The Super-Virtuoso's Advice Everyone Can Follow (ft. Łukasz Kuropaczewski)

[@JonBjork]

Great lesson! I’ll never understand the entitlement some people have judging by the comments. “It’s boring!” “Too much talking!” It’s a lesson not a performance, listen and you might actually learn something. The same people usually are the ones that keep asking how to get better but can’t even sit through an awesome lesson because of their tiktokified brains.

[@CanadianDivergent]

exactly! best comment in 2024 so far.

[@mopsydaisy]

They don't have any entitlement. I believe they project their mediocrity onto more advanced individuals. In the days before KZbin and online commenting they were as irrelevant as they are today, but they have a keyboard these days

[@yesok4244]

sorry but I have to watch this in 2x speed and preferably with subway surfer and family guy in the background

[@skyko]

ATTENTION: This method can be applied to ALL instruments!! This is the absolute BEST video of a practice method I have EVER watched!! It's simple, clear, and intense! It's about maximizing our time, which is imperative for us older musicians (who've wasted a great deal of time over the years)! Wow, thank you so much for this!

[@bricklifter1749]

I play banjo with Exact same method of practice

[@melinamartins4419]

People might confuse between technique and virtuosity, and vice versa. He's cleary showing how technique is built, with awareness and not rushing a bunch of notes through the guitar. Excellent!

[@skyko]

Or any instrument. (or even things we do during life in general)! Realizing that the years of my life that went by the fastest were those where I was coasting and not focusing - sucking the marrow out of each day.

[@Gregorypeckory]

You said people get confused about technique versus virtuosity, conflating one with the other. I don't agree that people conflate them, but they are related. You made your semantic point without giving your definitions, or explaining how and why you think people are confused nor how that creates problems. I think everybody pretty well understands that a virtuoso is somebody who already has a prodigious level of technique. It seems like you're trying to amplify the wisdom that one should practice slowly and pay attention to the details, but the words virtuosity and technique have nothing to do with why people tend to rush. We rush because we're impatient. Most people who spend hours a day practicing would probably like to be a virtuoso; too many of us spend too much time playing as fast as we can trying to get there faster. To me saying that we conflate technique with virtuosity is like saying people conflate Kung Fu with black belt. Like the black belt, the word virtuoso is a judgement that a particular musician has reached a level of technical skill that merits the compliment; since we don't have any ultimate musical authority to award people with some kind of a token of recognition for their skill like Kung Fu schools award belts, it means a lot of musicians and fans will argue endlessly about who is a virtuoso and who isn't and whether it's a good thing or a bad thing. But generally I think people know what a virtuoso is, and they know what technique is. It would be great if all we needed is a semantic clarification to become disciplined musicians. Unfortunately it's got nothing to do with semantics.

[@Andy-hr2ui]

In four years of learning guitar this advice was the most valuable to date!

[@JackT13]

What a brilliant educator, not to mention his exceptional musicianship

[@GWGwilbo]

Profoundly helpful and actionable. Probably the most useful video on how to practice I've ever seen.

[@airiushunt]

I didn’t even make it fully through this video before I had to go pick up my guitar ( I came back and rewatched the whole thing). But this is the most useful advice I’ve ever gotten. I didn’t realize how much unintentional movement I use when playing guitar. 10 mins into focused slow practice and I immediately came across so many flaws in my technique.

[@magnumopus511]

Probably the most valuable advice that validates my practice and he is telling 100% FACTS. I don't practice more than 3 hours, - "Quality over quantity, shorter but precise focused practice is key"👏 I would like to also add, you should eliminate distractions like social media during practice. 💯

[@guitareMTL]

No kidding?

