Go to Lessonface.com for great music teachers, great lessons, guaranteed. When it comes to online music instruction, "the top choice is Lessonface." - LA Times.

What I've noticed about self-teaching yourself guitar is that you get trapped. You get to a point where you feel so badass playing easy power chord metallica riffs that you dont feel like you need to practice any more. That you'll get better just playing the same shit over and over again. I have been stuck in that trap for a few years, and now after these simple exercises totally kicked my ass, I realize I have a lot of work to do. I'm looking forward to becoming a much better guitarist.

"i can last the 3 minutes but when im done i can feel it" thats my pick up line....ive been single for 10 years

"Start off at like 120bpm downpicking eight notes" *Laughs in James Hetfield*

Consistency is crucial. I tell my audience I'd rather them practice for 5-10 minutes per day than to practice several hours once a week or more.

thanks for the lesson Legolas!

hey bro i have been doing this exercise for a month now n i cant believe what i have acheived in this short period of time.i have good ears but i was always finding difficult to play what i wanted to play but after seeing your video i did as you instructed to n now every guitar lessons i watch,i learn it in 5 minutes,so i came back here to show my gratitude towards you,thank you so so much.

My wife makes me do this workout everyday. She said its changed her life forever.

6:54 showed this finger exercise to so many young guitarists over the last 35 years. Great finger exercise to teach ya brain left and right hand coordination. A classical guitarist called Mike Trillo taught me this many years ago and as us musicians do we pass it on. Thanks for the upload gonna share it with my Cousin he duz this exercise in various different ways every day as a warm up. He was a late starter as far as guitar goes. Ade started playing 12 years ago when he was 40. Last week when he phoned me he played the solo for the Scorpions song Lady Starlight. Just goes to show its never to late to start playing an instrument.

Started these last night. My pinky is the grand betrayer.

Honestly, you're by far the best teacher on the Internet.

Teaching guitar for over 27 years? This guy doesn't look a day over 32.

No sarcasm, youtube is graced with your presence, and we are with your teaching. You are the most pleasant teacher to listen to in my life. Please keep making videos.

That legato exercise is tough! Great video.

"And being honest about it." I'm guilty of this. Good lesson.

holy shit I never realized how weak my third and fourth fingers were... I can barely hear the hammer-ons. thanks for the lesson

Dude his down picking alone was insane..

this dude has a good plan

I am always thankful for all the free advice that you would pay for if you took lessons from someone else. There are always people out there that think they are above and beyond any advice, or think they are the best. I don't know what I would consider myself as a player, not a beginner, but far from a pro. All the people that make negative comments when people are showing you things to make you a better player, why don't you make a video, take your time to help others, and see what kind of feedback you get. Thanks for the help, subscribed to your channel and look forward to more advice to help me become a better guitar player. Keep up the good work

I didn't know Jerry Cantrell got a KZfaq channel. Good for him.

I have been playing since i was seven and im now almost eighteen i ,discovered these 3 and 1/2 years ago and they skyrocketed my skills .They are truly, very effective excercises ,go-to for me. This video played a big part in the fact that i am able to play songs and solos like tornado of souls ,crazy train ,master of puppets and recently even flight of the bumblebee, now i want to finally obtain the music degree. Im very grateful ,your video really helped me get to the point where i feel confident to call myself a guitarist ,thank you😎

This guy is an amazing teacher and if you don't see that his objective is preparing you for greatness as a lead guitarist. You don't have a handle on what lead guitarist greatness is.

2:46 The stronger your fingers are, the longer you last😂😂

I think the main thing to remember is that the word, “practice,” is a highly subjective term. Some think it means 20-minutes a day playing whatever feels good. Others think it means 10-hour work days with a rigorous routine & metronome. Most fall somewhere in between, but it all comes back to the old farmer saying, “you reap what you sow!”

The tattoos verify he's legit.

To play fast, you must play slow. This is the first, most fundamental principle.

Are you feeling it now mr Krabs?

does that mean I'm intermediate now? nice!

Dude, watched hundreds of these, and this guy is hands down THE BEST. Loved the way he explained things and his delivery, relaxed and patient. Creative techniques with a simple set up, not an eq'd Fractal and all edited up. Thank you for such a great video!

