Module 3 questions on approaches

[andrew]

OK, I spent way longer on Module 2 than I thought I would but there was just so much to practice! Now onto Module 3 and making sense of the various approaches. I have a couple of questions:

The notes say to give the Mixolydian approach exercises for patterns 1, 4 and 5, two weeks of practice before moving on. Should I be doing the exercises for Video 4 (Calisthenics 2) before moving on to Video 5 (Calisthenics 3) or should I do both for this two-week regimen? I realize I can do anything I want, right, but is it expected that Video 5 is not to be approached before mastering the exercises in Video 4 or is it that one needs to master both of these before moving onto the first etude. Or does it really matter as long as I have both down before doing so?

Second, is it expected that I think of these approaches formally and consciously when playing them e.g., should I be thinking ‘this is a chromatic approach from underneath’ or more — should I be able to say to myself, “I’m going to play this solo now with unprepared chromatic approaches from above on my 7ths but use indirect approaches on every 3rd”. Is the goal that I become that familiar with this thought process and will it impact my progress negatively if I can’t get that internalized now?

thanks — still love the course.

• This topic was modified 8 years, 10 months ago by andrew.

[Richie]

Hi Andrew,

Many students ask these questions, so I am going to elaborate on the answer here for everyone’s sake.

As far as doing the exercises for 2 weeks before moving on, these are just guidelines. I wrote the books before doing the online course and as you know, there is no limit as to how much time you spend on each chapter when working with a book before moving on. When I did the online video portions for each chapter, I assigned each chapter to a module. I had to assign a period of time to each module before opening up a new one, in order to keep students focused on specific material in a certain order. However, it is a 15 month course and throughout I stress the fact that it is rare for anyone to get through the material in the 30 days allotted to each module. That’s why you have an additional 6 months to catch up after all the 9 modules (9 months) have been introduced…and remember, after that you have the pdf books to keep working for as long as needed. So don’t worry! The bottom line: everybody’s progress is different depending on their level of skill and proficiency on the instrument.

I recommend getting semi-comfortable with one approach, before attempting a new one. The approaches are presented in such order that each new approach is bound to reinforce the previous one. I do recommend being able to play the corresponding calisthenics at a slow to moderate tempo without messing up before learning the etude that follows. That is because the etudes serve as a model of how those approaches can be utilized in the context of a given harmonic progression. The aim is that you gain new insight from their inclusion in the etudes, especially as you play them over different rhythmic structures. First playing them in 8th notes in the context of an entire arpeggio, as in the calisthenics, is what’s really laying down the foundation for its use anywhere! Again, the etude is a model of the finished product. That said, I can’t stress enough, the practice of writing out the corresponding “rhythm templates” which many students neglect. Before you can spontaneously incorporate these into a solo in real time, it is very helpful to practice properly organizing your thoughts on paper. If you find you make mistakes when writing them out under no pressure, it means you don’t fully understand how to use them and need to go back and make corrections.

Finally, yes, when you are improvising, at least in the “programming” stage, you should be aware of your target notes and the type of approaches you are performing at all times. As a matter of fact, this is one of the main goals of why mastering the bebop calisthenics with the different fingerings is so important! That’s also why it incorporates different approaches to different target chord tones in the various exercises. It is drilling you so you become aware of the location of each chord tone that can be targeted with any given approach. When this is fully programmed and becomes second nature, you should be able to visualize this on the fretboard and hopefully pre-hear exactly what you are about to play. That is the ultimate goal and only then are you fully in control of what you play!

Hope this somewhat answers your question. If anyone needs further clarification on this subject, please feel free to ask and I will do my best to try and shed more light on the subject.

[andrew]

Thanks Richie

That is most helpful. I know for sure I won’t get all through this in monthly slots, I anticipate much longer, but I’m happy — your course is forcing me to engage in far more deliberate practice than I might otherwise, and that’s what the science tells us is the way forward, right?

I think I am learning how much of this skill development is mental or cognitive. The fingerings on most things are always doable by me and I don’t struggle after all these years of handling a guitar with getting my fingers to do most things. What I am really weak on is knowing what I want them to do, controlling this in anything like real time, and understanding why my music is sounding the way it sounds. The callisthenic sections are forcing me to attend thoughtfully to this part of my playing, and while I can only hope the knowledge will become semi-automatic after more practice, I still have to make myself deliberately attend to these aspects and not just rely on my ears. It’s very slow progress but the method makes sense to me.

No doubt I’ll have more questions as we go — thanks for all the support en route.

Peace

Andrew

[andrew]

Follow up on module 3 calisthenics exercises.

Progressing slowly — couple of specific questions:

1) In video #5 accompanying the bebop calisthenics 3 section, brief mention is made of checking the appendix page 112 for graphic depiction of arpeggio cycles. To what is this referring – I don’t seem to have a page 112 of any download here so far. Can someone point me to the right page/download?

2) In practicing these exercises, I understand it’s better to play one exercise over each pattern at a time, then moving on to the next exercise and doing it again. This I am doing and I can see the benefit. What I’d like to ask is if I should push through all exercises ( by 3 patterns) in each session or if I should stick to one exercise and play it on each pattern until I get it to a comfortable level, then pick another exercise and do the same…or does it matter? Right now, I sit down to play the 24 exercises in the book, and work until I’ve played all in three patterns (using the order of patterns per exercises as mentioned above). It’s sort of daunting but I can do this in the hope that it gets quicker each day or each session but the reinforcement is slow. Any one else experience this?

Best wishes for the season to all.

Andrew

[Richie]

Graphic depictions of the arpeggio cycles is Video #5 in Module 2 and includes the downloads below the video.

As far as the Calisthenics, it is better to do all 3 fingerings for each one before moving on to the next. You need all 3 equally. Also, you don’t have to do them all in one sitting. You can alternate different portions for different days of the week. It does get easier with time, and eventually becomes second nature and starts coming out in your playing. The rhythm templates are part of this process…

[Regalado Santos]

Richie,

A question about the 15 mos. I thought that we only have 3 more months after we get module 9, totaling to 12 months. Did this change recently to 15?

Reggie

[Richie]

Yes, it actually changed to 15 months sometime last February.

[Author]

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