[@magnumopus511]

@@guitareMTL Yeah, absolutely I swear to that, especially if you are talking about "eliminating social media to avoid distractions" When I did that, I was able to play and learn really complex stuffs like if you are a fan of shred, I learned to play "Trilogy Suite #5" by Yngwie Malmsteen, "Glassgow Kiss" by John Petrucci and "Scarified" by Paul Gilbert. I can't do them before when I'm always checking my phone, but when I was able to eliminate social media and did the "precise focused practice" I was able to learn each song in a month with just 3 hours a day of practice. So I agree with the validity of the speakers advice on this video. Cheers!🤘

[@liyook]

this video is incredible, being a teacher myself made me feel like I kind of overcomplicate stuff. Even going for the same "slow and precise but steady" aproach to studying music performance

[@bobperu1]

I love this guy,so much compassion,in the preparing for playing,and playing. Great accent too.

[@ronedee]

Lucas, is a great teacher. Even after 50 years I can certainly appreciate the fundamental's, again! My “children” are all grownups, but can still be unruly at times!

[@TheCompleteGuitarist]

This is an important message for any music student regardless of instrument. I adopted this way of learning recently(ish) and advise my students as much as possible. Many just want the music to appear in their fingertips as if by magic. Well, this is how you make that happen.

[@ramdav8950]

Most most most helpful video I’ve ever seen in this topic. Thank you Tonebase to make it happen❤❤❤❤❤❤❤

[@coreyfleig2139]

Finally, finally, finally here is someone who talks with common sense, he is logical, and rational. I have become sooooo weary with teachers on You Tube who claim you don't need to practice... "You can do this in 5 minutes." Chris Parkening once told me that one slow, beautiful measure is worth more than 10 sloppy ones. I used to love practicing just one measure, and really enjoy the beauty of it. And then you add the next measure when you're ready. This guy is speaking truth - thanks!

[@TheTektronik]

The lesson about being precise is what struck me the most. Thank you for such a gem.

[@CK-qf7mn]

Excellent detailed instruction on how to practice slowly. Knowing the steps to take is so helpful. It reduces practice anxiety and helps my hands to be more relaxed especially at challenging passages. Thank you ❤️❤️❤️❤️

[@Manfish154]

Wonderful video, and so motivating. You understand that practicing and playing are two completely different things. And how practicing is about precision and not speed. The latter comes naturally at some point.

[@PabloskyS84]

One of best guitar or music lesson I ever seen! 🙌

[@pastoulon]

You must be joking…:-)

[@grudarts]

My 5-string banjo sessions have improved, phrasing, timing, clarity and consistency all noticeably better, since watching this one simple video. I like your style Lukasz, no BS. I look forward to practicing now and I'm using the metronome again after 3 years. Thanks buddy!

[@nonretrogradable]

This is remarkable. Wonderful to see and very helpful. I’ve been asking myself a lot of these questions and have not been able to ever “practice” as much as I want / assumed I needed to. This is brilliant advice with clear demonstration

[@ThisloveisforUs]

This hit home. Thank you for the comments about tools, and sharpening.

[@soultylive]

Such an interesting guitar learning approach! I wish I would have learn it way before. It makes so much sense, hats off.

[@berh5062]

Very very thankful for this moment, and time-friend demonstration...

[@denniswade4998]

Thank you soooo much! That was absolutely incredible, and so important. It really cleared up so much for me!

[@LeeEisenstein]

Absolutely right. I knew a friend of Julian Bream and he said that is how he saw Bream practice.

[@Mark_135]

Thanks very much for sharing.

[@richardlenz2655]

I have been on a concert vom Julian Bream in Zurich. It was one of the worst concert I ever went in my life. A true robot without emotions 🤭

[@hindenburg1596]

​@@richardlenz2655 I had the absolute opposite experience, it was mesmerizing 😊

[@richardlenz2655]

@ interesting. I was at the Jimi Hendrix concert in Zürich at the time when he still was alive. This was music for me. I did not booing and whistling at the Bream concert because my sister, also a classical concert musician, was also with me and I did not want to make a bad expression when she was around. Now I am also very old. Maybe I would probably even like Julien Bream today as I am still playing guitar myself and sometimes also play classical pieces like Bach and Beethoven 🤭

[@delicrux]

thank you for this fantastic lesson, i now have the information i have needed for 15 years to improve my technique, i understood i needed to slow down but didnt understand the correct way to practice and position the hands, being self taught certain things were not obvious to me.

