Shred Masterclass: Groovy Shred Lesson

What amp do you use?

Hey Final! I use a Peavey triple X amp with a tube screamer pedal!

Hahhhahahaha!! French!!! Interesting Lesson Kris...

hehe

Also - I want to encourage you to have a go at playing this over a backing as soon as you have started learning a little from this lesson. The different backings should hopefully be help you, regardless of your level of skills!

OH YES! OH GOD YES! Thank you for returning to us, Kris!

cheers.

Thanks so much for giving us another lesson Kris I have been waiting for this for sooooo long.

One of these days Ill get up the cash to join your site.

by the way your tone is magnificent as always.

finally! ive been waiting for another clip from kris for ages!

"Do you prefer "shred" playing or slow, "feely" playing? This topic can lead to some serious debating - and personally I prefer... both!"

Amen mate!

yes! thanks for returning!

Thanks guys!

Excellent lesson man! Totally enjoy your off the cuff approach & style.
I've have to agree whole heartedly about Lick #7, an excellent little trick for people to practice. A lot of the "Hair-Metal" crowd from the late 80's such as DiMartini, Lynch, etc. would use that technique all the time...3 note patterns where you Pick 2 notes & Hammer On the 3rd note...very efficient & effective, when done smoothly.
Sounds crazy, but that quick little one note rest can really help to avoid that teeth-gritting tension that can build up when trying to alt-pick every note of the run.

Great playing & Great lesson! Thanks a ton!

Great input ChipShank - thanks!

Recently I've been plunged into a stressful rut, Please get me out!!! I'm trying to figure out how to arrange drum tracks for songs. I use sonar 6 to record my guitar on the computer I have a drum machine which I can mic but it is hard to use plus I don't think that's what people use nowadays and same for keyboard and bass parts. I've been truly inspired by watching you give lessons over time and I think the whole charm of Ultimat Guitar are the lessons that you have provided so thank you very much and I wish you all the best.

Groovy
Wow well maybe If I can practice a lot and get real fast then I can play random notes and sound awesome. Cool ways to get interesting sounds. If you mess up and it sounds cool then use it.

Really glad to see you back Kris, this lesson is wild.

Hey how do you mute other strings to keep the sound clean?

Hey Kris, great lesson!

Could you please answer me 3 questions I have?

I have a question which has to do with how to develop finger independence and speed, specifically about how to keep your fingers under control (and don't have them fly off the fretboard). Some people advice basically practicing always extremely slow, paying a lot of attention to keeping all your fingers doing the minimum movement possible (not just to how "clean" it sounds). But even if it sounds good, never increasing the tempo much when practicing, and that when playing you'll see the difference and will be able to play faster. Some other people recommend doing one exercise of this (like, playing a scale for ten minutes focusing only on moving the fingers only what is needed), but then practicing normally, increasing the tempo all that you can increase it, and that the "minimum movement" will come without you thinking about it all the time. Other people, on the other hand, never mention minimum movement at all, so, for these people normal practice seems to make your fingers more independent and to reduce the amount of useless movement by itself.

What do you think about this topic? Have you done exercises ONLY meant to reduce the ammount of movement? Or even (like the first approach says) to get that speed you had to think about minimum movement all the time, in everything you learn? What would you recommend?

Another question, some guitarists say that to learn a fast lick you must practice it really slowly until you can play it perfectly and then increase the metronome 2bpm and then repeat the process. Others say you can sometimes practice it at a speed you cannot play that good and start making it cleaner and cleaner from there. What do you think?

One last question not related to this lesson but I'm really interested in your opinion: Do you mute your sweeps with your right hand, or your left hand does the muting job perfectly by itself?

Thanks a lot!

RelientK_V_Fan wrote: Hey how do you mute other strings to keep the sound clean?

Good question - I should probably have mentioned this as I spoke about the raking.

In order to effectively use the raking effect as well as the "hitting hard" effect - you need to be able to damp the "surrounding" strings with you left hand.

Usually that is done with the the lower part of the left hand fingers - as well as with the left hand thumb and sometimes even with the "upper part" of the left hand finger.

The best way to get this right is to play just one note - and see how you can adjust your grip in order to mute ALL the surrounding strings (it will be different depending on which string you are playing) - so that you can use the rake and "hard hitting" techniques!

Ikary wrote: Hey Kris, great lesson! Could you please answer me 3 questions I have? I have a question which has to do with how to develop finger independence and speed, specifically about how to keep your fingers under control (and don't have them fly off the fretboard). Some people advice basically practicing always extremely slow, paying a lot of attention to keeping all your fingers doing the minimum movement possible (not just to how "clean" it sounds). But even if it sounds good, never increasing the tempo much when practicing, and that when playing you'll see the difference and will be able to play faster. Some other people recommend doing one exercise of this (like, playing a scale for ten minutes focusing only on moving the fingers only what is needed), but then practicing normally, increasing the tempo all that you can increase it, and that the "minimum movement" will come without you thinking about it all the time. Other people, on the other hand, never mention minimum movement at all, so, for these people normal practice seems to make your fingers more independent and to reduce the amount of useless movement by itself. What do you think about this topic? Have you done exercises ONLY meant to reduce the ammount of movement? Or even (like the first approach says) to get that speed you had to think about minimum movement all the time, in everything you learn? What would you recommend? Another question, some guitarists say that to learn a fast lick you must practice it really slowly until you can play it perfectly and then increase the metronome 2bpm and then repeat the process. Others say you can sometimes practice it at a speed you cannot play that good and start making it cleaner and cleaner from there. What do you think? One last question not related to this lesson but I'm really interested in your opinion: Do you mute your sweeps with your right hand, or your left hand does the muting job perfectly by itself? Thanks a lot!

