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Two Principles of Learning Music
– Slow it down –
Slow it down until you can do it on time.
Don't go fast on the easy bits, slow on the hard bits; stop, start, stop, start.
Get your exercise ON TIME as soon as possible.
You don't start learning until you are playing to a regular beat. (Even if it's really slow.) The speed will take care of it's self.
– Chop it up –
(into smaller pieces)
If you can't jump over the creek you need to make some stepping stones to get to the other side.
If you can't play a piece of music you need to cut it up into smaller bits (bars or phrases) that you can handle.
Just try the first 1 or 2 bars of a piece until you can do it, then learn the next few bars or phrases then put them both together.

Practise Strategies

  • Chords (Left Hand Only)
    Step 1 - Change from one chord to a new chord slowly without strumming. Figure out which fingers will move where. Are there any fingers which don't move?
    Step 2 - Strum Two Bar changes slowly but on time. i.e. [A [A [E7 [E7 etc.
    Step 3 - Strum One bar changes. i.e. [A [E7 [A [E7 etc.
    Step 4 - Practise a simple chord chart. i.e. part of a song or a few bars of a family of chords.
    Step 5 - Practise the chord chart for a simple song.
    The more times you repeat it the better you'll sound. To teach our hands to do something we must repeat the correct movements many, many times.

  • Strums and Fingerpicking (Right hand Only)
    Step 1 - Practise the right hand pattern slowly until it's smooth. Hold a chord but don't change chords yet.
    Concentrate on the right hand.
    Aim for a good loud sound played evenly and on the beat.
    Step 2 - Practise the right hand pattern slowly with 2 bars changes on easy chords. When it's smooth, try it with other chords.
    Step 3 - Practise the right hand pattern slowly with 1 bar changes.
    Step 4 - Practise the right hand pattern with a simple chord chart.
    i.e. part of a song or a few bars of a family of chords.
    Step 5 - Practise the right hand pattern with the chord chart for a simple song that you already know well.

  • New Songs (If you have never seen the song before)
    Step 1 - Read through the arrangement.
    Count out the bars and chord changes.
    Step 2 - Strum through the song slowly using an easy strum to concentrate on the chords. Do this until you can do all the changes easily.
    If you have a problem with only a few bars, practise them on their own then do the whole song.
    Step 3 - Run through the right hand exercises above using chords from the song and parts of the song chart.
    Play through the song chord chart using the suggested right hand pattern.