Slides into notes: a country lick in A
A country lick in A major pentatonic with slides of every kind: from one note to the next on the G string, into a note from a fret or two below without picking where you start, and shifts that move the hand up the G string to the 9th fret and back. Slides give a line a vocal glide and take the hand to a new position without a gap.
Opens in the player looped and counted in, with drums playing along, and speeds up 5 % every 2 loops to 100 bpm. No account or microphone needed.
- Goal tempo
- 100 bpm
- Starts at
- 60 bpm
- Length
- 4 bars, looped
- Tuning
- E standard
- Time
- 4/4
- Level
- Beginner
- Plays with
- Drums
How to play it
Keep the finger pressing as it slides, just enough that the note keeps ringing; ease off and it dies on the way.
Bar 1: B at the G string's 4th fret slid up to C sharp at the 6th without picking again, then E and A on the top strings, F sharp slid into from below, E and C sharp. Bar 2 slides into A on the D string, then B slid to C sharp again, E and A.
Bar 3 shifts up the G string: C sharp, then a slide to E at the 9th, picked again where it lands, A on the B string's 10th fret, E again, F sharp at the G string's 11th slid into, and E. Bar 4 slides back down from E to C sharp and ends on a slide into A on the D string.
On the tab a line between two notes is a slide; a curved line over it means the second note isn't picked. A short line before a note is a slide into it from a fret or two below.
Mistakes to watch for
- Lifting the pressure during the slide, so the note dies before it arrives.
- Overshooting or stopping short of the target fret.
- Making the slide into a note too long, so the note arrives late: the slide comes just before the beat.
A speed plan
The player starts at 60 % of the goal and plays each tempo twice before stepping up:
- 60
- 65
- 70
- 75
- 80
- 85
- 90
- 95
- 100
That's 16 loops and about 3 minutes before you're playing at 100 bpm. If it stops being clean on the way, stop the ramp there and loop that tempo until it is. With a microphone or an audio interface you can record while you play instead: Demiurg checks every loop and steps up only after two clean ones in a row, and back down after a poor one.
Questions
How fast should I play Slides into notes?
The goal is 100 bpm in eighth notes, which is 3.3 notes a second. Start wherever every note is clean: the player begins at 60 bpm. Signed in, you can set a goal of your own, slower or faster, on the Exercises page.
What's the difference between a legato slide and a shift slide?
In a legato slide only the first note is picked and the second is heard from the slide. In a shift slide the second note is picked again when the finger arrives. Guitar Pro and the tab here mark the legato slide with a slur.
Which finger should I slide with?
Usually the third or the first, whichever leaves the hand where the next notes are. Sliding with the third finger keeps the first free for the notes a few frets lower.
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