Hey Ikary,

Regarding small hand motions: For a long time I have advocated small motions to develop speed. However more recently, I have come to the conclusion that unless you are aiming for Rusty Cooley speed - I would actually recommend pretty "normal" picking motion.

The reason being that the bigger the picking movements - the better the tone! That is my personal conclusion. Good example of this is Eric Johnson who really comes from a whole different picking-school-of thought.

With the left hand - I would say that you should always do as small motions as possible. However to get good hammer-on tone you need to make somewhat bigger finger movements.

Regarding pushing speed with metronome: I would recommend increasing speed as slowly as possible as this will give absolute best results in the long run.

However some people (including Shawn Lane) advocate for pushing the speed as much as possible and then spending a few years "cleaning up" your technique. Actually that is what I am doing now - although it really wasn't a conscious strategy from the beginning!

An alternative to this which I think is pretty cool - is to give yourself some liberty by the end of your practice session - and really shred away (in other words increase the bpm heavily!).

Regarding Sweeps: I don't think I mute the sweeps (just the the "unwanted", sorrounding strings) - however I often mute my picking runs!

FINALLY a quality lesson! missed your lessons for a long time chris! you should have an own section, so that all 5min "lessons" could be seperated. awesome lesson, that will take some time... ^^ keep on rocking!

Hi Kris
I would like to know what soft wares you use to make drum/bass tracks for your lessons. I know this does not relate to today's topic, but for those of us who are trying to create backing tracks for our practice sessions this would prove helpful.
I appreciate it.

Thank god for Kristofer Dahl!

i look forward to every lesson you make, you're an inspiration to make me want to play guitar more and more, plus you rock!! \m/

I (like many) have waited for this lesson, checking every day or so to see if you have made any new videos and it puts a smile on my face every time you do

cheers kris!

amir razmara wrote: Hi Kris I would like to know what soft wares you use to make drum/bass tracks for your lessons. I know this does not relate to today's topic, but for those of us who are trying to create backing tracks for our practice sessions this would prove helpful. I appreciate it.

No problem! I use EZ Drummer. The groove feel of the backing also comes from overdubbing both the bass track and guitars with different synthesizers!

Cartilage wrote: Thank god for Kristofer Dahl! i look forward to every lesson you make, you're an inspiration to make me want to play guitar more and more, plus you rock!! \m/ I (like many) have waited for this lesson, checking every day or so to see if you have made any new videos and it puts a smile on my face every time you do cheers kris!

I get a smile on my face from hearing you say this!

Hey Kris whats up with the tab.

B minor pentatonic
-----2-5
-----3-5---
-----2-4-----
-----2-4-- ---
---2-5-----
2-5-----


thats not the regular first box of the minor pentatonic scale, you removed the C# and replaced it with the D note!

Walternativo wrote: Hey Kris whats up with the tab. B minor pentatonic -----2-5 -----3-5--- -----2-4----- -----2-4-- --- ---2-5----- 2-5----- thats not the regular first box of the minor pentatonic scale, you removed the C# and replaced it with the D note!

DOH failure. My bad. stupid NEVERMIND ME

You're kind of insane. In a good way that is. Not only your playing is good, it's your sound that makes my mouth open up a bit. Playing good is one thing, but managing to get a sound like is another cup of tea. I enjoy your videos, although I think your lessons can be some sort of (since I can't find a better word) contradictory. Let me make myself a bit more clear: You say the chords like B7 and stuff, which is good, and you seem to assume that the one who's taking our lesson knows what you're talking about. No argument there. But on the other hand when you teach the part around 03:40 with the slide, you seem to assume that the viewer has no idea how to play a slide. I think any guitarist who knows how to play B7 and doesnt know how to slide has a serious problem. But this is just me being picky, I'm not going to act as if you are not good at teaching.
Great lesson, once again.
Cheers

Finally! When there are so many money-seeking and advertising 'teachers' on the internet, here comes Kris and shows what a good lesson means. Cheers, Kris ;]

Hey Kris, my teacher told me he hates Ibanez' and they sound really bad clean, and onstage is this true?

That bit where you sweeped with just the left hand was amazing! I could still hear each note clearly! I've been wanting to get my left hand technique better for a while so I'm sure this whole she-bang will be useful to me. Thanks!

