Welcome to SHRED BOOTCAMP! I'll be your Drill Instructor! And I do mean DRILL! As in a large power tool used in slasher films and Paul Gilbert concerts. Here is were you EARN THE LIVING DEATH out of your fingers and break through any speed bumps/barriers to become a MASTER CHIEF of Shred!
QUICK TIPS TO PREPARE YOU FOR BATTLE
*Make sure you get both hands in the shot when shooting your video*Make sure you use a metronome for the first several Missions and that the metronome can be heard.*After you complete a mission, shoot me a PM and let me know it's ready and I'll give you a debrief! These are pass / fail, so if you pass you BADGE UP and if not, I'll give you some feedback and you head in to the breach once again.
*The first several missions are VERY simple. They are just to get you used to the bootcamp process.
*Most importantly, there is NEVER a speed requirement in bootcamp. I want you to push yourself to play as brisk as you can, but NEVER at the expense of precision. If you find you are missing a note here and there, slow down a bit. Speed is just a byproduct of precision so my goal is to make you a very precise player. At that point, speed just happens.

MISSON #1

THE MISSION

1.)Your mission is to go all the way back to the very start. The base of the mountain.

LESSON 1. http://bitly.com/gmclesson1

Which you will play SUPER PERFECT!. Speed it up bit by bit until you feel your ready to take it to WAR (Any speed, it's up to you, no points for speed, only points for playing in a precise manner as speed is simply a byproduct of precision) Shoot a video and post it as a reply to this post. Make sure to EMBED the video by clicking on INSERT SPECIAL ITEM above the smiley face and then you'll get a drop down menu. Click on INSERT YOUTUBE VIDEO and follow the instructions in the Pop Up Menu. I'll then offer a constructive and brutally honest critique.

THE AFTERMATH

Upon nailing the crap out of lesson one at a speed you didn't think possible, and playing it a clean as a freshly waxed floor, you will be given your first insignia of Rank in BOOTCAMP! You will then proceed to Lesson #2 and so forth. Here is the link to the entire 400 plus Lesson Library. https://www.guitarmasterclass.net/wiki/inde...rtal:Techniques

Here is the link to your own PRIVATE HOUSE OF PAIN!...Er I mean.. SHRED!

http://bitly.com/potsausbootcamp
Here is an updated Guitar Pro 5 File of Mission 1
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Practice!
Sarge

What? Sounds great. I love it.

Just embed for starting.



Thank u so much.

Welcome to the fight Soldier! I like the way rever/delay sounds on a tone as well, bu it makes it harder to grade since the delay covers up mistakes in your playing. Some reverb is fine, just kill the delay. You are doing well here. I That way I can hear you and not the delay. Ok soldier? can see that you start to loose precision a bit when you change strings but we can work on that as we go. Let's review!!
MEDALS OF HONOR
*FORM: You are displaying solid technique here Soldier. keep it up! Muting, clean strikes. Nice!
*TEMPO: Not rushing or lagging, Spiff!
*AGGRESSION: Jumping in with aggressive style!! Score!!
You are ready for what awaits you!

You just ...
LEVELED UP!!!!Keep it going!Sarge

🍺🤟🍺

You are ready to move on to MISSION 2! A bit of reverb is fine, just try to cut back on delay since it makes it hard to grade the Mission. Make sense? I love delay Just not when trying to judge precision strikes.
Sarge

Hi Todd

next is up.



Thx for checking.

NICE!! These first few Missions are mostly about getting your production process smoothed out and getting you accustomed too the rigors of BOOTCAMP. You are doing a great job! I can see both hands in the frame, which is critical and takes some folks several vids to sort out, I can hear your guitar, also sometimes takes several vids and I can see the metronome. You have a great start here Soldier!!! Let's Debrief!!!
MEDALS OF HONOR

*FORM: First thing I'm looking for here is good form. You are displaying solid technique here Soldier. keep it up! Muting, hand synch, clean strikes. Nice!
*TEMPO: Second thing I wanna see on Mission 2 is smooth and steady pace. Not rushing or lagging, Score!!
*AGGRESSION: Lastly I wanna see a bit of bloodlust!!! Jumping in with aggressive style for sure!
You are ready for what awaits you!

