy I never dreamt of! Admittedly part of the success has been down to using AI (which I know is controversial here) without it I doubt my writing would have come to anything. #2 Playing Bass, I am well on the way to being able to use it as a solo instrument (with a lot of inspiration from CiCi Powell), itās been quite fun experimenting with Fx to generate sounds unworldly ! At some stage (soon I hope) I shall post something on here! #3 Creating mood and ambient music on Guitar, Bass and Drum sequencer, again something extending my creativity, I have found that since giving up trying to play covers and just getting frustrated at times itās like being let loose into a different world! I have really regained my interest in playing back, and I would advise anyone who can play reasonably well to just have a go - youāll never look back!
I was going to write a reply, but Iāll just say ditto to @mattswains list. Thank you Matthew. Playing complete songs, getting less clumsy at strumming, developing a small but growing repertoire.
Great thread Silvia and one that has had me thinking since you posted. Most of the gains I have made are small and difficult to quantify but 3 areas that I am happy about this year are;
my songwriting skills have improved and my latest original songs are much better than my earlier attempts (In my opinion anyway ).
One area I really struggled with was listening to the sound of my singing voice on recordings. I have come to accept that this is what I have to work with so I am trying to improve it, but I no longer cringe when I hear myself singing. I have also figured out songs that suit my voice and more importantly ones that donāt.
Lastly I have always played with a pick but lately I have started a little finger style/ picking, and this is an area I would like to explore more .
Thatās my little āpat on the back ā to myself.
Well done, Silvia. Thanks for encouraging people to share.
My primary goal this past year was to play with other people, hopefully a band.
Iāve been playing with a band since September. It is a program provided by a local music and art school. We did a performance in November and we have another one this month. It has been a wonderful experience. I will continue with the band activity for their next semester.
I am the lead guitar in the band. I think Iām a decent rhythm player, but the opening in the band was for the lead role. My only lead knowledge has been through Justinās lessons. Those lessons enabled me to add highlights and learn solos, albeit relatively simple ones, for the bandās song list.
I was working on Grade 5 when I got accepted into the band program. Being able to play in a band and as the lead was due in large to Justinās instruction. Thank You, Justin and the whole JG Team!
For the past 4 months, Iāve focused all my guitar attention on learning the songs and playing with the band. After the semester ends this month, I plan to pick up where I left off and continue with Justinās instruction during the break.
This has been a great year. Iām so looking forward to expanding my skills and playing with the band next year.
Picking up new songs faster. This is still not quick, but I do seem to be getting the hang of songs with simple chord progressions more quickly.
Strumming definitely getting easier and more consistent. Iāve been working a lot on this. Also, I used to have to warm up for a long time before being able to strum reasonably consistently. I fin d my warm up time has decreased and I have more muscle memory for the strumming patterns so they come more naturally when I pick up the guitar.
This is the most important to me, and very recent: I took up learning guitar because I wanted to learn to play punk songs from my youth. However, I also had the romantic idea that I might be able to learn some to play some songs from latin america and sing them to my wife who is Colombian. I am not a Spanish speaker so this is a real challenge. On Saturday, I got up and decided I would learn the song Ā« Rayando el sol Ā». This is a song originally by a Mexican group called ManĆ and thereās a beautiful version made during the lockdown by a young Mexican singer called Angela Aguilar.
By Saturday evening, I could play the song all the way through (thatās very fast for me) and last night I managed to surprise my wife by singing it all the way through in Spanish while playing along (albeit slowly). Just seeing my wifeās face was worth it!! She really was quite surprised.
Other achievements: Successfully modded my squier tele with new pickups which made a massive improvement and did a complete fret levelling on my Starcaster, which made it by far the easiest playing guitar I own.
Iām happy with 2024 and made progress as I can see lotās of people did from the posts above. Congrats all of you!!!
I hit 3 years on guitar a couple of months ago and I know I have a lot to be proud of in that window! I detailed many of them in my LL recently, but Iāll narrow it down to my top 3 things I really worked on and developed in 2024 specifically.
Songwriting evolution I started writing my own material in January of this year after saying I would never want to write my own songs The art of songwriting has been quite personally transformational for me. Since my first song, I really feel like I have grown leaps and bounds! I can self-edit a lot better now. I can tell when something needs to be scrapped or if it has potential. I have also learned that there is a lot to be said for keeping things simple- more complex doesnāt necessarily mean better. I continue to be amazed by what I can create and Iām excited to see how this skill will develop for me down the road.
Advancing my rhythm and timing skills Since I have been doing a lot of playing with others over the course of the year, it has really forced me to make sure my timing is on point. (It helps that I live with a drummer ) keeping my timing strong makes it much easier for my band mates to follow along. This goes for both live performances and for recording purposes.
