Practicing With a Wood Metronome or a digital metronome
A wood metronome is a device that produces a regulated pulse, and is used to establish a steady beat, or tempo, measured in beats per minute (BPM). Dietrich Nikolaus Winkel is credited with inventing this device in Amsterdam in 1812. Ludwig van Beethoven was the first major composer to use the wood metronome. Of course, with the advent of electronics, and then the internet, there are a wide variety of wood metronomes today that are in many respects superior to the old wind-up models!
So, now you have a wood metronome. Now you may wonder, “Why do I need a wood metronome ?” You may think you have a perfectly good sense of rhythm. Be prepared to be shocked when you start to practice with a wood metronome. Though you think you are playing those bluegrass licks, fiddle tunes, or lead guitar breaks quite well, you may discover that you are playing some of the parts well, while you are quite sloppy on other parts–and you didn’t even know it–until it was exposed by that nasty, mean wood metronome!
When you are playing your guitar at an abnormally slow pace you will find out that you didn’t really know those licks as well as you thought you did. You were fooling yourself. Now, after this humbling experience, and after you have played the tune many times at that painfully slow cadence, kick it up a notch (as Emeril would say!). Set the wood metronome one step faster and repeatedly play the piece at the new setting.
Before you set the speed too high, listen to the notes you are playing within each measure. Consider the context and richness of each note. Experiment by accenting several notes in each phrase. Then play the same phrases and accent different notes. You are setting the stage to express some great dynamics that you had never considered!
Gradually, take the wood metronome to a higher speed. This is where it gets to be fun! You learn to play the whole piece (including the most difficult licks) perfectly at one pace and you reward yourself by graduating to the level.