You just ..
LEVELED UP!!!!

Sarge
Here is an updated Guitar Pro 5 file for Mission 2 and Pic.
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Thx Todd

with your Threat 😅 I see there is a real problem in my right hand technique. But i would hopefully say that I can probably crack the code to insta shred sometimes. See ya next time.
🤟🍺🍺🍺🤟

These Missions are all built to make you ready for the day when you can Shred like a HOLY TERROR. Each one builds on previous work. You are off to a good start! Keep it up!!
Sarge

Ay Sarge, here is my Status report.

First one 176.
Second. 192.

Nice! I can see the metronome in the background so I can tell you are in tight synch with it even though I can't hear it. As long as I can see it I don't really need to hear it. You have the right guitar for this work thats for sure.Nice Ibby!! Your fingers are working their way up as well! Nicely done. Let's Debrief!!
MEDALS OF HONOR

*PICKING TECHNIQUE: Solid picking technique. The picking is really the core of everything we are going to be doing so it's great to see you have a good handle on it!!!

*MUTING: Without a solid palm mute, all is lost. Your palm mute is spot on and no string noise is escaping. Keep that up!!!!!

*SYNCH: Keeping your right/left hand synch is another crucial part of this. You've got very solid hand synch and you are ready for what's next!!!
You ticked all of the boxes I'm looking for in this mission and played at a precision/speed I really didn't expect. Clearly spending time in the Wood Shed!! You are more than ready for the next Mission.
In other words you just.....

LEVELED UP!!!! Sarge
Here is an updated Guitar Pro File for Mission 3 and Tablature Pic.
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🤩 great thing thanks Todd. But im feeling very uncomfortable with my right hand. Its like not from the wrist. 😭.

Ibanez Prestige Pcm 180. Slightly Guitar.

Your right hand does have a pinch of stiff arm to it. This is a natural response to speeding up. You must focus on the picking hand and try to start picking from the fingers back, instead of from the arm forward. Does that make sense?
Sarge




[

I see. Thats the problem. Focussing on next mission. thx

Your playing is improving with each and every Mission. I usually don't see this much improvement this early on in the process to be honest. It's clear that you are putting enough work in to each and every one. This will serve you well as you continue. As you move forward, try to play each drill with just the picking hand and focus entirely on the picking during practice. Just mute all the strings with the left hand. This will feel STRANGE at first. It's part of learning to separate your hands so that you can control both of them at once later one. Sort of how drummers need to learn to separate hands and feet to play properly. It will let you focus on right hand (not stiff arming) while you focus on fretting with the left hand.

Todd

Here is a guitar pro file and pic for Mission 4.
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Hi Todd

im already playing no4. Focussing right hand. Need some time to calm down right hand stiffy thing. Got some ache 2days ago.

It's natural for the body to tense up when one starts to play fast, but, it's important to work through it and get to the point where one can stay relaxed and still play precisely and briskly. Isolating the hands helped me. E.G. Only using he picking hand and then only using the fretting hand, then playing with both together.

Tensing up is something that kills endurance as it burns out the arm/hand and it kills precision since one can start to pick all the way from the Elbow which is like trying to to detailed drawing by holding on to a pencil by it's eraser. That said, it hasn't stopped wads of players from adopting the stiff arm style. There are many fine players who simply can't play any other way. However, if at all possible, I do suggest avoiding it

It's more important to be able to play in a controlled and relaxed fashion with precision, rather than just gaining a few BPM at the expense of gaining a bad playing habit that's very tough to fix later on.
Todd

Here is an updated Guitar Pro 5 file for MISSION and tab pic.
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Hi Sarge

many work there for Right Hand. Loosin Always Stamina at the whole end. But I can now just trigger my Right Hand to watch out.
Trying to Speed up later. 3 Hours of practising.

This one was some Kind of Challenge.

