Soon they'll be shredding in the womb

[shredmeister]

Good music is good music. Has nothing to do with the speed, amount of notes etc.. Has everything to do with feel and communication and you do that by creating and relieving musical tensions based on intervals.

When first learning to shred these cats don't mix it up they just play fast all the time. That is extremely boring. Some will be good in time some won't. It is a necessary step along the road.

A good solo is like a conversation .... back and forth.. question and answer perhaps... Speed should be used sometimes, vibrato other times, slow down and let the music breath ..... variety is the key. Don't play all single notes or all triplets. Try some timing variations etc.... Mix in chords, arps, double stops etc... Play some 5 or 7 note riffs or passages to the timing.

Play in and out of the box. Mix scales. Paralelism. Point counterpoint. Harmonics, scrapes etc.... Lots and lots of stuff a person can do and use.

This is what a good player does whatever style they play. I get bored with slow stuff constantly also. Key is to learn how to express yourself, make it interesting and technically challenging.

The hardest part but the necessary part is to learn all this shit and then forget about it and just play. Why learn it ?

1) Gives you more variety in your playing as you learn how to combine scales over various chord progressions 2) You learn how NOT to be dissonant in your playing while still being able to play in and out of the box 3) Exposes you to the things that are possible and things you personally like 4) Teaches you how to develop your own unique style and sound 5) Can't explain it but you don't have to think anymore - fingers and ears just take over.

Anyway just some random thoughts on my personal approach anyway.

[gorch]

The 9 year old sounds quite regular to me. We've brought 3 boys through the same process, one on the same instrument. It all depends on the repertoire you go through. Our boys all started at age of 6. At nine they were sounding quite similar. Once the guitar teacher said to me that up until 9 the brain still needs to develop rhythm comprehension. That's the reason for the mechanic impression on childish playing. Our youngest boy, 9 actually, struggles quite some timing problems he won't be able to get rid of until he grows it out.

If you are in the same situation with your children, be patient.

[diablo175]

I'll paraphrase Andrew and NC Wyeth to define what makes good art, as music is obviously a form of art.

"Art must come from emotion, without it, it is purely clinical exercise of technique."

"Drawing cubes and cones ( a parallel to learning basic chords and scales) all day drove me up a tree. But my father believed in it and I believed in it. You've got to know the rules before you can break them."

[mathman]

The 9 year old sounds quite regular to me. We've brought 3 boys through the same process, one on the same instrument. It all depends on the repertoire you go through. Our boys all started at age of 6. At nine they were sounding quite similar. Once the guitar teacher said to me that up until 9 the brain still needs to develop rhythm comprehension. That's the reason for the mechanic impression on childish playing. Our youngest boy, 9 actually, struggles quite some timing problems he won't be able to get rid of until he grows it out.

If you are in the same situation with your children, be patient.

For a 9 year, sounds pretty good to me. He is getting the parts and will no doubt improve many aspects of his playing in later life.

As to the bolded part on timing issues. There's my new excuse. I've never grown up!

[bcsride]

Obama bangs Walter Cronkite

What?

[LucSulla]

If you are in the same situation with your children, be patient.

Nope! Straight to the gypsum mines they will go! They can learn about holding a pocket to the rhythm of a pick ax.