Kristofer Dahl wrote: Hey Final! I use a Peavey triple X amp with a tube screamer pedal!

Great to see u back kris lol nice lesson.. i absolutely love my tubescreamer pedal is has such great tone!

You rock Kris! Great solo there, your sound was amazing too.

ChucklesMginty wrote: Hey Kris, my teacher told me he hates Ibanez' and they sound really bad clean, and onstage is this true?

No, as a general statement that is completely wrong. Some ibanez guitars will sound wrong for some clean types of sound - that is applicable to any guitar brand though!

The God is back!!
It's been a long time :P Amazing lesson as per usual Kris!

YES!!!!! HE'S BAAAAACKKK!!!!!

I've been in withdrawal.

WHOOOOOP!!! IVE MISS HIM!! I MADE A THRED AND EVERYTHING!!!
lol once again a great video!

Europeans are so awesome

Finally Kris, FINALLY!

Nice glasses by the way.

**** i love your phrasing

Awesome lesson! Et ceci sont des pantoufles lol nice french

Good job Mr.Kristofer I enjoy all of your lessons very much, I am a beginner trying to learn neo-classical shred and the whole buisness . Even though i'm not exceptionally good right now I seem to take a bit of experience that seems to help me develope my technique.

My friend told me when i got into guitar (he has been playing 5 years now) Learn all the modes "or the ones you think are colorful", their positions, and a bit of basic theory.

So far so good in that department and I am currently building my shredding technique with metronome practice to get a good accurate and fast combination of right hand and left.

In all your other videos I love observing your technique and it seems very relaxed. To hear you say that you actually use legato for most of your runs and technique has also showed me how you play so fast, clean, and relaxed. Ill be hopefully using legato in most of my runs.

If you have any input on this or how to better my speed using a metronome please feel free to say (i mostly play scales and up the bpm by 5 if i can play it cleanly about 10 times front and back)

Hey Kris, have you ever thought about doing an acoustic lesson?

Honestly, I'm not really sure what there is to teach about acoustic guitars except for maybe using slides or something, but I'm you could think of something.

Anyway, just a suggestion, and even though I cannot play more than half the things in this video, very cool lesson.

Thanks so much for the continued [awesome] feedback guys!

O-52-A-50-R wrote: Hey Kris, have you ever thought about doing an acoustic lesson? Honestly, I'm not really sure what there is to teach about acoustic guitars except for maybe using slides or something, but I'm you could think of something. Anyway, just a suggestion, and even though I cannot play more than half the things in this video, very cool lesson.

I can't do very much cool stuff with the acoustic guitar - but if I learn some licks I will definitely try to put something cool together!

Hey Kris,

thanks for the great lesson, that was fantastic! You are a great player, a fantastic teacher and (at least seem) like a really down to earth guy- it makes for some good learning. Being self-taught, I think I have benefitted more from your lessons than anything else, so thanks for everything!

I have a few questions, firstly regarding your strings: what brand and gauge do you use? I am using Elixir .010 - .052 strings and tone-wise I have been really happy with them; they sound just as good now as they did when I bought them six months ago. My problem is I suspect they don't sit well with my guitar (Squire Strat) because whenever I so much as touch the whammy bar it goes waaay out of tune. Do you ever have this problem?

Second question is do you hold your pick the same way to alternate-pick-shred, to sweep pick and to play pinch harmonics? I don't and I fear I may be doing something wrong...

Again thanks for the great lesson!

P.S. "Nobody can hear you're playing nonsense notes- that's one of the advantages of playing fast" -this just became my personal motto XD

* Noticed Kris at the upper right corner *

YAY IT'S KRIS AGAIN!!!

HI KRIS!!! *waves*

YOU ARE AWESOME!!

can't wait to see the new vid. throwing it on my ipod right now. =D

haha lol at 2:19

another magnificent lesson Kris!

Greetings from Finland.

Kris, truly an amazing lesson as always
you rule
i need some advice on my picking, for a few weeks Ive been trying to get my alternate picking better, but before i was using Economy picking for most of the licks Ive done previously, and i think ive gotten myself into this habit of using it too much, is there any way i can get out of the habit im stuck in? ive been using a metronome and been trying to improve my alternate picking, would that help? ive learned so much from your videos and with you being an amazing teacher and guitarist i was wondering if you could give me any tips or advice to help me get out of that bad habit

cheers Kris

welcome back!

you're simply great.

Does Kris seam a little retarted LMAO best lesson ever

The_Metalfreak wrote: Hey Kris, thanks for the great lesson, that was fantastic! You are a great player, a fantastic teacher and (at least seem) like a really down to earth guy- it makes for some good learning. Being self-taught, I think I have benefitted more from your lessons than anything else, so thanks for everything! I have a few questions, firstly regarding your strings: what brand and gauge do you use? I am using Elixir .010 - .052 strings and tone-wise I have been really happy with them; they sound just as good now as they did when I bought them six months ago. My problem is I suspect they don't sit well with my guitar (Squire Strat) because whenever I so much as touch the whammy bar it goes waaay out of tune. Do you ever have this problem? Second question is do you hold your pick the same way to alternate-pick-shred, to sweep pick and to play pinch harmonics? I don't and I fear I may be doing something wrong... Again thanks for the great lesson! P.S. "Nobody can hear you're playing nonsense notes- that's one of the advantages of playing fast" -this just became my personal motto XD

Hey Metalfreak and thanks!

