I have the worst sense of time. HOw do I practice with a metronome?

[DougH]

I have been playing for a while, I'm not a natural at it. I have recently tryed to record along with a drum machine and my timing is terrible. every few bars I miss a beat and come in late or early.

 

Should I just go through scales and simple chord progressions to a metroname or just keep on trying songs and play with drum machine or along with the CD. Both?

 

Do you think some people just can't learn to play in time:(

[Poparad]

Originally posted by DougH Should I just go through scales and simple chord progressions to a metroname or just keep on trying songs and play with drum machine or along with the CD. Both?

 

 

All of that. You can use your metronome for both working specifically on time (playing scales, different rhythms), or use it as an aid while working on songs to keep your time honest. Bottom line: keep the metronome on for everything you practice.

[DougH]

Thanks:) That's what I've been thinking. Is this a common problem? Has anyone else overcame bad timing?

[Poparad]

Of course. Most people have bad time when they start playing, but as long as you put some time into practicing it (no pun intended), you will improve. I have old tapes of myself playing things and the time on it is just terrible. I don't profess to be a master of rhythm now, and I'm always working on fine tuning my sense of tempo and such, but it is drastically better than it used to be. The biggest thing with time is just listening. When you practice, listen to the metronome to line yourself up, and when you perform, listen to the drummer or bassist or whoever else you're playing with and lock in with what they're doing (assuming they don't have questionable time).