01:09 - "I can last 3 minutes and when I get done, I can feel it." :-) 02:41 - "It's done with your left hand to create strength with all of your fingers. Ok, the stronger your fingers are, the longer you can last." :-)

One extra step that I was taught (and you did mention it) is economy of movement. Regarding your example playing this Quasi Chromatic Scale. Speed is a result of 2 hand synchronization, equal strength in all left hand fingers and lastly distance. Distance being how far your fingers glide next to the fret board. As one gets faster, it becomes obvious that the further your fingers are away from the frets the more time is waist-ed. Speed and time are locked together. The closer your fingers are to the fret board the shorter the time it takes to hit the fret. Obviously if your fingers are inches away your fighting a loosing battle. So how do you train your fingers to play closer? I will explain. As Steve has explained we will use his Quasi Chromatic Scale but with a twist. A quick word of warning, this is quite hard at first so be patient. Even some seasoned players will struggle with this exercise but i guarantee with SLOW practice you will eventually get it. You may not even get through one whole routine the first few attempts. This is a very difficult exercise but one of the best to force you to play as close as possible to the fret board. Again taking Steve's example 4 fingers one to each fret. Starting on the 6th string play these notes sequentially (Thick E String) 1st finger - 1st fret, 2nd finger - 2nd Fret, 3rd finger - 3rd fret and finally 4th finger - 4th fret. (Exactly as Steve shows) Now here is the twist. Each time you play a note leave your fingers on the fret board. When you finish the first 4 notes (fingers are still holding down lightly on each fret) LIFT your first finger off and move it to the 5th string, (1st fret) and play the note. Again while ALL fingers are still on their given frets LIFT your 2nd finger off and move it to the 5th string (2nd fret) At this point (To check that my explanation is clear) you should have 2 fingers still on the 6th String lightly holding down frets 3 and 4 and two other fingers now holding down the first two notes on the 5th string. Keep going until each finger has been lifted and placed onto the adjacent 5th string - i.e lift your 3rd finger off the 6th string 3rd fret moving it to the 5th String 3rd fret (remember at this point your pinky is still on the 6th string 4th fret) then finally move your 4th finger off the 6th string 4th fret to the 5th string 4th fret. And you are done, well almost :) Keep following this pattern across all strings until you reach the 1st string (Thin E string) Remember that as you move your fingers off one string to the next, once they are on the adjacent string they must also stay down. In other words ALL fingers stay on the fret board and ONLY one finger is being LIFTED and PLACED at any given time. Again, this is very hard but worth your effort. You will soon find that you play extremely close to the neck at all times regardless of what your are playing. Finally this exercise can be reversed. As you end the sequence on the 1st string, still holding down all 4 notes (lightly) lift your Index finger (1st finger) off fret one and move it to fret one of the 2nd string. Now you can go up and down. Don't do any more than one repetition of this exercise in one day. If you feel pain STOP relax stretch and regroup. You will find your 3rd finger is the most retarded in the group. You will probably find you cant lift it up far from the fret board. Hey that finger already knows how to play close. :) Good luck. No charge for this lesson. Peace out.

Love the "intermediate" lesson. So many are beginner or advanced and they overlook all of us intermediate players. Thank you for the great lesson!

I fucking hate my pinkie. its a fucking burden I just hope this will help me

Sometime beginners like myself over analyze great guitar players, but just like the rest of us who learn. . . it is broke down into steps. You do a great job of explaining the techniques that make a good guitarist. Thanks!

You look like you sing for dragon force

Ive been doing these practices ever since this video came out back in the day and im happy to say that i am now ready for the advanced practice lessons.. the first 9 years of practice really helped me, cant wait for the next

Steve bro you rock! I cant tell you how much your lessons have helped me understand and improve at the guitar. I appreciate all your videos and everything that you do.

Steve, thank you so much! Been to teachers before and not once did any offer finger exercises but were eager to show me their own lightning prowess. You're a legend and look forward to finally progressing!

Geezz, this guy helped me more than a years worth of the others lessons I've been watching!

Best teacher i've ever had for free. You deserve a serious reward.

