Guthrie Govan - Professor Shred #1

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This video is bonus content related to the October 2011 issue of Guitar World. For full print reviews, lesson tabs and more, look for the October 2011 issue of Guitar World on newsstands now, or purchase this issue in our online store here.
In this video, Guthrie Govan debuts his new Guitar World column, "Professor Shred." In the video, Govan reminds shredders that musicality always comes first, among many other helpful pieces of advice.

[@josantosp77]

When you lear a new scale... *procedes to break the time space continuum with his fingers*

[@paulobrito664]

I literally went back and checked if he was tapping or picking... This guy's a real monster

[@calvinlewis1979]

Guthrie is one of the very few guitarists who genuinely can display jaw dropping technique, deep theoretical knowledge at the same time as giving you a tune that you could hum back to him afterwards. For the uninitiated, check out his 'erotic cakes' album.

[@rleften5788]

He's insane. His tone is just so so good as well.

[@Moskal91]

john petrucci too. he has a a more diatonic way of playing but he is very melodic

[@peterparker8708]

That album is FINALLY on spotify. Man I love it, so many good many memories listening to it

[@markrohrbaugh1825]

This guy. We can always try n cover this.. lol kzbin.info/www/bejne/oXucgpqJh8ShbNk

[@KickflipGnasty]

@@Moskal91 Petrucci is great. I’d say Govan’s closest peer though is Steve Vai. Both have tremendous tone, they’re insanely versatile, and they’re much more about the personality/quirks, dynamics, and melody in their playing as opposed to just picking as fast as they can all the time. Also both are incredibly creative with the way they incorporate the whammy bar.

[@shootinsharkz]

this man is a gift to music. i always look up his videos when i feel im no progressing and after watching a few of them i feel inspired again. ty Guthrie for being my main source of insperation when its lacking

[@TheCyberMantis]

Guthrie is on a whole other level. He is a master.

[@tmayne220]

probably the most important guitar lesson on the internet.

[@nakinaki7991]

Didnt know Ron Jeremy likes guitar

[@RockSchooled]

Yeah, if you've only seen one guitar lesson.

[@DaveRucci]

Name checks out.

[@georgemorris4142]

I seen Ron back in the day, playing blues licks with his his 10 inch shlong

[@akidk1499]

Broderick Chaos Theory..

[@eragon2121]

"If it gets too weird you know where the pentatonics are" Haha

[@shadehunter1290]

I'm rather impressed. This man can obviously shred (And he's right. That's what almost every guitar player wants), but he's great at explaining how to still be musical while shredding. And that's really important and resonates with me personally. Any guitarist can learn techniques and scales, but using them in a musical context is a completely different ball game. It's still impressively fast, but it's still got an emotion behind it, perfect for a musician. This is priceless insight.

[@SDesWriter]

That was great lesson. I love the way he broke down how he gets to the scale and then how far you can take the scale, and then brings it back to recovering if you're doing stuff that's beginning to take away from what you're originally trying to do.

[@gre8]

Man, what he said about slowing down to learn what each note has to say should be gospel; Oh how often do I forget this! I shall keep this lesson with me forevermore.

[@erenbecomesdovecrying6016]

gre8 are you a 16th century bard?

[@OvergrownWithTheMoss]

Art and Lmao

[@erenbecomesdovecrying6016]

Carlos Lopez aayyyyy

[@bluenote335]

He's such a master of his craft. An incredibly relatable personality/teacher and probably one of the best guitarists to walk the planet over the past couple of decades. Godspeed

[@cdemarcomusic]

I have to say his intelligence is what sets him apart from other guitar players...he knows his theory and never seems to force notes that shouldnt be there which is a problem most guitarist (including myself) have...he's creative and so natural and it shows in the way he plays and the way he explains his approach to the instrument...LONG LIVE GUTHRIE...there will never be another like him

[@slipe612]

This is like the third video i've watched of this guy and he is blowing my mind by how beautifully he can explain these concepts

[@MrBerglmir]

There is soo much in this lesson worth listen to!! The sentence "it´s almost like the scale is telling you what to play instead of you owning the scale" is brilliant (and true!)

[@JustusVidyo]

We are mostly guys. lets be Frank.

