First Several Day's Progress

Here's several quotes I put up on TheFret.net about how I've been sticking to my plan to learn the "In My Dreams" solo.

From December 8

Well, I kept to my word today: two days in a row--whee! Anyway, I got the second lick under my fingers finally. What I mean by that is that I've got the notes and the timing. I just have to build up a bit of speed. I had to listen to one part over and over because I just wasn't getting the cadence right. I also worked on the tapping a bit. I don't think it will be hard to get that part up to speed two-handed. I don't even want to think about it one-handed.

From December 9

FWIW, the dexterity exercises I've been doing are pretty simple, but seem rather effective. I do one that I got from Metal Method called "02132432" That's the fret order when you start. After that you go to "03243543" and so on up the neck. It's easier to do than to describe.

Another is going 1234, 2345, etc., alternating between the E and A strings and then the reverse on the way back down the neck.

Another is sliding up and down one string like this: 1234 5432 3456 7654, etc. Once again, easier to do than to write.

I like playing these while watching T.V. or some clip on YouTube since they are pretty mindless. The key is playing them cleanly. As dopey as these are, they do seem to help.

*Update* Give it up for day three! Anyway, I have the first lick down pat (I consider the first lick to by 2:09-2:16 of the official video. I can play it cleanly at 100 bps and pretty decently at 120 bps (aka full speed). I know seven seconds doesn't sound like much, but it's seven more seconds than I knew before! And since the solo is 30 seconds long, I suppose I'm almost 1/4 way there! Of course, the hard stuff hasn't started yet.

Audacity has been a big help. I took the pitch-corrected version of the solo and hacked that first lick off and slowed it to approximately 100 bps (technically it was 99.6 if you want to be pedantic). I looped it over and over in Amarok (my media player) until I nailed it. Very handy tool--and you can't beat free.

And now an update from yesterday, December 10, not posted to TheFret:

My fingers decided to get stupid on my last night. I struggled with the dexterity exercises. The stuff that I could play cleanly the day before, I couldn't. Two steps forward, one step back, I suppose. Nevertheless, I pressed on and stuck with it. This is will be a big test of my sticktuitiveness.