I tense up as soon as I hit the 'record' button when creating tracks... so annoying

People it's 4am. Go to sleep. Shred tomorrow

Every good guitarist is completely relaxed when playing, I get this impression. While I started to realize I get tense too often and in particular when I'm standing up. This video gave me the right motivation to revisit my playing because I really wanna get better and I feel I'm doing some things wrong that are holding me back and tension is definitely one of these.

This is great advice even for day 1 beginners. Once you go loose n “dont care”, even mentally, youll fly around the fret board landing notes you struggled to even find when were tense.

I tried this and now I've gotten better thanks 🤘👌🏆

My mom wouldn’t agree with you. She told me not to play with my wet noodle

He explained it perfectly!! I started playing about 1 year ago and learned the sublime Santeria solo in about 3/weeks. I recorded it and thought it was perfect… of course it was not. I could hear how hard I was picking notes and handling the fretboard. Then it happened… it was like I was getting a radio signal beamed to my brain, I literally felt like an antenna?! This is not a metaphor, when he says the music moves through… he’s not exaggerating. I could feel how loose I was. This happened when I learned how to play the solo standing up without looking. I taped a piece of paper on my guitar and practiced like I normally would because I seen it on a KZfaq video. It was weird for a couple days and then it just kicked in and I closed my eyes and played the solo. I was all of the sudden aware of all the tension I was holding and in my fretting and pick hand. Once I loosened up I hit my notes even plucked just enough to make the string sound lightly and I was relaxed. Now the notes weren’t lightly played notes I was just picking and fretting too hard. This is the thing ALL BEGINNERS will deal with and come to grips with at some point. Now I’m teaching myself to play chords and regret not playing even simple songs like Nirvana Smells Like Teen Spirit etc.

But seriously, this solves a lot of my playing problems. Now I realize this can effect whatever you’re playing. Every guitar player should do this.

Ive been completely relearning almost every technique that i thought i knew

This is probably the best explained video I've ever found ref relaxing - I'm in my 50s, played incorrectly with no technique for years until 2020 - then took 10 lessons - fixed techniques and started to progress, but painfully and slowly. This video I watched over the past couple of years a few times, and didn't get it - then a couple of months ago watched again - and really noticed shoulder tension - each time I notice it I relaxed it - it's like my finders now have their own brain - suddenly I must be twice as fast and more accurate and learning parts I simply left alone thinking I could never do it. Now I can hit about 80% of the speed of moderately fast passages - and am confident I'll get there. Still the tension's coming in, but I know how to stop it. When you're aware of this you find ,most of your life going about everyday tasks probably involves tension in your yoke and shoulders - because of everyday stresses. It's just letting that go.

I know, it’s annoying. I hate it when my noodles get wet.

Outstanding tip. I tried it and it does help. It takes time and a bit on concentration, but once you relax fingers seen to float over the frets. Thanks

Literally just came back from a drumming lesson and my teacher was saying the exact same thing, weird! A lot of my tension when playing comes from anticipation of what I have to play next and that's how my errors occur, I'm confusing my brain and then in turn my body, just gotta relax, take it slow, and the speed will come. Thanks for this video, it's really great

Carlos Santana talks about that same metaphysical feeling of the music flowing through you in his autobiography. My best playing comes when I'm in that state.

NOT FIRST! Thanks for this, Mike. This isn't brand-new to me, but retraining how I pick and fret is definitely something I've been trying to do over the last couple of years. Even though I've been playing for a long time, the tension you describe is invasive and has caused some plateauing. This is a great reminder of going "back to basics" to fix underlying issues, and I appreciate it.

Good advice. Reminds me of a Tai Chi video I saw. It said that you should have a relaxed fluid style to everything you do.

This is the best advice I have recieved in a long time. I now pay attention to my shoulders and make sure to never let them rise up and my playing is that much more effortless, faster and even better

Dude thank you so much. I recently found your channel even though I've been playing for about 18 years now. Between this video and your down picking video, I've manged to play creeping death all down picked at about 90% speed with no fatigue. I'm usually gassed by the solo. And i only play rythym. (I didn't go full speed cuz I didn't think I'd make it through the whole song) Anyways I never realized how much damn tention I have in my picking arm. It starts in my trap, and just plagues my whole arm down to my wrist. Also realized my picking hand has more stamina when I'm relaxed. Thanks for sharing.