I also use elixir 09 strings - and I have some detuning problems with the whammy bar - but I am quite sure it's not because of the strings... By the way guitar mechanics really annoy me - I just want it to work!

Regarding picking - yes I have different ways of holding the pick depending on what I do, so I would say it's "normal"!

Jooeey wrote: * Noticed Kris at the upper right corner *

hehe than you beat me because I couldn't see him...ME that is!

As has been said numerous times before in this thread, GREAT LESSON KRIS!

I have a small technical question that has been bugging me for a while now, to do with sweep picking. More specifically, I was wondering if you could offer any tips on how to 'turn around' when reaching the high or low note in a sweep if only one note is being played on that string. For example the lowest note in this lick (Intro from 'The Glass Prison' by Dream Theater):

e--19p14-----14h19p14-----14h19p14-----
B----- 15----15-----15---15-----15---
G-----16-----16-----16-

I currently play the lower b (16th fret G) with an upstroke but then can't hit the d with a downstroke quickly enough to make it sound smooth at tempo! I'm having the same problem with the small sweeping part in the first solo in 'Hangar 18' too. What should I do??!!

man, that beginning was really funny! xD
"Im the best guitarist"
havent watched the lesson, but im sure it will be great stuff as always

@ quiffmiester: I would play the b-note with a downstroke. that way you are kinda more "prepared" for the next downstroke on the B-string

kris, you should do an SRV inspired lesson.

pantoufles?

nice lesson!! very funny
"je suis tres surpris de tentendre parler francais"

Dude how do you keep your one way tremolo so in tune even when dive bombing?!

Mine goes right out every time i do a dive or squeal (also which i learned from you...thanks!)

Kristofer Dahl wrote: Regarding picking - yes I have different ways of holding the pick depending on what I do, so I would say it's "normal"!

Hey kris! your vids are awesome! perfect ispiration for the budding guitarists! [me included]

question,

you mentioned that you use different styles of HOLDING the pick. does that also mean you use different picking motions with the right hand?

i noticed myself when doing 3note/string runs i still use finger motion rather than wrist motion. [omg im really having a difficult time explaining this]
and my right index and thumb are doing a semi circular motion with the pick. is this "normal"?

Woo Kris is back! Dude you are the best, not least because you have your vids available for download...I live in rural NSW where broadband isn't really available, so I don't have the bandwidth for streaming videos, which is annoying because most of the lessons are just streaming and don't have the option of downloading...but yours on the other hand I can download and watch in my own good time, which is awesome, so please keep it up!

km-r wrote: Kristofer Dahl wrote: Regarding picking - yes I have different ways of holding the pick depending on what I do, so I would say it's "normal"! Hey kris! your vids are awesome! perfect ispiration for the budding guitarists! [me included] question, you mentioned that you use different styles of HOLDING the pick. does that also mean you use different picking motions with the right hand? i noticed myself when doing 3note/string runs i still use finger motion rather than wrist motion. [omg im really having a difficult time explaining this] and my right index and thumb are doing a semi circular motion with the pick. is this "normal"?

This is a tricky question to answer - I could answer both yes and no because it depends on how far you have come in your picking and what you goals are.

If your goal is to be able to speedpick then you need to make sure that you somewhat do a motion that will convert to fast picking when you are starting to reach the next level.

If you already have reached a higher "level of speedpicking" I would say this kind of motion (provided you aren't doing too big motions)is a good, controlled way of doing it.

" you can try that on anyone. Just kidding... don't do that !"
hahah so funny...
Amazing lesson. i'm kind of intermediate level, so i can't play lots of the stuff in there, but lick 1-5 were nice additions to my collection of licks ( although im having some difficulty with lick 5 )

Hey Kris,
How do you get so much gain on your stratocaster?
Did you customize your pick-ups or what?
I can't seem to get enough gain for this, maybe its my amp...

ur awesome man

Thanks guys - your positive feedback is absolutely awesome!!

BFMV fan wrote: Hey Kris, How do you get so much gain on your stratocaster? Did you customize your pick-ups or what? I can't seem to get enough gain for this, maybe its my amp...

It's the tubescreamer on top of my amp's distortion that does it - I had the same problem as you before! Also - I have stock pickups on my strat - but I am thinking about "hot rails" in the bridge position.

Just to let u know Kris - I'm from Pakistan..so u have fans all over the world

hey kris! is your telecaster modded in any way at all? and if it is what pickups do you use?

oh, and what pedals?

thanks!

hey kris, do u have a band?
im just curious thinkin on how good u r playing with a band.
coz ur skills are really awesome!
ur a great teacher!

Kristofer - you are the man!

totaly awesome!!!

