Lost Interest?

[Stratocaster]

I used to practice a good 4-6 hours everyday, and I loved it.

Honestly, in the last month I probably played a total of 5 hours. I don't know why? But I don't feel encouraged anymore?
I don't know what to do now..
It's like I've hit a wall in guitar playing or something. Any of you have this happen to you before? And how did it turn out?

EDIT: I think I posted in the wrong forum, my bad, go ahead and move it mods.

[rippinglickfest]

Sometimes its good to leave it alone for awhile............and then you have a renewed enthusiasm for it. I read that Alex Lifeson say's "he wont even touch a guitar for a couple of months after a tour". Just because you dont play it 10 hours a day doesnt mean you dont love it.

[Powdered Toast Man]

I agree. I've experienced lulls in my playing as well. Sometimes I don't even realize its been a week since I've played. When I come back to it though, I have all sorts of new ideas!

[mrdylan]

This is how I broke out of the habit and once I did I have never gone back 100% I now go through spurts where I play a good bit but by the time my playing gets anywhere close to what it once was I lose interest again or life just gets in the way. Try playing lead over Cd's, jamming with someone new or maybe just recording something to get that drive back.

Time for me now that I have kids & work is not what it once was breaking that habit was the worst thing I have ever done.

[james on bass]

It is okay to let the guitar sit idle for a little bit. Absence makes the heart grow fonder right?

It depends how old you are as well. I remember doing nothing but play the bass for hours and hours during the years from 14-18 or so. Life does take over though.

I've been playing steady now for the last 5 years, but before that my gear was stored in the basement(s) for about 5 years, rarely being touched. Best thing I did was leave it there and not sell anything.

Don't worry, the guitar will be there waiting for you.

[ne1roc]

I'm going through the same thing right now. I think the rest of the band is as well. Personally, I feel its weather related. We are about to change seasons and are anticipating the nice weather to come. We need some sunshine and a couple beers on the patio to energize us.

Last Tuesday it was around 15C here in Mississauga! We had band practice that night and we all just clicked! It sounded great! I feel the beautiful day had alot to do with this!

[sneakypete]

I'm going through the same thing right now. I think the rest of the band is as well. Personally, I feel its weather related. We are about to change seasons and are anticipating the nice weather to come. We need some sunshine and a couple beers on the patio to energize us.

Last Tuesday it was around 15C here in Mississauga! We had band practice that night and we all just clicked! It sounded great! I feel the beautiful day had alot to do with this!


what was referred to as...cabin fever... when I was working in Northern Alberta for Chevron. Personally...winter has always been my most productive season for painting as I spend a lot more time indoors during that season than any other. yeah baby...summer is coming...but they bring noodles...NOODLES!...to BBQs here...thats just wrong.

[Jeff Flowerday]

I go through the same type of thing, but it's usually related to multiple cancelled rehearsals. I start thinking why bother? Then we have a good rehearsal and I'm all gung ho again...

[Warren]

I used to practice a good 4-6 hours everyday, and I loved it.

Honestly, in the last month I probably played a total of 5 hours. I don't know why? But I don't feel encouraged anymore?
I don't know what to do now..
It's like I've hit a wall in guitar playing or something. Any of you have this happen to you before? And how did it turn out?

EDIT: I think I posted in the wrong forum, my bad, go ahead and move it mods.

Maybe it's time to try a few things without the guitar. First figure out why, be honest, do you feel you're as good as your heros. Vai, Satch etc... Or do you feel like you'll never catch them?

Sit down with a pen and paper. Write down what you know & understand. Can you name what you play? For example, do you play "Flying in a Blue Dream", (I think this is the tune) do you know that it's Lydian? Can you hear the Lydian mode and apply it to other major chords when you solo?
The guys you mention do some pretty intersting things (not just riffs). Yngwie uses the half whole scale for alot of his quick little sweeps. Do you recognize it? Can you apply it elsewhere?

Maybe finding the underlying theories that some of your hero's use can open up a pandora's box of stuff for you to learn.

Or, listen to some different music. How about country shred? Danny Gatton, Albert Lee?

Or how about some Heavy Nylon string Guitar, Leo Brouwer, Stephen Rak or Nikita Koshkin? Randy Rhoads used a Brouwer chord progression in an Ozzy tune, I think it's study #7.

If you're serious about the guitar do an inventory of what you know, be honest, spend some time listening to some completely different music or music that you listen to all the time and find what you want to learn next, you've got a free 4-6 hours a day if you're not on the guitar and it's a worth while exercise.

[dwagar]

If you're not in a band, see if you can join one or form one.

It's the most fun, and can really push you on the learning curve. Especially if you are playing in front of people - doesn't have to be a gig, it can just be friends that want to hang out in the garage and listen to you play.

[kat_]

When I'm less into guitar I'll spend some time practicing piano, which I've always meant to sit down and really learn. It gives you a really different perspective on music.

[rippinglickfest]

THats right!......I sing bass in the University Choir here in Sudbury, so if i'm not playing guitar.....I'm singing.

[Baconator]

Just don't do what I did. After getting dumped from a band back in '92-93 I didn't really play again for more than an hour or so here and there for about 10-11 years. I continued to play bass for a while, but after leaving the semi-serious band I was in around 95 to do my Master's I took a few years off that. I slowly got back into bass playing after a few years off and a few years back I got a gig in a funk band playing both guitar and bass. It was ROUGH getting back into guitar, but fun.