Excellent advice......Thanks. Geoff

Great advice. It’s pretty wild how much more there is to it, all the areas that might be holding players back.

Your videos are the best.

I've been depending on tension for 20+ years, I knew my technique was wrong for a long time and figured I could build my muscles up and it wouldn't hurt anymore. It doesn't work like that, you don't have to build any muscles for guitar. If you treat it like a workout every day and use your whole arm to tremolo pick then you will end up with tendonitis and have to stop playing altogether. After all this time, the tendonitis forced me to finally learn a completely relaxed technique because it was either that or never play again. I was relying on my whole bicep to play fast and it destroyed me. If you watch Zakk Wylde, he picks like I used to and I have no idea how he hasn't torn a tendon. He will in time.

holy fuck, i have been seriously practicing about 2 years and never even knew i had this problem. im 2 videos in and my mind is blown at how i didnt know these. thanks a lot man

Super duper important !! Thank you Mike ! I’ve been trying to reduce tension and I think this will help me a lot !! :)

I have a student whose thumb tenses behind the neck which makes shifting awkward (his thumb behaves more like an anchor than a brace). I’ve had him play one or two measures at a time so that he plays it first his way and then with a “floating thumb,” meaning a thumb that is in contact with the neck off and on. I also suggest that he tap his left thumb against the neck if he feels he’s applying too much pressure to the neck as you can’t really tap the neck if your thumb is pressing hard against it.

When i went to music school they would teach us to not tense up our shoulders and oddly enough the jaw area. A lot of players tend to tense up the jaw and push their teeth togheter.

This is brilliant advice, focusing on keeping my shoulders down with anything I play is realy working, its something I'll need to get used to more but I can feel the benefits already, your a genius!!!

dear sir... thank you for the enlightenment. I can't remeber how many times i was told to 'relax' while playing... but now it hit me.. thank you for explaining this , the way of thinking about your noodle shoulders really did the trick, i can fianlly see the difference. im quite speechless. Thank you sooooo much !!!

Me when I shake people’s hands

Great advice! Part of this may be from playing guitars with action that's too high. Another is adrenaline surge when playing live. The smoothest, most relaxed player I've ever seen is Jack Pearson. His hands seem to float on the guitar. Amazing!

i tried taking this advice and played the blackened riff with almost no tension in my forearm!

I love how easy you make it to understand, the visual aid helps as well, thanks for these vids!

Dude thank you for this, Ever since I joined my new band last year after not being in one for almost two years I've been kicking myself tryna work out why I can't play like I used to, why it doesn't just flow as right and this video literally just reminded me of everything I forgot and in five minutes it feels like the mojo is back. Great video man thank you!

It’s a lot like pitching in baseball- Analogous to the difference between aiming the ball and pitching the ball. Once you try to aim the ball into the catchers glove, you’re destined to never throw a good strike.

nice! This pairs well with that speed burst lesson on the Ben Eller channel. Love what y'all do :)

You never really know if information in a lesson is going to help you until you try it. This works for me!

Good video,good topic, this lesson is an easy one for me to forget at times when I'm stressing about something. Always have to do a reset on myself.

Helped! Thank you!

I'm gonna do this exercise everyday

Anybody else enjoying this with wet noodles? No? Well, then. Miso it is for me.

damn i didnt realize how much i needed this

Relax everything but your face. Can't play properly without Guitar Face.

Needed to see this. Thank you 🙏🏼

Very Helpful 🤘

i was practicing last week with really stiff and tensed body and it wasnt working for me at all and my hands feel tired all the time so i gave myself 2 days rest. i might try what you said in the video. thanks!

This, my Gs, is how you master ultra instinct 😂

Good advice something I'm going to have to work on.

Still trying to figure out how to relax 😅 but the video totally makes sense. I am literally stiff as a board when I play.

I have shoulder instabilty due to playing the guitar improperly and far too tensed up concentrating lol. I have a smaller acoustic but when I play my friends larger normal one it's worse. Its extremley painful. It makes my scapular Wing whilst playing. Thanks for the video.

I like to do some practice with my thumb completely off the back of the neck. Let gravity pull your arm down. Of course, in actual playing, rather than technical practice, this goes out the window anyway.

the moment i paid attention to my picking i cannot play 5 seconds of creeping death and i literally and physically cannot stop tensing up

I thought it was me when I notice that feeling of someone else is playing the guitar lol it's weird and cool at the same time

Thanks for all you do for us ! great advice.