Therefor I got many problems at the treble part of the Guitar.
10. to 46. Strings

Mabey I can offer some Stiffy Right Hand Guitar Technique Lesson at Gmc. 😂

The good news is you've got this!!!! I see what you mean about losing stamina. You are doing just fine at first. I can't see your left hand to start with so better framing of the first shot would help, but then towards the end your hands lose traction and it sorta falls apart. However, if you would have just cut the video before that, it would have been just fine. For progress videos (just to get some feedback from me) leaving mistakes in there is fine. For MISSION VIDEOS, where you want me to look at it for badging up to the next level, It should show both hands the entire time, and be free from mistakes.

Keep in mind, you have hundreds of Missions to get through. As you go, your hands will adapt and earn more stamina and speed So playing each Mission well, will get you where you want to go. Even if you dont play each mission "Fast". Fast comes from repetition and there are 400 Missions so there is plenty of repetition ahead.


Your Picking looks good here and you have good hand synch! I'd say slow down just a pinch so that your hands are not so tense. It's that tension that will KILL your endurance. You'll notice when I'm playing a fast passage, I barely look like I'm using any force at all. As a result, I can keep it up forever. My hands don't get tired.

Here is a quick demo. Just some random shreddery.

Hi Todd

Your picking is really impressive.
thx for your critics, now I really know what to do to get straight through. (new songtext 😅?)

Next vid will be briefing.

Thanks!!! The key to being able to pick with precision and speed is to find your "zen". A calm place in your mind where you can let your hands speed up or slow down without tensing your body. This just takes practice. Once you get used to it, you will be able to play as fast as you want for as long as you want.
Sarge

I really did feel something sometimes. Then it raises to high tension in my mind (not my hands) like a risk bar and my hands not connected with my Zen or Mojo anymore. Got this feeling already many years ago. Lost it and trying
to find again.

Please dont be Angry. Im sorry. This is my weakness. Trying to reach the highest Level.
I really try to Speed down. But than the Feeling Comes true and the Velocity rises.

Hope this is good.

Congrats on sorting out your fingering/picking/muting, it's all there!!!! There's only one problem. The speed drifts up. In much later missions, this sort of thing wouldn't be an issue. Here at the start I really need to see that you are able to play without drifting in terms of your timing. Does that make sense? I'm sure that you can. I just need to see it in a Mission Video. You can use a metronome to help keep you on an steady track, even if you don't record the metronome itself I just need to hear you play this bit without drifting faster or slower. I hate to send you back to fight yet again. I should have been more clear in my last critique. Just a few bars would do it. You don't need to travel all the way up the neck, just a few bars where you play at a steady speed without drifting faster or slower. You are ready for the next Mission Soldier! We just have to sort this vid out first.
Sarge

Ok Todd



I tried this piece 5. Estimated practice time 90minutes

Well Fought Soldier!! I can see the metronome going and your playing looks to be consistent with it. It sounds smooth and evenly played which is what I need to see in order to badge ypu up! Let's Debrief!!
MEDALS OF HONOR

*PALM MUTE STEADY ON: Your Palm mute is good at what it's meant to be doing which is preventing string noise. Cheers there! I did notice that it looks like you've developed a habit of not planting your palm on the bridge. As a result, you are muting over the strings instead of over the bridge. This is a habit that will not serve you as you progress. In future Missions, try to plant your palm on the bridge as you can see me doing in the vids. It's the best placement for it given what we are trying to do in these Missions.

*PICKING STEADY ON: Your picking is very even and solid as it should be. It will get more controlled and steady as we go. I wanted to ask what type of pick you are using? For our Missions, a thickness of 1.0mm is suggest and it should have a point. Many pointy picks are available, jazz picks, petrucci picks, etc. Having a pick with zero bend/flex is crucial and the point will help a lot with precision. If you are already using a 1.0 mm jazz pick, then it's sorted


*ENDURANCE: I have not had a chance to really see your endurance on display until Mission 4 and I'm impressed. This Mission is one that can burn your arm off if you are not doing it correctly which is sorta the point of Mission 4. if one tries this mission using the STIFF ARM picking technique, for example, it won't last long. The good news is you are picking from the wrist not the elbow! Well done. You may have to re train your hand a bit as you shift your palm to rest on the bridge instead of on the strings in the middle of the guitar.