In short, find a different project - it should rejuvenate your playing.

[Hamm Guitars]

I started playing guitar around the age of 12. I took music lessons for much of my youth and learned music theory and the whole bit. I got into the whole neoclassical thing when it came out in the '80's and became somewhat of a speed deamon.

I stopped playing guitar when I was somewhere around 25 - I hit a brick wall and wasn't happy with my playing at all - it lacked substance and soul. Everything I played was technically difficult to play, but it didn't offer much in the way of musical merit - it was more like fretboard accrobatics than anything else. I couldn't play a tune without butchering it with at least one 'trick' per arrangement. The only way I found to unlearn these bad habbits was to stop playing.

I have always had at least two guitars around the house, and I would always noodle around on them. I found that I like playing things that are simple and not at all complicated - almost to the point where the effort is removed. I also have no regard for musical theory at all anymore, and I will sometimes play stuff that is totally disonent just because I sometimes feel 'disonent'.

I also enjoy playing sloppy -when I was younger I was very big on thechnique and percision, now I love sloppy big steal bends and twisting bar chords. I've done a total 180 in my playing style, and I enjoy playing again as a result.

My oldest son started picking up my guitar a few years back, and as a result I am playing allot more than I used to. We put together a guitar company and we now do allot of research by making up prototype guitars and testing parts which I really enjoy. There are now no less than twelve guitars in the house at any one point in time.

I would say that things turned out for the best - I get rushes of adrenalin when I play, and my kids are having fun right along with me. At my age, I couldn't ask for anything more.

To re-affirm this; I walked into my office this past week-end and my thirteen year old son was in there with three gigly girls - He had at least twenty guitars all set up on stands all over the office, all of which have our family name on them. Looks like I can't put off 'the talk' much longer....

[mario]

I find if I am in a rut playing wise, I'll take on learning something hard such as a Steely Dan song. Something with a lot of difficult chord and tempo changes.

[Robert1950]

I happens to everyone. I lost interest for 30 years,... well, ... maybe that's not exactly normal. But I am playing again.

[fretboard]

I know my playing time dwindles in the winter -- call it cabin fever, whatever... Part of the reason is my guitar room is in the basement, and for humidity's sake, most all of the guitars are neatly resting in their cases and not within arms reach. Once the weather warms up and I'm more active with the kids at night, I'm sure I'll roll back into an hour or two a night. For now, I load up on the bonus points from the wife - painting around the house, throwing down hard wood floors, stuff like that. I look at it like it's the off-season for me, all the while knowing I'll be back in the groove soon enough.

[Lester B. Flat]

Sounds like you've still got the stick but just run out of carrots. Here's a carrot for you. Learn the french horn solo from The Beatles' Penny Lane. :rockon2:

[Jeremy]

Find some people to jam with.

[mandocaster]

Always good to let it slide now and again.

Right now I'm renovating my house, and taking the time to twiddle is far down the list.

But, last night, I was out at an acoustic jam, and we got into bluegrass-styled versions of some interesting songs (the Band, Bruce Springsteen, Fleetwood Mac).....and all that intense mandolin rehearsal over the last cupla months paid off hugely....talk about rekindling.

Don't get discouraged, Stratocaster, yer still a young pup, and there are yeeeeears of playing ahead of you!

Geezer :rockon2:

[Kenmac]

Actually it was a piccolo trumpet. There was an english horn solo in "For No One".

Sounds like you've still got the stick but just run out of carrots. Here's a carrot for you. Learn the french horn solo from The Beatles' Penny Lane. :rockon2:

[Lester B. Flat]

Actually it was a piccolo trumpet. There was an english horn solo in "For No One".

:oops:Thanks for clarifying that, Kenmac. :wave:

[Kenmac]

No problem. I didn't want to come across as being "nitpicky". :smile:

[Devon8822]

Dude, you need some inspiration. Get on youtube and search some of your favorite guitarists, and download some live shows of some of them.... buy some new equipment... good luck

[mick7]

Dude, you need some inspiration. Get on youtube and search some of your favorite guitarists, and download some live shows of some of them.... buy some new equipment... good luck
That reminds me, how goes your quest for this Peavey 6505 (http://guitarscanada.com/Board/showthread.php?t=3517) stack so far?.

[Robboman]

I've been playing for near 20 years. Only a few minor lulls, but my exposure to guitar and music kept evolving in ways that would tend to rekindle things for me.

The first few years were all about teaching my fingers to do things on an acoustic fretboard. I practiced 4 - 6 hours a day too, totally enthralled with it. My interest might have been waning a bit right before I got my first electric / amp, but then I was right back at it, playing with distortion, effects, etc. Later on I got a 4-track Tascam multitrack cassette unit and EVERYTHING changed, all the little riffs and tricks I taught myself to play went out the window and I became way more interested in writing and recording complete song arrangements. Sometime after that I started jamming with other musicians, which brought on a whole new dimension. That led to being in bands, pro gigging, bigger studio recording (for CD), developing as a singer, all of which has kept me interested. It's only the last few years that I've really gotten picky about TONE, trying all kinds of amps, guitars, pedals, etc.. which is also a lot of fun.

So even though I only practiced 4-6 hrs a day for my first 2 or 3 years, I've stayed interested and played a LOT of guitar ever since. I've even made a few bucks along the way.

Have fun!