If you are reading this article, then you want to achieve something more in music than to play in a minor-order sequence in a circle, and therefore, you should be ready to work. Improvisation is a serious step in mastering the guitar, which will open up new horizons in music, but you should remember that there is no quick way to do this. Be prepared to devote a lot of time and patience, only then can you succeed.
Where to begin?
So, what do you need to learn to improvise on guitar? First of all, of course, the guitar itself. Acoustic or electric guitar - does not matter much, only the material that you have to learn (but not completely) will differ, and what you will play in the end. Due to the differences of the acoustic guitar from the electronic one, the playing methods differ, besides, where the acoustics fit perfectly, the electric guitar will be simply inappropriate.
But this does not mean that if you want to play heavy music, for example, you need to throw away your acoustics and run for an electric guitar.
Having learned to improvise in one style, you can easily master another. The main thing is to master the basic principles. First of all it is necessary to master the main scales. For starters, you can restrict pentatonikami. In pentatonic, in contrast to the usual frets, there are no semitones, therefore there are only 5 sounds in such a scale. In order to get pentatonic, it is enough to remove from the usual scales steps that form a semitone. For example, in C major, this is the notes of fa and si (4th and 7th steps). In A minor the notes of C and F are removed (2nd and 6th steps). Pentatonic is easier to learn, easier to improvise, and it fits most styles. Of course, her melody is not as rich as in other keys, but for a start, it fits perfectly.
You need to constantly replenish your stock, except gamma, musical phrases - learn standard phrases, learn solos from your favorite songs, learn all sorts of cliches, just listen and analyze music. All this will be the basis, which further will help you to feel free and confident during improvisation. In addition, it is important to develop a sense of rhythm and harmonic hearing.
For the development of harmonic hearing, you can also do solfeggio, sing two-voice dictations. For example, you can play the scale in C major (or any other that suits your voice) on the guitar, while singing a third higher. Also ask a friend to play or preset chords for you in a random order. Your goal in this case will be to determine the chord by ear. For the development of a sense of rhythm suitable repetition of various rhythmic patterns. It does not have to play - you can just clap or knock.
Step 2. From words to action
Studying improvisation, it is important not only to have a rich arsenal gamma and musical phrases, but also constantly play. Roughly speaking - in order to learn to improvise on guitar, you need to improvise. You can, for example, turn on your favorite song and, adjusting to the music, try to improvise your own solo, you need to listen to yourself, analyze whether your game fits into the big picture, whether you are playing the rhythm or the key.
Do not be afraid to make mistakes, it is an integral part of learning, moreover, even experienced guitarists often make mistakes during improvisation. You can not only play songs, but also record your own sequence in one of the keys and improvise under it. Do not set impracticable goals, work in those keys with which you are already familiar.
The sequence should not be a chaotic set of chords, it should sound, and it is desirable to sound good. But it is also not worthwhile to invent too much. If you're into rock and roll or blues, you can try the following sequence: tonic-tonic-subdominant-subdominant-tonic-tonic-dominant-subdominant-tonic-dominant. It will look something like this (for example, the key is used in C major):
You can slightly change the rhythmic pattern in order to make the sequence sound better. For example:
And so on. You can try your own variations of rhythmic patterns. The main thing is to keep the chord sequence and make transitions between them in time. This sequence is good because it is simple, easily perceived by ear and it is easy to improvise for it. In addition, such techniques as "suspenders", "hammer-up" or "pull-off", "sliding", "vibrato", and many other techniques characteristic of rock music will fit well into it.
Also, it would not hurt to write down everything that you play. This will help to more deeply analyze your game, to pay attention to errors that you have not noticed before.
That's all. Learn the basics, play, be patient, and you will definitely succeed.
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