[@christianvisconti3800]

i dont want to be frank

[@asiannoodleboy9135]

Franku?

[@diegosotomiranda4107]

Can i be joe?

[@mJDRIFTS]

no, you must be Frank, dammit

[@SmSpl-iy9le]

It's just a frank bro

[@TheHernanNoguera]

Year after year I come back to this video to appreciate what is probably the single most important lesson for guitar players. Make music. Stay humble.

[@catboyzee]

The second part is where many of us have our epic fail.

[@steffyweffy777]

Guthrie is a great teacher. He knows he’s arguably the fastest and best shredder around and could probably beat the most famous shredders in a duel because of his knowledge of all styles and speed, but he’s talking sense to the learning guitarist here. He’s saying basically that shredding is just a trick. It’s a skill to play fast and shred at high speed, but this isn’t music. It can be if done where necessary but yes, it’s not musical to just roll off meaningless runs. The bluesy and other stuff he demonstrated at normal speeds full of feel is what’s musical. The Beatles, Led Zeppelin, the Stones, Pink Floyd, The Who, Eric Clapton, Hendrix, etc, can’t play as fast as Guthrie and haven’t the knowledge and skills he has but they were musical and very competent players who could write songs and deliver them with feel. So it’s great that he’s basically saying this despite being the king of technique and shred. My cousin was abit like Guthrie. He was a hold prodigy who could shred and play anything but with feel. But last time I saw him he had been playing acoustic and more classic rock and didn’t want to do some shredding for me even saying he’d been out of practice at playing that fast stuff as he wanted to focus on the music now rather than stuff he did to prove to himself and show off to others at gigs as to how great he was. He said now he wanted to just focus on the true feel and music so he didn’t really play the shred stuff he used to though he loved playing Dream Theatre and Steve Vai stuff. But he just found he loved the classic rock and bluesy folk stuff more. 🤷‍♀️

[@ironskater121]

As fast as fastest I would def disagree because you have people like paul gilbert who have razor sharp shredding with perfect technique , but as far as musically inclined and playing different styles of music and adaptability to anything then yes, Guthrie is definitely top 5.

[@latebloomermusic]

Thank you for the perspective! I feel good about not feeling the way I used to about music. My approach has faded into something even I don't know. Hell I don't even know if I'm into music anymore anyway :/

[@frankie.d1127]

Everyone has their taste and preferences. The fact is, Guthrie plays so many styles SO well and with such conviction it's so insane. Obviously, there are so many phenomenal players that exist, and have existed- and it's inevitable to compare players (like so many of us do) it's just so surreal to watch him, pretty much play anything....and he really means it. I think those that label him just "another shredder" is missing A LOT of beautiful music and passion. If you really analyze his playing, you'll realize his phrasing, attack and feel is just so REAL. just my 2 cents

[@darthpongo5457]

he's godthrie

[@markrohrbaugh1825]

kzbin.info/www/bejne/oXucgpqJh8ShbNk Here's another guy to look into!!!

[@kovakafa3244]

This 4 minute video teaches so much for its duration

[@michaelmiller7909]

I know nothing about 90% of what he said, but just watching the hands taught me plenty.

[@dhio9615]

I just love how he doesn't just ignore and disregard what works. He just says what you are playing right now is great, lets add some spice to it. I absolutely love his philosophy and approach.

[@Blueslicks321]

I love how this guy (every time I see him on the internet!!!) is thinking OUT of the box!

[@ianleonard3264]

I come back to this series every sixth months. The more i learn the more i understand what this wizard is saying. The more i understand the faster i learn

[@longgrayline8055]

Guthrie reminds me of Ian Anderson back in the late 60’s and early 70’s. Very similar voices as well.

[@shaneandangelareisinger9796]

I've played for a little over 20 years. Certainly guilty of being stuck in that "shred" stage. Recently i've been able to make solos sound a lot more emotional thanks to a ghost named buckethead who then turned me on to guthrie. Guthrie has a way of explaining things that are near impossible to explain, to a person, using metaphors that allow us mere mortals to understand. Certainly one of the best teachers of any subject to have graced us.

[@cast390]

Guitar world needs to learn how to properly use a gate.

