Play better by Problem solving - Learn and teach

What vs how

Notes are just content. That is the what, not the how. A single note needs to be played properly, sustained, and with care for the body. If we play two notes, we need to sustain and connect them. All this requires us to think beneath or behind the note layer. Even if a student learns ten different chords, if they cannot transition between them, what is the use?

A student begins to play chords. She has the grade books, the chord diagrams, the exercises, and the intention to practise. But when she plays, the sound is not clear. Some strings are muted. Some notes do not ring. The hand starts hurting. Sometimes the chord also needs the fingers to go wider than they are ready for. So the hand stretches, the wrist twists, the fingers reach from the wrong angle, and then the student presses harder. The usual answer is, “Practise more.” But what exactly should she practise more? If the structure is wrong, more repetition only repeats the same problem.

Problem and diagnosis

We have to solve the music output problem like an engineer. We solve the underlying problem, not just say, “Keep practicing.” If a car has a problem and the mechanic says, “Just keep driving and it will get solved,” that is not how it works. We cannot stay on the same branch. We may have to go to the bigger branch of the tree that is holding the problem. We have to see what is holding this particular problem or solution. If we work at that layer, practice progresses at the correct pace.

A minor to G

Now let us see how this shows up in one real student. One student was playing A minor correctly enough, but when she moved to G major, the whole system was not moving with it. The fingers were trying to reach from the bottom, so the note was not sounding properly. The fingertip, the end part, could not stay perpendicular enough to give good pressure. So when we move from A minor to G major, we have to make sure we reach the strings at a favorable angle.

Hand structure

So the problem was not lack of practice. The problem was structure. I showed her that the last part of the finger has to be perpendicular to the fretboard. That is required for the finger to contact the string and press it into the fretboard. The wrist comes up to the fretboard in a U shape, without unnecessary twisting. If I have to play a finger here, I move the knuckle forward so the end part can press the string easily.

I also told her to keep the fretboard closer. When the fretboard is closer, it is more comfortable for the arm. The thumb helps press the finger into the fretboard, but we do not have to press the thumb or finger too hard. Just enough pressure. We are looking for the sound coming from the note. We are not in a competition to press as hard as possible. Thumb, U-shaped wrist, knuckles forward as needed, shoulders relaxed. Listen to your body. If keeping it away hurts, keep it close enough.

Better diagnosis & Skill match

Not more practice. Better diagnosis. We cannot expect a student to take a guitar and play every chord in one day. If a major chord is not going to work in one day, we should not force it, because there are many variables involved. We should not skip the sequence. That is also bad teaching. A minor involves only two frets. But if a student tries G seventh, the fingers have to go wider and cover the whole spectrum of the strings, top to bottom. For a beginner, that is not obvious.

For somebody who has been playing for some time, this is very obvious. But for somebody who is just starting, it is not sure that the fingers will go wide enough. They are also playing through the whole spectrum of the strings, top to bottom. So the problem is not only the chord name. It is width, angle, pressure, and the whole hand system.

So I suggested playing G major using the top two strings. From A minor to G, the knuckle had to come forward. Otherwise, it is uncomfortable, the note will not sound, she will press too hard, and the whole system will hurt. We reduce the task so it matches the skill level. This is scaffolding: challenging, but not overwhelming.

One-percent correction

This much work is involved if we are learning or teaching a skill. We need to see the human sitting in front of us. We need to see their goal, their skill, and the direction they have to move. Then we find the next one percent. That one percent is not just one tenth of a chord or one chord. We have to devise methods by which the underlying structures can be corrected.

Sequencing practice

Instead of starting with many chords, start with one. Make sure the sound comes clearly. A minor already has three notes working — different fingers, different positions to take care of. If a student tries A minor and cannot get it, they are trying to solve three problems parallelly. That is not the best. Even with the open-string C major, if they get used to placing the fingers properly, perpendicular enough, and the thumb and body get a feel for keeping the guitar close enough, that is better to master first. Then slowly go to two-note chords and three-note chords. Sequencing. Scaffolding.

Width preparation

Even the open-string C major scale can prepare this. First, the student gets used to placing the fingers properly, perpendicular enough, with the thumb and body in a comfortable position. The open-string C major scale gives the student a three-fret span. She has to practise this with individual notes. This was seen to be a good exercise, which can later transition to G major and C major. Then we can learn the simple tuning relationship and play the four-fret-span C major scale. We are getting used to four fingers playing four different frets. Where should the thumb be? How does it feel? Later, when we want to play other four-fret chords, this will come handy. The hand learns spacing before we demand wider chords like G seventh.

Press-hit synchrony

A simple 1-4-3-4, 2-4-3-4 exercise is also useful. This is in our “Guitar Basics that Matter” bundle also. The main idea is press-hit synchrony. If we press and hit at the same time, the notes sustain. If we press late and then hit, the note gets muted. We are also practicing the independence of ring and little fingers. I asked the student to place the index and little finger first, so we know how to position the other two fingers. Otherwise, we keep trying to reach with the little finger.

Chord-change optimization

Chord changes also need optimization. A minor to E minor: look at the pattern. What is moving? A minor to C major: which is the only finger that has to move? We also do not take the fingers too far away from the fretboard. If I play A minor to D minor, I keep the fingers close, so I do not have to hurry to bring them back.

Exact weak points

Practice the exact weak points. If a wall is painted, we do not start from the beginning each time. We look for the gaps and paint there. So the error list or mistake list is our friend. Think like an industrial engineer: where are the bottlenecks?

Structural support

This is also a structural problem. In an F major bar chord, the thumb is behind the index finger because the bar needs structural support. The index finger carries much of the structural requirement, and the middle finger forms almost a triangle. But in an easier chord, the thumb position matters less because we do not have to press so hard.

Motor learning & Feedback loop

Motor learning is important. The hand learns angle, spacing, position, and embodied movement. It is not that I am sending a new signal to the hand each time. A minor, D minor, and E minor are stored. I do not mean completely unconscious. At any stage, some things remain conscious. But other things become automatic at a body level so we have mind space for lyrics, rhythm, and which bass string to play.

Feedback loop

There is a feedback loop. We play, listen, observe the hand, adjust, and try again, developing the much-needed feedback loop also. Basically, good learning methods, good teaching methods. Good learning and good teaching come from solving the problem at the underlying layer, not just repeating the surface content. Practice works when it is aimed at the real bottleneck