How to build guitar speed with a metronome

Why playing fast makes you slower

Every repetition teaches your hands something. Messy repetitions at a tempo you cannot control teach tension and mistakes. That is why players who always practise at their limit often stop improving.

The method

1. Warm up for 2 minutes at yesterday’s clean tempo.
2. Find today’s clean BPM: the fastest tempo with zero mistakes for a full pass.
3. Practise most of the block there.
4. Add 5 BPM and play short bursts of 4–6 notes, pausing one click between them. Maximum 2–3 attempts.
5. If the first bursts are clean, the new tempo becomes tomorrow’s starting point. If not, drop back.
6. Finish with 2 minutes at the clean tempo so the last thing your hands remember is clean playing.

Use subdivisions, not only higher BPM

Playing 2 or 4 notes per click doubles or quadruples the speed without changing the metronome. Moving from 1 to 2 notes per click at 60 BPM is the same note speed as 1 note per click at 120 BPM, and often easier to control.

Signs you are pushing too hard

• Your shoulder, wrist or jaw tense up.
• The picking hand and fretting hand stop lining up.
• You start rushing ahead of the click.
• Clean BPM drops several days in a row: take an easier day.

Questions

How much should I increase the metronome each day?

About 5 BPM, and only when the current tempo is clean. Some days you will not increase at all, which is normal.

How long does it take to get faster on guitar?

Practising daily, a rise of 5–10 BPM every two to four weeks on a given exercise is healthy progress.

Is a metronome necessary to build speed?

It is the simplest way to measure speed and to stop rushing. Without it you cannot tell whether you are actually faster.

Keep reading

• Measuring progressHow to measure your guitar progress (and stop guessing)
• Practice routineA 30-minute guitar practice routine that shows progress
• RecordingRecord yourself playing guitar: the fastest way to hear your mistakes