You are ready for the next Mission Soldier!! You just..


LEVELED UP!!!!
Sarge
PREVIEW OF MISSION 5.


You've got the pattern down which is a great start. When you put your mission vid up, make sure you are planting your right hand on the bridge instead of picking over the neck pickup. Also, it sounds like you are having a pinch of drift as you may be playing near the edge of your ability. By the time you make your mission vid, you may be able to play at this speed and do it with precision. If you find you are still feeling a bit out of control, just back off the tempo a pinch for the Mission vid.

Thanks for badging up, 🤟 Thx for the great critics. Next thing I really does not recognized tge right position of right hand. I tried many things. Only positioning on bridge for complete damb palm muting. I ve never learned a good position of a rest point for my right hand. I knew there is a lack. But did not know anything. Not before a Hint. 🥳 I will go on and be prepared for the absolutely nightmares of picking. Come on 😏

Its a Jim Dunlop Ultex Jazz III

The Jazz III is a fine choice. Nice and pointy and not to much bend/flex. One tip on picking, make sure you barely dip the pick point past the strings. Don't pick too deep. Especially for what we are doing, I'm trying to train your picking hand to use fairly shallow picking and just use the very tip of the pick and not let the tip go far beyond the string. E.G. The space between the string and the guitar is the gap that the pick should just barely enter. The more deep one does pick, it slows the time to recover for the next pick strike.

Right hand position is very important. We need to work on getting you a good habit of resting your right hand on the bridge. Even if you are not muting, hold the hand right above the bridge so that you just need to drop the hand down just a bit to get a solid mute. Picking over top of the neck pickup isomething to be done just for getting a specific tone. It's not where you want to keep your hand for practice. Once you develop a better habit on this, everything will get a bit easier. Try it on the next Mission!
Sarge

Click to view attachment

There I go

Why is it reversed?

Here is Mission 5 at 126bpm



I tried no6



My 1st target is that I can Play the neclassical etude no1 by Marcus.

I know he wrote that it is an easy piece but there is a lot Right Hand technique. I dont think it is an 5. I would say its a 7.
Do you confirm?

Progress!!! You are getting it soldier. Let's Debrief.

MEDALS OF HONOR

*TRAVERSE: String Traverse is a tricky thing. It's easy to stumble on it. You start out playing really well. It's only near the end that it starts to get a little wonky. It's not enough to prevent you moving on. It's worth mentioning though as you may be pushing your Mission vids just a pinch beyond your actual ability. You need to push in order to progress. If you see a run getting sketchy, you may need to slow down just a pinch temporarily.
*PACE: You have solid pace the entire way. Not rushing or lagging. [/size]
[size=2]*ARTICULATION: You are not picking from the elbow which is great. It's easy to stiffen the entire arm and elbow pick which is a bad habbit and hard to break. You are articulating the pick very well. I would suggest trying to reduce the overall range of pick motion just to keep things as minimal as possible which reduces the amount of time required to make the next pick strike.

TIP TO TRY : I'd like to introduce you to "Thumbless" technique. Just pull your left thumb off of the neck when playing the next drill. It takes some getting used to. It prevents you from using too much pressure and wearing out your hand. When you fret hand gets tired, it starts to miss notes. It's only natural. Going thumbless will extend your endurance and teach your hand to use the finger tips. Give it a try!


This one is sorted. you just......


LEVELED UP!!!


MISSION 6 PREVIEW

Thanks for the preview on 6! You have the lick going well. I do notice that it seems to get unstable toward the end. You may be playing it just a pinch beyond your ability. The way to fix that is with repetition and thus increase your ability, by slowing down the metronome to the point where you can play it clean, then building up speed a few BPM at a time. Make sure your picking hand is synched up with what your fretting hand is doing and it should work just fine! I think you are very close!!
Todd

Great.

Now I started with 8th at 208




Thumbless. Trying to reduce Right Hand moving.