What kind of shampoo do you use?

Been playing guitar on and off for the past 8 years, and these fundamentals still help me with my daily playing. I remember finding this video years ago and doing these exercises, and it really "unlocked" the next level of playing for me. Consistency is the key. Do this stuff every day, even just as a warm up for your play session. You'll be surprised at the results!

This guy seems really awesome as a guitar teacher and also as a guitar player. I like the way he puts enfaces on each aspect of what is important to what we guitarists should improve on 🎸

THE most helpful guitar instruction video I've found on KZfaq so far. Building this strength and precision in my hands using these mundane exercises helped me make tremendous progress in playing with speed and control.

When this guy reaches for the metronome, it looks like his entire soul connects with it when he touches it lol

4:49 I'm really feeling it!

Discovered this today and loving it for my warm-up as I try and get back into guitar more seriously after a few years away. Thank you for sharing this!

Hey Steve, you've probably heard this millions of times but you're a fantastic teacher/player! Ive been playing for a while but I wanna step up my game...Im going to do these exercises everyday! Thanks again Im a big fan of yours

I wonder how he has enough time to make these videos and still tour with Alice in Chains.

Superb teacher, lessons and guitarist. Very basic and common exercises explained and demonstrated brilliantly.

Probably one of the best lessons on the net. It helped me a lot.

This guy is a really excellent example of how to teach under any circumstances. Great job sir

Dude is a great teacher

I've noticed that those 4 finger walk up/down type of exercises up to the 12th fret and back also help me to get used to the fret spacing as the frets get considerably closer and closer together as you move up the neck. Good lesson.

This has to be one of the best guitar practicing videos out there! Cheers Steve.

You can tell you've been teaching for a long time. I would love you as a teacher.

This video was awesome! Been playing for a little over a year. It made me realize that although I can play a nice number of songs and riffs, I still suck. I will definitely practice these routinely because one of my goals is to be a great player. Rock on!

he grew his hair for 27 years

Thanks for your time ! I was wondering about playing with a metronome, here it is. I was wondering how to develop legato technique, and here it is and the syncing, great stuff, Thanks again!

Just wanna mention this real quick I love that fretboard design it's so beautiful

Excellent exercises. Simple but effective. Thank you!

Dude I thought I was intermediate then I tried out the second exsercise

Thank you for the video. It's nice to see something aimed at players in between beginers and advanced.

Thank you. I've been a drummer/percussionist for 48 years, just picked up guitar 2 years ago. Struggling with learning because of playing riffs. You have reminded me of how I got so good at drums. Thanks again for the tip.

I have been playing for about 35 yrs. I wouldnt say I was Intermediate since I can play Vai solos ect. But this little workout showed me how lazy I have become without realizing it !! If I got a gig I dont know if I could do multiple sets doing covers all night LOL Thats sad man this video is for any guitarist IMHO !! I read some of the comments below and one thing I do is try to learn stuff I hate like Country or even some of the Newer pop bands but by learning their stuff it keeps my hunger to learn more and get better keeping sharp , every music genre has something to offer Disco riffs can be amazing workouts some of you younger guys check it out . METAL HEAD 4LIFE !

superb lesson you are a natural at teaching and conveying knowledge impartially, easy to understand and concise! subscribed.

You've got the coolest guitars man. Thanks for the lesson!!

Thanks for your time Steve, its nice to see you guys sharing the knowledge and its appreciated and being used..

Man! I have been trying these out! I'm Definitely becoming better…

I started playing guitar in 1979 - no tab, no instruction DVDs, no guitar mags with transcriptions of classic songs or tutorials on scales, modes or different styles of music until the mid-1980s with American GUITAR mags being available here in the UK. You learned by ear from listening to records over and over, slowing them down till you worked it yourself. If you were no good, you stayed crap. Now it's totally different - if you're not in a band or jamming with friends, you're not going to progress much unless you start recording yourself playing over jam tracks, etc. Or study lessons like this!

Best teacher ever. Give us some more free and easy lesson

Thanks Steve. Been playing for 30 years and this is such a useful excersise. Been doing similar combos, but your video brings fresh perspective. Thanks Dude!