[@maratone4798]

@Mike Hodgson Hahah yes... wow... incredibly annoying

[@hagartm]

Nash .... their way of usi ...... lly excellent.

[@kemperwatson3490]

They're guitarists. That's how they use gates..

[@musicfriend2051]

What is gate?

[@shfunky]

@@musicfriend2051 I think they're refering to the audio when Guthrie is speaking. The volume level goes from normal to total silence way too fast. On mobile it's not that bad tbh.

[@craigrutter4804]

absolute masterclass from Guthrie, such an unbelievably tasteful player with devastating technical ability!

[@sykodx469]

"....and the other one is horrible" Lost it here. lol

[@hotman718]

hes talking about locrian lolSs

[@marshalcraft]

so if don't land on the 7th? But then when he was focusing on the pentatonic with additional notes, wouldn't that be locrian or phyrgian? Or just don't play the chord tones of locrian triad?

[@gisibah]

When you use the 7th chord in the major scale as your home chord, you're playing the locrian mode. Because it's a diminished chord, it can be difficult to play anything meaningful in that mode.

[@mikemorada6290]

sykodx469 7th mode, Locrian

[@robertjohndelarosa7358]

Yup. Been playing guitars for years but have always been intimidated with modes. I tried re-learning them again a few months ago and I actually got the theory behind it. Yup, he's talking about the Locrian mode.

[@holliswilliams8426]

He is so modest and friendly bearing in mind how amazing he is on the guitar.

[@brianlobue4649]

He’s just great. Everything he says is wise and on point

[@fretfanaticno1]

I've never been as focused with a lesson as I am with Govan's. He has a fantastic method of teaching and he uses vibrant vocab to explain things so colourfully. What a legend.

[@crazynp2003]

80 people must love locrian...

[@alllucky8692]

+Noah Pappo My band, 'The Turbo Chainsaw Thunderfuckers' strictly write in F# Locrian

[@surekhaahlawat6068]

What's wrong with the locrian? Use it with the phrygian mode and it can add a very dark and dissonant character to it.

[@crazynp2003]

surekha ahlawat haha yea I personally love the flavor of it while improvising. I was just making a joke since Guthrie threw some shade towards it at the end of the video :)

[@crazynp2003]

alllucky yo leave some recording links

[@funfgesange7656]

@@crazynp2003 kzbin.info/www/bejne/r5fWhmiBm6tpgqc YEEEAH!!!!

[@adsensedd]

First time I've ever seen or heard of this guy and what a fantastic guitar lesson. Every beginning or moderate level guitar player needs to drink this information in. The best lesson I have ever seen from guitarworld because it's clear, straight to to point and deals with musicality > shredding.

[@MikeDawson01]

This guy is sooooooooo Good! Awsome!

[@apolokmandal7597]

The way he talks is equally as attractive as his guitar skills, one of my favourites.

[@xxczerxx]

I had to laugh at how 0:52 is basically what the intro lick for this video (from the song 'Waves') is essentially what he's warning against.

[@1nzi]

Yes, but it sounds amazing in the context of the song.

[@xxczerxx]

***** I think alternate, it sounds quite accented

[@alal6964]

You're right

[@МирославВучетић]

He said he regrets writing that,since its boring to him,dude's a god and i say that every time i mention him

But that intro lick is only .001% of the tune 'Waves'. Context man...context.

[@dikbeats2720]

His technical ability and knowledge of guitar i think is unmatched. Humble, soulful and an absolute demon with the axe!

[@shredding121]

If he wouldn't be a guitar player, he could make a living by reading bedtime stories to all of us given his voice.

[@semanticsamuel936]

Among the many things about Guthrie that I respect is that he wants players to retain their style, but develop it. He doesn't want to take away a player's individuality. Guitar is just one of those things where we all have our own style and preferences; for example, we agonise over our tone and enjoy spending hours tinkering with settings to get it perfect. It's very personal. Nothing in this video is hyper-technical to the point that it's beyond what the average recreational guitarist is ever going to be able to play. It's all very learnable - much of it is building up confidence to break out of the pentatonic shape (which sounds cool by itself, but not especially interesting) and being aware of the fretboard while playing. His comment, 'and if it gets too weird you know where the pentatonic shape is'. It's a joke, but it's got a sincere, useful message - experiment, but know how to bring it back round.