Next approx at 144 16th



All thumbless

last at 152 16th








Also I reduced the Speed to where i am. To recover more safety

Well Fought Soldier!! Nicely done. Let's Debrief!
MEDALS OF HONOR

ALT PICKING: Your doing great on your Alternate Picking here. This is a pure alt picking drill which is a foundational skill. Being able to alt pick and keep hand synch is critical for moving forward. Nice!
MUTE: Very solid work on the palm mute. Also critical. It's very easy to let the mute go soft and end up with string noise. Good job on keeping a steady mute! Being able to mute while doing tricky picking work is also a foundational skill that we will use quite a bit.
SYNCH: Right/Left hand synch is the core of this drill. If your synch is off, the entire thing will fall apart. This drill is great at revealing any drift in hand synch as there is no space in between to allow for any mistakes. One missed strike sticks out. You have made great progress even since your preview vid! Congrats!
I also noticed your thumbless technique and must say well done. It's a great way to play, especially when learning a new lick. When learning new things and trying to play them briskly, the body automatically tries to tense up. A good way to combat this is to pull the left thumb off the neck which prevents the hand from being able to tense up. It resets tension on the hand so that when you place the thumb back, it serves as a guide not as a clamp. It's the natural trend of the left hand to clamp down that ruins endurance. Being able to play with a relaxed hand is the key to being able to play with precision and speed and endurance. Well done!

You've got this one sorted Soldier. Your improving quite quickly! Onward! You just..
LEVELED UP!!



Sarge

Hi Sarge

thanks for that .

Got this Progress for you. 45min practice. approx

Form here is top notch! If this were on Electric I'd be grading it right now! Speed is good and precision is spot on. Not missing any notes, notes losing synch. Also looks like you could keep this up for days! Nice!
Sarge

With my classical I did it with 133.

This one is at 120



Next one is at 126. I feel more safety at this Speed but some Tension.
I want this for briefing.



Thanks

Well fought!MEDALS OF HONOR
ALTERNATE PICKING MADNESS - Alternate Picking is the core of these drills. It's a foundational skill. You really can't move ahead without it. Yours is coming along nicely!! One quick tip. At the risk of wrecking a perfectly good guitar pick, get a very sharp knife (don't cut yourself of course) and shape the tip of a single guitar pick to a very fine tip. Then play this drill just for kicks. Compare it to your regular pick. I've found the sharper the better.

TRAVERSE IN STYLE - In addition to Alternate picking, this requires nearly non stop string traverse. Miss it one time and the lick falls apart. That's a big part of shredding. Being able to play at high speed with consistency and across strings without losing pace. Shredding a single string lick is sometimes easier, except for Mission 6 of course which is built to be hard. Good traverse skills!

SILENT AS DEATH - Palm muting is always critical. You are doing a good job keeping noise at bay!! I notice you are muting the high strings with your fretting hand and low strings with your pickig hand. Your picking hand is angled up and not flat on the bridge. This is fine until we get in to licks that require you to take your left hand off of the guitar. In those licks you'll start hearing noise. Try to spend a bit of time each day planting your picking hand palm on the bridge and not lifting while picking. Playing over the middle of the guitar is a hard habit to break, but it's possible. In the end, if you can't break it, you can still be a great player. Look at marty friedman. Worst right hand technique i've ever seen and he's a MONSTER player. Still, it's something that will make everything to come much easier.That said, you just...
LEVELED UP!!!!
*SPEED UP REVIEW

You did quite well on the speed up!! I did notice your thumb position shifting as you played in a single position indicating a bit of pressure on the thumb. The thumb is just a guide for the hand but it wants to become a clamp when things speed up. It's a natural reaction that you can train your hand to stop doing over time. If you look at the hands of very fast players it looks like they are barely using any effort at all. They have trained their fingers to use the minimum force needed and thus the tension doesn't slow them down and they have endurance for days. This is where the thumbless technique comes back in. When pushing the speed, try to pull that thumb clear off the neck of the guitar, you may have to pull the guitar in to your body with your right arm. When your hand is planted on the bridge, it can help pull the guitar in and keep it stable since the thumb is not there to help. So thumbless helps in several ways.