Kris you rule; I was worried with all the new vids on UG you wouldn't show up again!

And KMC metal is super too!

MVL.

KingSquall802 wrote: hey kris, do u have a band? im just curious thinkin on how good u r playing with a band. coz ur skills are really awesome! ur a great teacher!

Thanks alot! You can check out stuff from my band KMC Metal here:

http://www.guitarmasterclass.net/kmc-metal.htm
(I sing and play guitar and Marcus' plays guitar and arranges all the instruments!)

Kris do you sometimes drool uncontrollably just for funsies?

good stuff. very funyy with good quality! [x]

Dammit Kris why did you make the file so huge this time? 233Mb, It's gonna take me a full day of downloading to get that...in future please keep them how you used to have them, 30-50mb is much more manageable.

Hey Kris i have been learning from your videos.....i made a short video of me shredding from learning from you...check it out and tell me what u think...go to youtube.com and type in nick walton playing guitar....i have a bc rich so u will reconize me

rocknroller5 wrote: Kris do you sometimes drool uncontrollably just for funsies?

...guess what I am doing now...

J'aime les pantouf!!! Je parle Francais AND ENGLISH

pyro_maniac616 wrote: Hey Kris i have been learning from your videos.....i made a short video of me shredding from learning from you...check it out and tell me what u think...go to youtube.com and type in nick walton playing guitar....i have a bc rich so u will reconize me

Cool! I checked this video out:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=K4gL3BcHYyM

In this kind of context it's a little hard to say something about the musical aspects of your playing. But I did think your picking had some serious speed to it! I am not sure if you are picking once on every note but perhaps that wasn't you intention either!

Keep it up - I am looking forward to see you progress!

what pickups do you use?

a J'adore le guitar lessons, mon francais est ne tres bien pas. but i know im not terrible at it haha. thnx for the lessons i really like watching and learning new stuff on my guitar.

Hi Kris
I would like to use this opportunity to introduce you to "Matt Mills" my former guitar teacher. I should add that I'm a guitar teacher as well. I know you are a very resourceful teacher and your list of guitar players is probably endless, but in case you haven't heard Matt, it may be worth checking it out because he incorporates lots of shreding in his style. In lesson he gave at shred academy he teaches a cool way of picking arpeggios. below is 4 links to him. I

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=F7m3aIuGlUg
http://matt millsmusic.com/links.html
http://www.shredacademy.com/lesso ns/m_mills.htm
http://www.modernguitars.com/mills/2008/09/a rpeggio_technique_2.html

Sorry for some reason some of the links had space between letters.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=F7m3aIuGlUg
http ://mattmillsmusic.com/links.html
http://www.shredacademy.co m/lessons/m_mills.htm
http://www.modernguitars.com/mills/20 08/09/arpeggio_technique_2.html

Umm. I got a problem, when playing Lick 10 u need a whammy bar, and i don't have a one. Is there a way, how it could be played like same way, but different way w/o whammy, thanks!

dont tell me your getting old!!!
nice shoes BTW

monne93 wrote: Umm. I got a problem, when playing Lick 10 u need a whammy bar, and i don't have a one. Is there a way, how it could be played like same way, but different way w/o whammy, thanks!

The only way of getting a similar effect without whammy to press the string behind the nut (as illustrated in the video).

szekelymihai wrote: dont tell me your getting old!!! nice shoes BTW

Why? How did you know I was getting old?

I am actually starting to get a little fat and bold but you shouldn't be able to see that in the video!!

amazing Kris!!! your an inspiration to me... ever since i started playing which must've been about two years ago and i've already learned so much!! thank you so much for all your knowledge kris!!! you rock!!!

You know, I long for the days in which I can acctualy take part in any but the simple (or simpler...) parts of these lessons. :P I have (STILL) not got the hang of sweeping, my shred speed's improving though (Y)

up here in canada, were taught how to speak french in high school, so naturally i didnt know what you said

hey kris - great video once again.

and i couldnt agree more with you on the whole inspiration aspects of lessons. I thought that was where i was going wrong when i was learning things on the guitar, just taking bits that I like and just learning those. Ive been playing for about 3 years and i know the whole of , say...3 songs? the rest of the stuff I play is just made up stuff and little bits of songs that I like playing. You have given me some confidence that I'm doing something right. I must say that most of the techniques I like have come from your videos


go on, feel proud heheh

i must also mention on the topic of free moving and shred. i do both. I try and play shred, but when im improvising on the spot, I naturally go fore the slow and groovy, its so much fun

Thanks so much guys - it's great to hear you say this!!

Great to see another lesson Kris. Your tone is awesome, keep forking out these lessons ill be waiting.

Cheers

Too bad for you Kris I understand french !

Thanks for the lesson !

am I the only one who crapped his pants during Kris' playing?

No, Kris has clearly found the "brown note". Great lesson Kris, you're a champ!

this guy is awesome!!!

Kristofer, your videos and jokes give me strength to go on!!!

one day I'll shred like you do, master!