That part about. It's like It's playing through you I feel that when there is zero tension but when I have tension It's like I'm trying to play it It's forced but plus I'm wearing 2 rings on fret hand But this helped. ❤️

Its 5:30 in the morning. Ive been playing all day, then all night. Its the next day. Where did this motivation come from

Hey can you share a video where you describe the rotating wrist technique you mention here?? You said it really helped your playing but I doing see you teach it anywhere!

Could you make a video talking about the gear you have/had? Maybe there is something to lern about buying and selling gear.

Thanks! Great video!

Lack of talent is holding me back.

@The Art-of-the-Guitar I get a little soreness in the picking hand wrist when I'm doing a lot of picking.

Breath in through nose, out through mouth. Breath in...out.

Great stuff, thank you! The ongoing battle with tension must end! As soon as I hit record (especially), instant tension. How many less takes would be required if relaxed?!?

Maybe a weird comment, but when I relax my arm/shoulders I cant play powerful, cant hold my pick firmly, cant be dynamic. How do you anchor your arm?

Hey what’s the name of the guitars with the head like that? (Fairly new but currently using someone else’s guitar to learn, wanting my own similar to that actually but struggling to find one)

thank you for not making a stretched out 10 minute video on something like this.

before whenever i got on the guitar for the first time in the day, my hands were always relaxed, but now my hands are kinda stiff for some reason idk y, hope someone could tell me if my hands are somehow burnt from playing or something ig, idk but its making practicing harder

I think I was doing that when I was playing DragonForce on rhythm I’m gonna have to relax my arms when I play Fire through the flames again😲

@The-art-of-guitar could have a lot of tension cause some soreness?

It's basically meditating with a guitar.

Wet noodles. Ok. I'll try that, because I think I do have too much arm tension. And because every hint you gave worked out perfectly for me... Edit: works. Wow 👍

With finger picking, your not supposed to move your hand, only your fingers. I am working on that now, because I always move my hand. I tried not moving my hand, and everything was easier.

I constantly get snapped out of an effective state of mind thinking my neighbors hear me and think that I suck. ironically I play better when I'm sure they are actually there

But the night is still young.

I realized yesterday how bad I was playing master of puppets and so I stated trying to play it while focusing on something else like a Netflix series, there’s such a big difference when I’m not focusing on it and since I have been trying to let go of all the tension I was feeling when I was concentrating, does anyone have any tips for me? (I started playing like 5 months ago)

I notice this happens to me a lot. I’m so tense and it messes up timing and chord chanhes

I noticed i cant play fast like before cuz my life is big tension now. Problems and disease in family , kid with autism and so on... Every of that problems reflected on my guitar now. I cant say its a big years im 37. So my opinion is quallity of life is one of most important things. I cant even make songs like before cuz i feel empty most of time. Anyway i agree all what you said, sometimes when i play for hours it happens i forget all the weight of world around and thing startin be more comfortable for play. Cheers.

This is why I find myself playing better after a beer or two. ;)

For many yesrs I thought all those things you mention in the beginning, I found out 10 yrs later I had axonal polyneuropathy and it felt like I had to fight for every note, self diagnosis would be, if your doing say, your scale exercises and suddenly your arms feel stiff like they turned into wood, when I told that to my Neurologist he immediately knew I had a demyelinating autoimmune disease. It's just a public service announcement. I hope it helps anyone out there with similar issues

Link to the other vid for the lazy kzfaq.info/get/bejne/eMt6rLWm2LedlWQ.html

I’m so tired but need to shred

Mines always a wet noodle

I do this without realising it

Can We have a the best Slayer guitar techniqes video?

You can play faster with tension than I can without it 😢

I know all these buy all my relaxed state won't last long

Remember School of Rock people. Loosey goosey baby, loosey goosey

I think you meant Zak wild....

Doesn't it come naturally with practice, as you get better?

Hello people!

Have you ever picked up a new guitar at a store or a friend’s house and played better? I think we play more relaxed in those situations and it’s how mediocre players like me end up with 9 guitars.

Tension is the enemy of tone

That's what drugs and alcohol are for. His name was dimebag for a reason people.

First

First