Sarge

My Badge. I died and someone (Ybritt) stole it XD

Not to worry Soldier!! Here is a freshly Minted Badge!! Looking forward to your next Mission Video!!!

Palm is located on Bridge. Many Noise. This is aprogress vid

GREAT PROGRESS!!! You are doing much better hear. Your techique sounds cleaner already. Once thing I noticed, your palm is still a little high on the bridge. Try to lower it just a little so that your palm is also muting the high strings. You can also use your pinkpinky as an extension of your palm to mute these. There are many ways to do this. It's an advanced muting technique and it does not work for everyone. If you can make it work for you, It will open up your playing in ways you can't yet imagine.
These are MISSION QUALITY videos IMHO. So if you want to make more please do. These are of great quality though.
NEXT THING TO TRY: Secret Sauce to Shredding Part IITry to articulate/move the pick using only your fingers. Try to not use your wrist, just the thumb/first finger. This is VERY hard at first. Give it a try, at a slow speed.
Here is a video demo.

Keep it up!!
Todd

After some Excercise there is something new I can feel. It is like I can reach much higher velocity. My wrist is dedicated from my forearm. My little girl was ill this week. Tomorrow I can take more time to record and practise

I'm very sorry your little girl is ill I hope she gets better soon!!! I want to make sure you are NOT "PICKING FROM THE ELBOW". It's tempting to stiffen the entire arm and not use the fingers or wrist. This is NOT proper form and I advise against it. Can you make a vid when possible showing what you are talking about? One should pick from the fingers back, not the elbow forward. Does this make sense?

Todd

Sometimes I can reach high velocity. But most of all iam very uncormfortable.
Look at this.

https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=sa_KsZ0G5_Y

I have pain in my pinky and annular. Dont know why.
Guess it is the week i did not play much guitar.

It's a work in progress trying to break some old bad habits. I can hear extra string noise which means you are losing contact with the bridge. Before you can play at light speed, you have to be able to play with proper technique. Even if that means slowing way down to even slower than you started with improper technique. I know how frustrating this can be. Once you get accustomed to playing this way, it will remove the barriers that are holding you back. That chair you are in looks like it is forcing your fretting elbow to be pulled in to an awkward position. Does it feel that way? Maybe pick a new chair? Your picking hand is doing better but I see you are moving your entire hand instead of keeping a mute and trying to move the pick with the thumb and first finger. The results in moving the palm off the bridge and you lose your mute. Forget about speed entirely for just a moment. Play as slow as humanly possible. Just make sure you don't live your palm off the bridge. Just as a test. Plant your palm on the bridge, mute every single string and then pick very very slowly and carefully by just moving your thumb and first finger. Don't move the entire hand using the wrist as a fulcrum. This is an entirely separate technique and we will get to that later. For now try it with your hand planted. Forget how fast it's going. Work on playing with a planted palm mute and using your fingers to move the pick even if you play at 2 beats per minute. I"m hoping to train your hand to correct a habit that has been years in the making. It's not easy, but it's at least worth trying. watch this vid for example. I'm using my thumb and first finger to move the pick. The back of my hand stays planted on the bridge. I start playing slow, then in the second half I speed up but I don't lift my mute. This is the technique I'm trying to share with you. Keep both your hands relaxed. This should not feel painful.
here is a good example, one string one note. Try this. Notice the back of my hand stays planted on the bridge.


some folks call this "circle picking" I just call iti not lifting your mute so you dont' end up with tons of string noise
Here is another example. Remember, speed comes later. You gotta break bad habits first.


[IT'S A WOquote name='Potsau' date='Feb 10 2020, 02:42 PM' post='774674']Sometimes I can reach high velocity. But most of all iam very uncormfortable.
Look at this.

https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=sa_KsZ0G5_Y

I have pain in my pinky and annular. Dont know why.
Guess it is the week i did not play much guitar.


[/quote]

Thanks for your kind words and your work you put in. Im looking forward to send u a vid about this.

Glad to help Soldier!! Give this technique a shot in your next Mission! It may require you to play much slower than you are used to. That's OK. Once you get the technique comfortable, your speed will start to increase at an incredible rate!
Sarge