Kristofer Dahl wrote: km-r wrote: Kristofer Dahl wrote: Regarding picking - yes I have different ways of holding the pick depending on what I do, so I would say it's "normal"! Hey kris! your vids are awesome! perfect ispiration for the budding guitarists! [me included] question, you mentioned that you use different styles of HOLDING the pick. does that also mean you use different picking motions with the right hand? i noticed myself when doing 3note/string runs i still use finger motion rather than wrist motion. [omg im really having a difficult time explaining this] and my right index and thumb are doing a semi circular motion with the pick. is this "normal"? This is a tricky question to answer - I could answer both yes and no because it depends on how far you have come in your picking and what you goals are. If your goal is to be able to speedpick then you need to make sure that you somewhat do a motion that will convert to fast picking when you are starting to reach the next level. If you already have reached a higher "level of speedpicking" I would say this kind of motion (provided you aren't doing too big motions)is a good, controlled way of doing it.

hey kris, thanks for the reply!

my head spun reading your reply... whew! i want to do shredding like yours. ive been playing 4 years now and i think i could still revise my playing style...

maybe, kris, you could insert a lil thing about right hand motion in your next lesson...

cheers!

Good suggestion km-r, although I really haven't found the ultimate picking style for me yet, it could be a cool lesson topic!

4 years is good - put a maximum of energy intro you practice and you will beat the best in another four years!

Gacel wrote: this guy is awesome!!! Kristofer, your videos and jokes give me strength to go on!!! one day I'll shred like you do, master!

Great to hear! Thanks!

zadzior wrote: am I the only one who crapped his pants during Kris' playing?

hehe... and I guess that is... a good thing?!

Thanks!

damn i saw him dancing his Cowboy-move in the top right corner!!!!

this lesson (again) kicks asses^^
i am looking forward to manage the sweeping part like next year^^ (freakin speed Oo)

still working on theory now though...(rocks too :P)

Kris, I

oops!

as I was saying I don't know if you've done this but you should do a lesson on playing fast sequences in slow songs because I've been having problems with that, all I do is hold long notes.

Thanks again guys!

Elo you Prick...I like to see you.. use more of the fleshy part of your bad mother finger..ok!!! and also when you play cool solo..use more speed licking...ok?...you prick

holy $hit that solo was amazing LOL

Hey Kris, what size strings do you use???
X light, light, medium, heavy. Or what?
thx

The beginning of Lick 8 sounds like the solo from Wish You Were Here by Pink Floyd

Hey, this is great stuff, and just the thing I need to improve my playing skills! I just mastered the Lesson 35 of Rock Discipline (anyone?) and am now looking for some more challenging material. This is the perfect mix I've been looking for, so thank you!

Thnak you so much - for your great comments!!

vboytan wrote: Hey Kris, what size strings do you use??? X light, light, medium, heavy. Or what? thx

I currently use a set of 09-42 elixir nanoweb strings!

hey man great lesson
i have a suggestion for a lesson
how about dimebag darrel dive-bombs
i know hot to do them but like they're are so many people who don't know how
just a thought

Great lesson, as always Kris.

p.s. The other day i was talking to my math teacher (a fellow guitarist) and we go on the subject of YOU.

he just kept on on how amzing you were and how you was somthin else.

Great lesson Kris!

I've got a question for you about palm-muting to keep extra notes from ringing.

I PM to keep certain harmonics on other strings to keep from ringing out. Say I was to make a staccato note at the 15th fret, B String. If I'm not palm-muting the G string, I get a harmonic of that same note that keeps ringing. This happens on the B string when I'm playing a staccato B note on the high E string as well.

The problem is, when I palm-mute the G-B strings, my palm mas to go to an angle. This makes the top of my pick point sharply towards the floor so, then my pick hooks the string on the upstroke. How could I palm-mute in a different way so that my pick doesn't angle so sharply towards the floor?

hey Kris,

I know alot of people who argue about this and i want your opinion.

Gibson or Fender and why?

frantic_saint wrote: hey Kris, I know alot of people who argue about this and i want your opinion. Gibson or Fender and why?

also, how do you get the pich harmonics i cant do it for some reason.

frantic_saint wrote: Gibson or Fender and why?

Well I have never owned a really good (expensive) Gibson. But to me the strat is more responsive to dynamics - which is really important to get your own playing characteristics through. Also - I like having a whammy bar.

In the future I would like to own a Gibson though - I am sure there are many situations where I would prefer that kind of guitar - provided I "got to know" one really good.

frantic_saint wrote: also, how do you get the pich harmonics i cant do it for some reason.

I got that question recently from someone else as well - so I am copy and pasting my answer:
-----
First be sure that you are using the bridge pick-up and that you have the tone and volume knob on your guitar set to maximum. Then turn up the distortion and tone knob to maximum on your amplifier.

Then try playing on the seventh fret g string - hold your pick so close to the edge of the picks "pointy edge " so that you can barely see the point sticking out.

Then try picking and change the picking spot with one millimeter each time you pick - until you have found a spot where you get a squeal note.