Developing my stage presence While not specifically a guitar skill, this is something I am constantly looking for ways to advance. I front two bands, so I need to make sure that I am equal parts musician and entertainer. I look back to my first incredibly nervous OM performance to what I can do now and am very happy with my evolution in this regard.
#1 by a HUGE margin: I have settled into a comfortable practice routine that I have stuck with for an ENTIRE YEAR. This is something Iāve never managed before, and itās entirely self-motivated. This is an enormous success for me, and every indication points to being able to continue that.
#2 I have learned a broader variety of skills than I have in any of my previous attempts. I am actually playing some rhythms (something I very badly struggled with in the past). Iāve learned to fingerpick a few songs. Iāve learned (and am using in songs) chords that are outside the basic first position open chords, starting to use more of the fretboard. Iāve even dabbled with playing a little bit of lead (mostly just learning foundations I can build on later).
#3 I can play a handful of complete songs along with the original recording. These include bits like changes in rhythm, timing changes, key changes, and a few other things that really start making a song sound musical.
Great topic @Silvia80 . In reverse order as per your OP:
#3 Buying an electric guitar which gave me the incentive to sign up for Justinās lessons. Iād played for 20+ years without really bothering to learn properly. Iāve learned a lot in the 3 months or so that Iāve been taking lessons - strumming technique mainly.
#2 working out the answer to the āwhatās the perfect number of insert your choice of object? ā question. I always itched after another bass when I had only 3. Now that I have 4, I donāt know which one to play. So the answer is 3.5 .
#1 is it a bass one, or a guitar one, or even pianoā¦ā¦ā¦drum roll, unnecessary tension buildingā¦ā¦ā¦drum rollā¦ā¦.
ā¦ā¦ā¦Itās a bass one (sorry ). Learning to play / improvising a walking bass line to āAutumn leavesā and managing to record it playing my fretless bass
Just wanted to say that your story about Rayando el Sol is quite inspirational to meā¦ I have been learning (slowly) many of the songs my wife & I love & that have been special to us in our lives togetherā¦ I think thatās so cool that you picked a song to touch your wifeās heart! Kudos to you!
On a different note, for the last 302 days straight (the app tracks my progress) I have been learning Spanish with the Duolingo app. I live in the Southwestern part of the US so thereās a lot of Spanish speakers hereā¦ Iāve been able to have short conversations already & when I ask if Iām āunderstandableā I always get āĀ”Si, estĆ” bien!ā
I use the free version of the app, do 1 lesson every day & feel Iāve made a lot of progress - all without having a Spanish speaker as my spouseā¦ youād probably learn a lot faster!
Yes, learning songs to play and sing to your partner is a very motivating way of making progress, if itās appreciated. Thatās the fastest I have picked up a new song. Many of the Latin songs have rhythms that are just too complicated for me, but once Iāve completed Grade 3 (which I admit is still a very long way off - Iām only on grade 2 module 11 after a year and a half), I may try and have lessons with a Colombian guitar teacher to learn more latin guitar rhythms. It would be fun.
On the topic of language, Iām actually not trying to learn Spanish, which may seem strange as my wife is Colombian. Iām a native English speaker, but Iām fluent in French, and speak and write German and Italian. My wife was completely fluent in English before I met her and speaks ok in French and a bit of German. Other than French, which I love, neither of us like learning other languages but we had to for our jobs. Itās really not easy to try and learn your partners language when your partner is fluent in your language. Itās a choice of normal conversations in one language versus 3-year old level conversations in the other. But singing songs in Spanish is nice and she appreciates it which is the best thing.
ā¦I canāt listen to the original because of that voice, but what a wonderful rhythm guitar and very confrontational a while ago when I was working on it for a few minutes because playing rhythm guitar with a pick is not my strongest thing, but I showed it to my wife and she was completely happy with it as I and said how easy it looked, and when I explained the rhythm in slo-mo with the ups and downs and the changesā¦ she was amazed and I myself too actually ā¦but without a pick Iām starting to be really happy with almost all strokesā¦but thatās because Iām practicing so much with a pick at the moment 
ā¦ But the Top 3 are something that made me think harderā¦ at least an extra minute or so 
! At some stage (soon I hope) I shall post something on here!
).
The art of songwriting has been quite personally transformational for me. Since my first song, I really feel like I have grown leaps and bounds! I can self-edit a lot better now. I can tell when something needs to be scrapped or if it has potential. I have also learned that there is a lot to be said for keeping things simple- more complex doesnāt necessarily mean better. I continue to be amazed by what I can create and Iām excited to see how this skill will develop for me down the road.
) keeping my timing strong makes it much easier for my band mates to follow along. This goes for both live performances and for recording purposes.
.
). Learning to play / improvising a walking bass line to āAutumn leavesā and managing to record it playing my fretless bass