[@brucechavez9535]

That's why this guy is an amazing guitarist and a outstanding tutor as well. You heard it from him, people ! Guitar music is not about speed, MUSICALITY is the priority ! Enough said.

[@parkerb9010]

Just found these after all this time. Thanks for talking about the "Switch being flipped" as I call it. For a long time when I was thinking Metal or then blues my whole mind set and playing style would change completely. It was like I played one or the other.

[@keigen95]

That blues lick is pretty beastial..not easy at all. Nor slow....

[@sh0cking21]

this is insanely brilliant. as someone who's just starting to understand licks and building solos, this seriously shifts the mentality I was going into learning with. hopefully i'll be able to carry some of this wisdom forward

[@REX05011]

Guthrie and victor wooten should played together sometime. That would be sick.

[@hifive7366]

They both tend to fill all the space with their sound. I'm affraid it might get to confusing.

[@Aardvarked88]

@@hifive7366 Implying that two of the best musicians in the world on their respected instruments don't know how to accompany other musicians. Ok dude.

[@tromboneman4517]

Aardvarked, they could absolutely figure it out. They are underrated accompanists.

[@KickflipGnasty]

@@hifive7366 Nah you’re wrong they’re both great at exercising restraint when they need to.

[@leonkushner]

I am jealous of the incredible technical skills of shredders which I do like to watch on utube from time to time but I would rarely like to listen to their 'music'. I think this guy is brilliant!

[@futile-evenings]

daeumm he speaks like he plays what a wordsmith

[@holliswilliams8426]

I think he was intending to study Philosophy at Oxford before he went into music.

[@Incog2k6]

Seriously, he and Paul Gilbert have taught me so much in all these videos (LOL@ all of us for not buying the actual DVDs... but I plan to). Hands down, the two coolest guitar dudes ever.

[@jamesshevnin981]

"Un musical shredders"... that so needed to be said.

[@JesterSyxe]

Guthrie is just so awesome, not because he is a badass Player but because he can teach you things in 10 minutes that other people can't teach you in years. Just brilliant!!!

[@jonb1011]

"there's something vaguely musical about it" he says after ripping a killer lick

[@mikemorada6290]

Undoubtedly Guthrie is very skilled but what's more impressive is his teaching skills. He makes it easy and comprehensible to us enthusiasts!

[@boaminikam2]

Poor locrian, can never catch a break. XD

[@joshuacanfield93]

Using this phazing in new intervals technique of changing the appropriate intervals to achieve new modes gradually, is something I have recently discoverd and it has literally trippled my musicallity during the learning process. (Tip: Not only this I have also drawn out the cage system, commited it to memmory and have learnt my scles arround the various chord shapes.) I saw this vidio after using this learning technique, but I vouch for it, if you haven't already, I recomend that you commit your time to it, the results are rarely dissapionting! For those who don't already know from the Ionian mode (the maj scale), flaten the 7th note to get a mixolydian mode, and flaten the 7th & the 3rd to get Dorian.

[@radical4441]

Not only is he a genius player he has an emotional atribute which is missing in so many . How he talks about keeping your identity

[@metalvocalistwanted]

hard to find a great guitar player who is as articulate with his teaching as he is with his playing....guthrie is the man

[@davide724]

Music is expressing _emotion_ through _melody_ The _value_ of music is in the _affect_ it has on any creature that has the capacity to appreciate it

[@TheTerryd5150]

Very well said.

[@nicksainsbury7152]

Frank is brilliant. Just 3 minutes is enough to know he would be a great teacher

[@KickflipGnasty]

Frank?

[@biggfingger5]

Far more than just a shredder

[@msheldon10]

A really refreshing apporach to scales and modes. Great help for beginners and advanced guitarists!