The.new.guy wrote: Great lesson Kris! I've got a question for you about palm-muting to keep extra notes from ringing. I PM to keep certain harmonics on other strings to keep from ringing out. Say I was to make a staccato note at the 15th fret, B String. If I'm not palm-muting the G string, I get a harmonic of that same note that keeps ringing. This happens on the B string when I'm playing a staccato B note on the high E string as well. The problem is, when I palm-mute the G-B strings, my palm mas to go to an angle. This makes the top of my pick point sharply towards the floor so, then my pick hooks the string on the upstroke. How could I palm-mute in a different way so that my pick doesn't angle so sharply towards the floor?

I am not 100% sure I picture correctly how yo are attempting this... Could be it be that you hold your pick in an unorthodox way?

The way I usually go about muting if I want to mute the string that is just above the one I am playing (Ie if I want to mute the string that's one step "thicker") - is to actually mute the string I am playing, just as a reference - and then back off the hand a little.

Thanks for all the great comments guys!

I cant donwload the video has it been taken off???
HALP
KRIs I need lessons

for real, i check Ultimate guitar just to see if Master Kris has another awesome lesson to offer!! Well Kris, ur lessons are all goodaaa!!

for real, i check Ultimate guitar just to see if Master Kris has another awesome lesson to offer!! Well Kris, ur lessons are all goodaaa!!

as he said.. 'he's the best guitarist in teh worllld...'

'alright...'

'oh, i rock..

'its solo time!'

LOL i loved that. so funny..

Kris I should be studying! Stop making me play guitar!! =P

Hey Kris,
Will you or have you made a video about tunings? I mean like how to drop d and stuff like that. Then show some cool licks in those tunings. I think it would be awesome.
-Chris from Arizona

fretsonfire74 wrote: Kris I should be studying! Stop making me play guitar!! =P

I am sorry...!

frantic_saint wrote: Hey Kris, Will you or have you made a video about tunings? I mean like how to drop d and stuff like that. Then show some cool licks in those tunings. I think it would be awesome. -Chris from Arizona

I haven't done one because I rarely use different tunings - occasionally I tune all strings down a half step down to make bending easier.

Also Marcus Lavendell in my band has written some riffs for our songs with drop D - but that's about it.

Hi Kris
My question is how do you determine which of the 5 different pentatonic positions is most effective to use. I really like the way you incorporate these positions, even the ones less used like the 3rd position, in your swing shred solo & all the other ones as well.

amir razmara wrote: Hi Kris My question is how do you determine which of the 5 different pentatonic positions is most effective to use. I really like the way you incorporate these positions, even the ones less used like the 3rd position, in your swing shred solo & all the other ones as well.

Hmm well that's an interesting question - for me it's usually a question of which octave I want to be in. For instance, in the beginning of this solo, I didn't want to use the high notes to early so I started really low on the guitar.

Also - the different shapes will enable different kind of licks and ideas.

+ If you want to play a fast run horizontally you have no other option but to learn and use ALL the boxes!

have you done a lesson on sweep picking at all? I know you've touched on it here and there but I can't seem to get it down :/

crazy )))

great lesson kris... i hve learn lesson something tht will improve my skills.

seanimous wrote: have you done a lesson on sweep picking at all? I know you've touched on it here and there but I can't seem to get it down :/

I haven't done one - because I haven't really felt comfortable enough with the technique. I'll keep practicing though and hopefully be able to deliver a cool lesson on that!

God - noun - the term used to describe Kristofer Dahl.

=D

Great lesson, once again!

Man, if you got rid of alot of the 'funny' stuff, this lesson would be really good. Alot of time is wasted here.

Just wondering... is there a torrent for the masterclass videos?

Can someone please answer this, it just crossed my mind while watching this video, it may be obvious im not sure.

When you are picking are you ment to move yout wrist or, well.. the back of your thumb kinda thing. Which is cleaner and faster?
Are you ment to use it in different ways for what you are playing?

Thanks in advance

Y arent u in a band?U could do great things.

Hello Kris!
First of all, compliments for Your lesson, it opened up a new horizont for me, especially what picking mixed with legato concerns. I started out to be a pure "economy"-picking guy, but I lacked in timing. That's when I started to look out for some video lessons and I found Yours.. wow!! I began to pick alternate only.. first it was a big hassle, because the string-changes were really difficult. And after a year, it's still difficult for me to play fast runs evenly with alternate picking only (I only got 20min a day for studying.. I need to work to live ). Especially it's difficult for me to keep up long times of high speeds.. that's when I watched yesterday Your lesson here... and it cleared a lot of things about scalar runs that Yngwie does, without getting damn tired after a hundred notes !! It's just mixing legato with picking.. and it sounds really good, it gives another taste to it...
Thank You again for this lesson, I will definitely try and apply these things to my playing! And one thing, Kris: You become better with every video, that means You keep practising a lot I guess
Thank You again and keep up the great work !
Dino from Italy

sexualbreakfast wrote: Y arent u in a band?U could do great things.

last time i checked (a while ago) he was in a bamd!

