Rubato Guitar Lesson – How To Instantly Improve Your Lead Guitar Solos

There is a little-known (and simple) technique that makes your guitar solos almost as unique to you as your fingerprints.

It has nothing to do with playing fast.

It has nothing to do with knowing a lot of scales.

(Or knowing a lot about music theory.)

It has nothing to do with your vibrato.

(As cool as vibrato is, it’s pretty easy to match someone’s vibrato… not so with this little-known technique.)

Yngwie, Jason Becker, Eddie Van Halen, Paul Gilbert, Steve Vai and others all use it in their solos.

And although it is simple, it’s very hard to do this technique the same way as someone else.

That’s why, when you start using it, you may hear others say:

“This totally sounds like you”

...the moment they hear your solos.

The technique is called Rubato. And it's one of the best and easiest ways to make your guitar solos more creative and original.

Ready to learn more about it? Start by watching this video:

 

Here are some of my best rubato tips on how to integrate this technique into your solos:


Lead Guitar Tip #1. Practice Playing Your 16^th Note (And Triplet) Scale Sequences With Rubato

Sounds simple, I know.

But if you don't practice Rubato – you won’t be able to use it in your playing.

So, take your 16^th note (or 16^th note triplet) guitar licks, and apply rubato to them.

The same way I showed you in this video.

Want to see more examples of Rubato? No problem.

Check out this video:
 

 

Bonus tip: learn other people’s guitar solos (that are within your skill level). Then create variations on guitar licks in those solos using rubato.

That gives the solo the same effect as saying familiar words in a strange accent.

Lead Guitar Tip #2: Make Musical Rests (Silence) Work For You

Rubato sounds great because of the musical tension it builds.

To build even more tension (and take your rubato licks to a new level) - use rests. (Silence.)

How?

Simply stop playing in the moments when the listener expects to hear sound.

The silence makes the listener crave the sound of your next note. And makes that note all the more satisfying when it finally comes.

(Use your imagination for the kinds of solos you can play using this.)

Want to hear examples? Watch this video:
 

 

(If you like this tip about using silence, you will LOVE lead guitar soloing tips in this free lead guitar playing eGuide).

 

Lead Guitar Tip #3. Work On Your Timing.

Strangely enough, one way to get better at rubato (stretching & contracting time) is by learning to play in time.

Does playing in time actually matter for lead guitar playing? You bet. (Try playing harmonized lead guitar melodies that are not in time and see what happens.)

The first step of learning to play in time is:

…get clear on how good your timing is right now. Only then can you start to improve this area of your playing.
 

 

Bad news is: most guitarists never work on their timing. And it can take weeks for this skill to noticeably improve.

Good news is: once your timing gets tighter – it becomes much easier to use rubato in your guitar solos. And your entire guitar playing starts to sound much better too.

Want to learn more (easy) ways to improve your guitar solos that most guitarists don’t know? No problem. Check out this free eGuide on how to add fire & emotion into your guitar playing (even if you can’t play fast yet).