Connect 2
Axis of Accuracy
A left hand position change on the guitar involves a horizontal shift – hopefully moving along the string*. Crossing strings involves a vertical move of one left hand finger. Often the two coincide – sometimes over quite a large distance.
To avoid dizzying uncertainty, it can be helpful for pupils to compare this to plotting coordinates. Few, except the spatially gifted, would plot the coordinates (7,4) in a single stroke. Most would count along one axis and up the other, or vice versa.
The practice equivalent of this on guitar is to separate out the components of the move. The horizontal journey involves moving to the correct fret but not changing string. The vertical one involves crossing to the correct string without shifting position (changing fret). Both are kept separate and practised with gradually increasing speed.
Finally, the speed is reduced again before combining both features. The idea of increasing the speed of the separate moves before combining them is that speed moves the whole procedure from the world of thinking into the world of feeling. By this I do not mean emotion, but rather heightened physical awareness. The combination is one of feelings and not thoughts.
* The shortest distance between two points is a straight line.
