How To Play Better Guitar Licks One Note At A Time

by Tom Hess


Want to play better guitar licks that sound more creative and expressive?

Here is a quick tip:

Focus on making every note you higher quality.

What does this mean?

It means not to rush into playing more notes during lead guitar licks in order to search for notes that sound good. This happens commonly when we want to play something cool but don't know what to play or more importantly, how to play it.

Here is what to do instead:

Get better at squeezing more emotion from just a single note in order to make that note sound amazing. By making this a habit, you soon get better at playing 2, 3, 4 or 100 notes that are very high quality.

Before you know it, you start playing better guitar licks and solos that are fully of amazing notes that are all played with full intention.

Sound good?

Great!

Read below to learn more and get started playing better guitar licks in no time:
 


How To Play Better Guitar Licks One Note At A Time:
  1. Find or make a basic backing track consistent of a single note, power chord or chord.
     
  2. Choose a single note from any guitar scale, arpeggio or lick you have memorized and play it over the backing track.

    As you play this note, squeeze tons of emotion out of it by using a wide variety of techniques to make it sound as unique as possible as you repeat it.

    For example: Do this by using different rhythms, sliding into the note from above or below, using wide or subtle vibrato, bending into the note from the note below it, and so forth.
  3. Next, add one more note and repeat this process on both notes. Keep repeating this process by adding a single note each time.

This helps you become very effective at adding tons of emotion into your guitar playing. Over time, this simple approach helps you play killer guitar solos and licks with ease.

Want to learn another secret to playing emotional guitar licks that sound great?

Learn it now by watching this video about playing with unique and emotional guitar bends.


About Tom Hess: Tom Hess is a guitar teacher, music career mentor and guitar teacher trainer. He teaches rock guitar lessons online to students from all over the world and conducts instructional live guitar training events attended by musicians from over 50 countries.

Learn even more powerful ways to become a better lead guitarist by taking online electric guitar classes.