[@shredfix1993]

"Youll find that three modes fit over the minor pentatonic shape, three modes fit over the minor pentatonic shape and one just sounds horrible" i laughed way too hard at that

[@Glissmann]

the greatest, most intelligent and known guitarist AND teacher in the world. I would not wonder if he would once achieve or may already be a professor in guitar music

[@SJA962]

Set speed on 0.5 and see how a drunk guy looks like

[@nuke1upgames]

lol

[@owenziegler307]

Set it to 1.25x and he's on crack

[@callummurphy3862]

Yeah he's a super weird looking guy

[@ajburkemuso]

Play at 0.25, and you have him in his Twin Peaks phase

[@JerwxD]

or at 0.75 and he'll just play bb king stuff

[@reubencoutinho757]

Thank you Guthrie Govan, hard to believe that I found your guitar lessons right here!

[@mbzm1342]

Jesus himself speaking the Gospel.

[@Yupppi]

The most difficult thing is exactly this. Playing the changes, finding the key notes of the chords and scales to imply musical tonality without revealing you're playing a scale. Finding the fascinating combinadtions of the notes. Playing the chords specifically, but in a really interesting way.

[@KlaskeyProductions]

how could anyone dislike this? >.

[@Jonpoo1]

Favourite metal guitarist: Guthrie Favourite jazz guitarist: Guthrie Favourite blues guitarist: Guthrie

[@Liquence]

What are the 3 modes that fit into the minor pentatonic and the 3 modes that fit into the major pentatonic?

[@SvenBroos]

Major: Ionian (which is "normal major"), Lydian, Mixolydian Minor: Dorian, Phrygian, Aeolian ("normal minor") The seventh one is Locrian, which is minor with a flat 2 and a flat 5. Horrible 😜 hope this helps!

[@Butts666]

I disapprove of the sentiment that locrian is horrible, sure it's dissonant but it's still diatonic (and will occasionally occur in a jazz context) and sometimes dissonant is exactly what you're looking for.

[@marshalcraft]

Interesting Sven Broos and Magnus Winski. I have been completely self taught as far as music thoery and gutiar; as a warning to what follows. But I have always enjoyed to view all music constructs in terms of the major and minor scales of the circle of fifths. Thus said at least part of Magnus Winski's question and Sven Boss answer have meaning. This would ask what are three keys which fit over a given minor pentatonic or major pentatonic scales. To force this to fit we view the major and minor pentatonic scales as simply major and minor scales except that they remove the 4th and 7th so that they agree with major and minor. Thus Sven's answer describes a useful relation ship between 4, 2 scale modulation patterns.

[@Johnbartheart]

Awesome lesson. Brilliant player.

[@999manman]

All these years I thought he could only play flute

[@breadzeppelin2705]

I understand the joke. F'n brilliant

[@999manman]

@@breadzeppelin2705 Thank you, Bread! Good feeling when someone is on the same wavelength.

[@TheSkipjack95]

It's a hairband. Yes, it is, it's there to be slided onto the fretboard when you want to do some tapping ( like his two-handed tapping ) and want to keep it clean. You don't have to bother with open strings vibrating when you play. Hope that helps :)

[@111calling]

The most uncomfortable noise gate I have ever heard. Makes the video almost unwatchable...

[@countingsheeple2428]

Huh? Fuckin' cork sniffers EVERYWHERE.

[@dougdavis8986]

Nick Watson : you're an idiot

[@hifive7366]

That is not a noise gate, I believe it is the switching between to different signals (or different microphones), the voice in one side and the guitar in the other.

[@Aardvarked88]

@@hifive7366 Why would they switch from his mic to guitar input in the middle of him talking? It's either a noise gate or they're just muting his audio inbetween what he's saying, it's horrible.

[@VodkaSelekta]

@@hifive7366 is on crack

[@tshandy1]

Govan is a player. A professor. A philosopher.

[@svenjansen2134]

A phenomenon.

[@josevilla8586]

twiddle..... my new word

[@drewschrep]

You don't know about twiddling? Heck, I have been twiddling my wife for about 20 years now. And she LOVES it!

[@jamescarvey2133]

Thanks for taking the time to explain these very complex techniques. Much appreciated Guthrie🙏 I Like the concept "Slightly Dorian" I use the Dorian a lot and this video has given me a map to venture further afield. Appreciate this tremendously 👋

[@sammajcher2778]

what guitar does he use

[@DeadGlassEyes]

The one in this video is a Suhr. He has a signature guitar from Charvel now.

