From Patterns to Notes
I’ve been making music for most of my life (and I’m old). Not that I have ever excelled on any instrument (I haven’t), but I can make passable sounds on most of those I have any level of proficiency in, and (I flatter myself) I have a reasonable sense for what to play, and what not to play, to fit into an ensemble.
Having said that, guitar has always been my “emotional” favourite. Possibly because I was smitten by Derek and the Dominoes’ “Layla” album in my teens (that solo in “Bell Bottom Blues” ... sigh!). Whatever. But this is also the instrument on which I sense most sharply my own limitations (which don’t bother me so much on other instruments).
You would think after all these decades I would have traced the cause of this, and done something about it. But it was only recently (i.e., in 2023) that I sussed it. I have always played guitar based on patterns, whereas on other instruments (even bass) I play notes. This might sound familiar if the words “pentatonic scale” mean anything to you.
So last year I ran across a video from Tommaso Zillio in which he sets out a method for learning notes on the fretboard. I watched it. It made a lot of sense. And I got myself ready to set to work...
...when I broke my left wrist quite comprehensively (surgery required, and a metal plate to bolt it all back together). That was last May, and I’m just recovering something approaching reasonable function in it now. There’s only a very small number of “shapes” that my left hand can’t manage, but there’s nothing to stop me now from setting to work on actually learning the fretboard—after all these years.
Irony: my son is a very fine player (much better than me) (on any instrument), and I asked him recently whether he “knew the notes”. “Oh, yeah,” his reply. Ha. Well, the old man won’t ever catch up, but I can still make progress. This wee post is my marker. Hopefully I’ll be able to update with my progress in due course...