The TGL Knowledge Base

THE TOTAL GUITAR LAB KNOWLEDGE BASE

Solve your guitar problems...fast!

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Welcome to the Total Guitar Lab Knowledge Base

Watch the short video in the first module to discover how to easily use this valuable resource to solve your guitar playing problems!

Course Curriculum

1. WHAT IS THE KNOWLEDGE BASE AND HOW SHOULD YOU USE IT? [WATCH FIRST]
2. GOT A QUESTION? READ THIS...
1. IMPORTANT UPDATE: HOW TO DOWNLOAD RESOURCES FROM TGL (THE NEW WAY!)
1. What is alternate picking? How can I boost my picking technique?
2. What is hybrid picking and how can I learn to use it?
3. How can I increase my playing speed?
4. How to play strong and clean bends?
5. How to play cool and fast legatos?
6. How can I start to use two-handed tapping in my solos?
7. Are there any universal guitar exercises which can improve my speed, accuracy and the finger strength?
8. How to play lead guitar without a pick? (Mark Knopfler style fingerpicking technique)
9. Any tips for fixing unwanted string noise?
10. Any finger stretching tips and exercises I can work on?
11. Any fretting hand position tips?
12. How to play and use harmonics on acoustic or electric guitar?
13. How can I improve my 'string rakes'?
14. Where can I learn some awesome-sounding rock licks that will also help me to learn and use different techniques?
15. My vibrato sounds weak and fades out quickly. How can I make it sound longer and louder?
16. How can I sync up my fretting and picking hand better?
17. How can I improve my rhythm?
18. Any tips for making my notes sustain and 'sing'?
19. Any tips on palm muting? How to do it the right way and which part of my hand should I use? What if I use a tremolo?
20. Any tips for better pull-offs?
21. Should I use alternative or economy picking?
22. I'm having trouble keeping my strumming solid. Any tips?
1. What can I do to master the minor pentatonic scale?
2. How can I master the major pentatonic scale?
3. How can I break out of the standard 'shape 1' pentatonic scale when I solo?
4. What's the best way to learn new chords?
5. How can I easily learn a scale over the whole fretboard?
6. What are power chords?
7. What exactly is a 9th chord and how and when can I use it?
8. How can I start playing dark sounding metal chords in Drop D tuning?
9. Any tips on how to use chords to play cool sounding blues rhythms and riffs?
10. What are diminished chords and what do you do with them?
11. What's a locrian mode?
1. Do I really need to understand music theory?
2. How to visualise and understand the fretboard?
3. Where can I learn about the Circle of Fifths and how to use it?
4. I don’t have any theoretical knowledge. Can you help me to get started with all the notes, scales and stuff?
5. What is a triad?
6. What is a chord and how are they built?
7. How can I easily learn all the notes on my fretboard?
8. What are tones and semi tones?
9. What is the major scale?
10. What is an interval?
11. What is a chromatic interval?
12. How to count different rhythmic groupings (quarter notes, 8th notes, triplets and 16th)?
13. How to figure out the key of a song and chords used in it?
1. How can I manage my practice time to cover the things I want to... without it taking hours?
2. How can I keep my practice going during busy periods and avoid that 'deflated' feeling that comes from thinking like you aren't moving forward?
3. How can I bust out 'ruts' when I feel like I'm stuck and not really improving ?
4. There are so much things I can learn and sometimes it seems quite overwhelming. How can I stay motivated to learn the things I want to?
5. Can you suggest some general quick and useful practice tips and lifehacks?
6. How to overcome and master the hardest part of a solo which is stopping me from playing it all the way through?
7. Can you give an advice on how to get the most out of jamming over the backing tracks?
8. I have trouble learning solos, by the time I move on to the next lick I keep forgetting the ones I learned before. Any tips?
1. I'm having problems with tension in my picking arm. Any tips I can try to fix it?
2. When will my fingers stop hurting from playing guitar?
3. Is it good to study several guitar styles at once?
4. What type and gauge of guitar strings should I use?
5. Can I use a capo with an electric guitar?
1. How can I shift between shift 'rhythmic gears' in my solos so I can easily switch between 8th notes, triplets, 16th notes and other groupings?
2. How can I master tricky rhythms in a solo?
3. Any tips for playing more effective solos?
4. How can I make my improvisations less repetitive and more interesting?
5. I find descending licks harder than ascending. Any tips how I can make them easier?
6. How can I use chord shapes (triads) in my soloing?
7. How can I develop 'themes' in my solos to give them more structure and a more melodic sound?
8. How can I use the stuff I learn from other players to come up with better licks of my own?
9. How can I move a lick into a different key?
10. Sometimes I feel like my solos are just a bunch of random licks which are glued together! How can I break out of this and learn to create continuity in my solos?
11. Improvisation seems to be a quite complicated thing for me... How should I start learning to improvise?
12. My solos sound a bit dull... How can I give them more life?
13. I always seem to play in minor keys. How can I start playing solos in major keys?
14. Is there anything I can do to make my soloing sound more melodic?
15. How to develop the 'call and response' phrasing technique?
16. How can I learn to play what I hear in my head?
17. How do I know which scale I should use to jam over a chord progression?
18. How can I master switching between different scale patterns mid solo?
1. How can I make up and play cool metal riffs?
2. I want some 'shredding' exercises covering large areas of the neck. Where can I find some?
3. How to make my rock soloing more interesting by using scales, triads and chord shapes?
4. How can I play dark sounding metal chords in Drop D tuning?
5. What are the essential scales used in rock?
6. Where can I learn some 'hot' and speedy rock licks?
1. A lot of blues songs sound very similar to each other. Is there some chord pattern or maybe a scale commonly used in blues?
2. I want to learn how to play blues solos in the style of greatest blues players, how can I do so?
3. How can I extend the blues scale to reach some higher notes?
4. How can I learn to mix chords and licks together to play solo blues guitar?
5. What do I need to know to play blues in any key?
6. Are there any complete blues solos I can work on?
7. How can I play cool blues turnarounds, intros and endings?
8. Is there a workout I can use to develop great blues bends?
9. How can I use double-stops in my blues solos for high energy licks?
10. I know there's a sliding blues scale extension, but how do I get the most of it? Any cool tricks I should know about?
11. What's the difference between major and minor blues and how do I play minor blues rhythms and solos?
12. How can I add some speedy repeating licks into my blues solos for more energy and excitement?
13. How can I use major and minor pentatonics together in blues soloing?
14. How can I use open strings scales and runs in my blues solos?
15. How can I make my blues rhythm guitar sound more interesting? I feel like I'm always doing the same stuff!
16. What other chords/chord shapes can I use besides the usual dominant 7th in blues?
17. Can you suggest some quick blues licks which are not too hard to play?
18. How to setup my amp to get a good blues sound?
19. Where can I learn how to play slide guitar?

About this course

Free
105 lessons
0 hours of video content

THE TOTAL GUITAR LAB KNOWLEDGE BASE

Course Curriculum

TGL KNOWLEDGE BASE...WHAT'S IT ALL ABOUT?

USING TOTAL GUITAR LAB (FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS!)

GUITAR TECHNIQUES

SCALES AND CHORDS

PRACTICAL MUSIC THEORY

PRACTICE ROUTINE

GENERAL GUITAR QUESTIONS

SOLOING AND IMPROVISATION

ANSWERS FOR ROCKERS AND METAL-HEADS!

ANSWERS FOR BLUES-MEN AND BLUES-WOMEN!

About this course