[@sammajcher2778]

cool thanks

[@erwin2869]

Best KZbin Guitar Tutorial.

[@Tzilhavshemad]

Can listen to your playing for hours. Just scaling and stuff

[@fourthlayer]

Guthrie is the best compilation of the Best! Definitely my favorite.

[@DRXxUziixX95]

Hate the noise gate...

[@pollyannathehexagon2406]

DRXxUziixX95 so you like unnecessary feed?

[@jakezywek6852]

Easy to understand, and delivered like a gent.

[@ChrisElsworthy]

"Looking for the wrong solutions within these scale shapes..." yes. I hope to someday become an unmusical shredder myself!

[@RJiwatram]

Awesome advice! Am gonna have to adopt this in my playing next time. I tend to get stuck with single string trill picking when I get lazy and can't think of a melody. This works with expanding a previous melody. Very cool!

[@Alexbajoquinto]

teach me sensei!

[@bandicoot5412]

I just finished a slow blues, and I'm sweating, sweet. Thank you for the reality check and real info.

[@DeusEx_Machina]

this guy is like the white Victor Wooten for electric guitar.

[@rivuperson]

That was a sick burn on the Locrian at the end there. Savage Guthrie is savage.

[@vintagedrummer]

Remarkably Fascinating and splendiferous and I need to work on my proper English seeing as this guy not only kicks serious arse on the guitar but he can probably run for president in these neck of the woods and be sworn in By Tuesday. It would be a tough vote for the next president of the USA. Willie, or this guy. Either is better than what we have now and most likely world Peace would be achieved.

[@TheLamech777]

I used to be taught by this guy many moons ago haha. Love his slightly nervous disposition as though he's been up 10 nights in a row sweep picking haha

[@mrgaudy1954]

He probably has...

[@kevinjamesstevens9149]

I just cant stand this kind of recording. The vibrant noise just zeroes in after every sentence and becomes an awkward silence somehow.

[@ventoPS]

I love this blues lick at 1:40, so good

[@alancantu2557]

This guy is as good with the English language as he is playing the guitar

[@jasondesjardins7371]

I could listen to this guy all day.

[@viinisaari]

This video should be shown to Yngwie Malmsteen...

[@joshmuz9018]

What on hear can he not play with ease?

[@CHMZ366]

@@joshmuz9018 "music"

[@joshmuz9018]

@@CHMZ366 you mean you dont enjoy hours of repeated mindless shredding....

[@dexblue]

He has a beautiful speaking voice ....I'd love to hear him read novels ...Joseph Conrad, Kipling ... DH Lawrence ... even TE Lawrence ....

[@ViniBeber]

SID FROM ICE AGE!!!

[@ronr2205]

That opening lick was beautiful.

[@maxmustermann-hf7vw]

Love the dude, but seriously guitar world wtf are you doing. What is this noise gate on the vocal track. And why call it professor shred when he teaches you the opposite?

[@phillipmarshall8125]

Nice lesson, a philosophy/approach for soloing and bridging the gap from the blues scale to Dorian phrygian and aeolian

[@aaronbergAPB]

Interesting player and pretty well versed, it seems. He's getting a lot of attention, but I hope players don't take his advice too seriously. One has to do their own thing. Listen to him? End up playin' like him and not uniquely. Cheers tho', Govan is good.

[@DeadGlassEyes]

Pretty well versed is probably the understatement of the century. And I hope people DO take his advice, Guthrie is a great teacher and everything he said about owning the scale is 100% true.

[@aaronbergAPB]

Lots of folks would agree with you, I'm sure. Hehe, take care.

[@DeadGlassEyes]

***** You too!

[@aaronbergAPB]

Yup. IMO Guthrie kicks much ass. Just hearing clones or followers of him these days. Inspiring player! No doubt

[@DeadGlassEyes]

***** It's the whole Meshuggah disease. People like something, and they feel they need to do the exact same thing, but just shittier. It's pretty unfortunate. Now we have a lot of bad Meshuggah rip off bands and most are just really terrible.

[@deacontheseer4804]

The scale is telling you what to play. Great point