By the way, Kris, I always thought Yngwie does economy picking when ascending scale runs, and strict alternate mixed with legato when descending... any hints?
Thank You very much !
Dino

dino1978 wrote: Hello Kris! First of all, compliments for Your lesson, it opened up a new horizont for me, especially what picking mixed with legato concerns. I started out to be a pure "economy"-picking guy, but I lacked in timing. That's when I started to look out for some video lessons and I found Yours.. wow!! I began to pick alternate only.. first it was a big hassle, because the string-changes were really difficult. And after a year, it's still difficult for me to play fast runs evenly with alternate picking only (I only got 20min a day for studying.. I need to work to live ). Especially it's difficult for me to keep up long times of high speeds.. that's when I watched yesterday Your lesson here... and it cleared a lot of things about scalar runs that Yngwie does, without getting damn tired after a hundred notes !! It's just mixing legato with picking.. and it sounds really good, it gives another taste to it... Thank You again for this lesson, I will definitely try and apply these things to my playing! And one thing, Kris: You become better with every video, that means You keep practising a lot I guess Thank You again and keep up the great work ! Dino from Italy

RelientK_V_Fan wrote: Groovy Wow well maybe If I can practice a lot and get real fast then I can play random notes and sound awesome. Cool ways to get interesting sounds. If you mess up and it sounds cool then use it.

rock stars look like they are just playing random notes, but really they practice for years, and learn scales that they use to IMPROVISE, what you see is improvisation not random notes.

sweep lesson!

Yo Kris You should listen to the solos in these Van Halen songs I really think they will inspire you... Dreams, Not Enough, Right Now, Ice Cream Man. The solo in Dreams has some crazy tap harmonics combined with bending

All I can say is WOW..... Im Darryl from Philippines...

KRis you continue what you do because all of us here in the world love what u do... Tc and God Bless.....

Kris.....amazing.....your my inspiration

LegsOnEarth wrote: Man, if you got rid of alot of the 'funny' stuff, this lesson would be really good. Alot of time is wasted here.

you're an idiot. taking the funny stuff out of kris dahl vids would be like taking the solos out of metallica. what do you get? st anger. who liked st anger? nobody. /point.

thanks kris! what you said at the end was amazing , thanks alot! cheers mate ; )

Sounds like Satriani and MacAlpine...cool!

Your lessons are great, I like how you teach long songs rather than small licks.

Keep teaching us man.

Thanks for the funny video Chris I laughed so hard at the beginning. Where did you get that guitar?

Kristopher Dalh, are you the master in masters challenge?
If not....well lets just say that he has the same accent.
(check in youtube, search: Master's Challenge =P)

What up dude? Gotta say, first off, I love your videos. I've been playing guitar for a year and a bit now, and I've learned i ton of stuff from your videos i wouldn't have been able to teach myself.

One immediate question though, and I apologize if its been adressed before, but i think the single biggest factor preventing me from playing fast shreddy riffs is not being able to sync my left hand up with my right hand. individually, i can move my fingers plenty fast, but they get mixed up with intense speed picking riffs. Is there any specific tricks you know to help my hands work together?

peace
~Z

this guys awesome

yeah a sweep picking lesson would be awesome but seeing how you can alternate pick faster than a speeding bullet I guess there is no point for you to sweep pick haha

Final !mpact wrote: What amp do you use?

dosnt matter if u got crunch and balls .....

ZiggysDisease wrote: What up dude? Gotta say, first off, I love your videos. I've been playing guitar for a year and a bit now, and I've learned i ton of stuff from your videos i wouldn't have been able to teach myself. One immediate question though, and I apologize if its been adressed before, but i think the single biggest factor preventing me from playing fast shreddy riffs is not being able to sync my left hand up with my right hand. individually, i can move my fingers plenty fast, but they get mixed up with intense speed picking riffs. Is there any specific tricks you know to help my hands work together? peace ~Z

practice slow, thats the trick. do it slow with both hands in sync and gradually pick up speed, a metranome it good for this also. then play at your top speed then go as fast as you can possible go, don't worry about playing it perfectly, play like that for a bit then go back to playing as fast as you can cleanly. you should inprove a bit each time. so there's my book, hope this helps good luck

First fo all, Kris Great video!!!! you always have kick ass lessons 2nd You mentioned on the video that you have a scaloped neck. Did you do it yourself or did you send it to a shop somewhere?? Or it can be done at home with some tools?

the greatest guitar teacher on the net and seriously you help ALOT!!!!!

Hiya greeting from Manchester UK

I'm crap on guitar but trying to get better so tried this lesson, but when it gets to the fast bit (paul gilbert style) i cant seem to fit the timing for it in, it ends up with the backing track finishing that passage and i'm only part way through the lick!

Any tips on how to fit the timing in or which notes i should be accenting on to the beat or whatever?
I've tried slowing it down but i still cant get the timing right

Thanks dude

heyyy i got the same guitar!! except it's blue. haha