Today’s topic of beginning guitar lessons is metronome, a device that makes a sound to indicate beats so you can keep in time when you are playing the guitar. A metronome keeps perfect time so that you can learn the songs you love properly. Also metronomes are adjustable, meaning you can make them beat faster or slower. This lets you learn a song at a slower pace before
building it up to full speed.
Older metronomes were like wind up clocks that had a swinging
pendulum and were generally powered by a spring. On the end of
the pendulum was a weight that could be moved to change the tempo
(tempo is a musical term that basically means speed).
Modern metronomes are electronic and generally battery powered. They
are operated by pressing buttons or turning a dial. Older
metronomes make a clicking sound like a clock whereas more modern
metronomes generally make a pinging sound to denote each beat.
Metronomes are very important for all musicians because they
will keep your playing in time. Nearly all modern rock recordings
are made with a metronome and most dedicated professionals practice
with one. The reason for this is that without a constant beat it
is easy for a musician to go out of time. This also applies to
practice as you should be trying to play in time as much as
possible.
Newer metronomes can do some pretty amazing things like
playing differing time signatures like 3/4, 6/8, and 7/8 for
example. They can also be set to make different sounds depending
on the beat. For example you can set most newer metronomes to have
a different sound at the start of a bar so you always know where
beat one is.
When using a metronome you should push yourself but practice
with tempos that you can handle. This will make you a better player
– though you may find it difficult at first it is something that
will pay dividends in the future.
Though I believe using a metronome is very important when you
are practicing, there are times when I think you should play
without it. When you are trying to be creative or if you are
experimenting with different things there is no real need to use a metronome.
So though a metronome is a good practice tool it shouldn’t be used
religiously and every beginning guitar lessons should encourage players to use it.
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