Steve I really want to give a very sincere 'thank you' to you for this lesson (and all of your others). I have played guitar for roughly 30 years and have always been very frustrated with my left hand (fret hand) strength and coordination. No matter how much I practiced there was always this sort of wall that I could not break through, in terms of my left hand ability. I was pretty much resigned to just accepting what I perceived as basically a genetic shortcoming on my part. Sure I can play fairly well, but nowhere near what I would like to achieve, and certainly less well than I feel like I should be able to considering how long I have been at it. BUT - then I watched this video, and more importantly actually did the exercises. I could barely manage to do the more difficult fingerings at first, let alone at speed for 30 seconds at a time or whatever. But sure enough, after just a week or two of struggling through it, I can see AMAZING results. It is SUCH a terrific feeling to have my left hand so rapidly doing things that weren't possible just days ago. It's almost strange (in a very good way), as if I suddenly am borrowing a better players hand. My fingers are moving faster, are fretting notes cleanly, my hammers and pull offs are snappier, and mainly my fingers are just going where I want them to, when I want them to, with sort of a new feeling of authority. If it's this helpful in just a matter of days, I can't wait to see how much improvement I will have in the weeks and months and years ahead. So again, THANK YOU!

this is so helpful thanks!

This will still stand up to today, nice stuff.

This is great, I'll add these to the already massive list of guitar exercises I do before I play, I feel like every exercise helps

Hey Steve, Great lesson. It's good to review sometimes. I wish I had known that back when I first started playing the guitar. And you're right my pinky finger is so weak. I've been practicing like you said for years and it works wonders. My pinky will get weak again if I don't keep up with it. I sometimes use a hand exercise gripper, and turn it upside down so that I can only grip it with my ring finger and pinky finger, and try to work it to where I only use my pinky. Some hand grippers are harder than others so for a pinky you might want to find one that's easy to do. Plus I do stretching exercise too! (See. Nina Stauss!) Thanks again Steve. See you in the next video! Todd P.

" i can last the 3 minutes but i really feel it " ? thats what she said . lol great lesson buddy :)

Thanks, Steve! It is always nice to see a lesson on exercises, which really are the key to becoming faster and cleaner in your playing. I used to teach bass, and always taught my students alternate fingering and using all four fingers of the left hand. I will be working on these exercises on guitar now. Thanks again!

Thank you for the lesson...i have been stuck for about a year...i'm old and life gets in the way..this has been inspiring ..thank you for your time...

Guys why are you arguing and hating on this video, what he is teaching actually will make your playing very tight, this is good information

nr. 1 get long hair.. 2. you can now play guitar!

Excellent teacher. He has a gift of teaching. Very clear, easy to understand, and a helpful! I am excited about doing the exercises!

Steve,I HAVE many of your program lessons, and YOU ARE the BEST!!THANKS SO much!

5:23 I just felt that Eruption vibe

Brother! I am a professional guitarist/teacher (30+ years playing) as well, Masters in Music theory BMus in Jazz studies yadda yadda... I really enjoy perusing pedagogical approaches around youtube and I hafta say you are one of the best natural teachers I have heard! Great narrative flow, great demos, very natural and energized, this is how I teach as well ideally, some days are better than others! But great job, love the pace. If you wanna PM your email I'll send you my Guitar Calisthenics book to check out and maybe borrow from. haha frankstein, good shit!

I am never disappointed after watching one of your videos!

Great exercises. Thanks for the advice!

so helpful!!! \m/

Man that made my forearm burn... so simple, so effective

The best Teacher all the time...God bless you Steve

I had to watch this video at least 20 times over about 4 years now to attempt this. So worth it. Just trying to go fast for three minutes alone is a work out for me.

Ah the basics, people jump past this and screw themselves in the end

My girlfriend sent me to this video, especially to hammer on part...I wonder why...

Sounds so sick! That tone is awesome!!

Great lesson, thank you. Your voice is so soothing, helps with the learning. Looking forward to more videos like this.

Holy shit my forearm hurts.

2:37-3:06 (with no guitar or context)

A simple but effective lesson. Great reminders for any guitarists who need some easy habits to get into.

Best Explanation ever! Thanks Steve!