[@Harrier_DuBois]

Great lesson! I struggle to slow myself down when practicing, I'm going to use the metronome more now. The only issue with playing really slow is sometimes its hard to hold difficult, stretching chord shapes for a long time.

[@Flowlimit]

Thank you for flowing so beautifully. ✨

[@SimonPersey]

I have been playing seriously for a little less than a year and this was fortunately the way I've started out. However it's really useful seeing now as I begin to finish a couple of Brazilian Jazz songs that I do need to slow it right down so I can tidy the songs up as I hit the odd bum note as I'm trying to speed through them. I practice /play for between 2/6 hours a day at the moment however it's certainly a mix of practicing and playing as I'm continuously trying to learn new songs rather than finish the ones I've been playing for the past year. I can't wait to start uploading the songs but having them perfect is definitely what I'm aiming for!

[@macleod41069]

I’m very good at doing shorter unfocused practice

[@DanieleBaire-lf6rw]

Me too

[@elsyd3636]

If you can focus it’ll make a ton of difference. I remember learning new songs in their entirety so fast back in the day before my attention was so bad, I think Facebook and insta have ruined my brain and my attention span.

[@macleod41069]

@ are you American?

[@bbowjazz]

64, retired from tech and averaging about 3 hours per day split between traditional classical guitar and plectrum jazz on archtop guitar. On each instrument, I do 20 to 30 minutes at a time and then take a break before beginning the next segment. By the end of the last session my brain is exhausted.

[@Recommendable]

I remember listening to Łukasz live when he was a child prodigy, it was 30 years ago a it was a great experience. From then to now it surely must have been an ocean of experience for him though.

[@richardroskell3452]

I love hearing how the masters approach practicing. Slow, focused and with a metronome is my preference too. Possibly more than any other class of instruments, playing the guitar well requires very minute and subtle manipulation of the fingers, just as Lucasz emphasizes. Practicing slowly makes the tiniest error obvious. Also the slow tempo means the player must faithfully internalize the beat, because small errors there will also be obvious. Thanks to the maestro for sharing!

[@DeutschlandGuy]

Sometimes KZbin's algorithm actually gets it right and feeds us a link that is truly useful. That is the case here. Watching Mr. Kuropaczewski's philosophy on practicing, I became an instant fan! He seems like truly a great guy, someone you would love to grab a coffee with. I love instructors whose advice can immediately be incorporated into our playing. (Classical pianist Nahre Sol is another purveyor of immediately absorbable musical insights... Check her out too!) I'm off now, to find more of Mr. Kuropaczewski's amazing work. 😊

[@alvaroibarra3321]

This is really insightful, thank you. However, I would appreciate that he could share the actual process from these steps to the finished performance. Otherwise, it feels like the joke of this is what we study in the classroom (1+1=2) and then in the exam: calculate the mass of the Sun. We need to see how this is built up to an actual performance, and not just saying just increase the tempo.

[@danjonesguitarist]

I love this video. So much wisdom and delivered with passion and intensity. Thank you for your knowledge and energy.

[@billnelson5279]

This is it. Keep it in your hands as often as possible, take time to slow down and get better, the rest of the time is to just play and sound things out.

[@SusanBloodgood-o5s]

Eating food slowly is the best for digestion and nourishment, stopping before you’re full, taking breaks between meals, let yourself get hungry, I can’t just play music, I have to feel it, sometimes it just bubbles up and I have to play

[@wakitakiwakitaki]

This is an incredible piece of teaching; does anyone happen to know the origin of this approach? Perhaps Mr. Kuropaczewski learned it from Manuel Barruecco? I see one commentor suggested that Julian Bream practiced in this way. Does anyone have further information on this claim? I'm curious if this is common knowledge or a unique "method" created by Łukasz? Thanks!

[@aficionado473]

Very good video ! Many thanks. To exercise slowly and mindful lycannot be mentioned enough. Great to talk about the hand and arm position.

[@mootal2812]

Wished I had found this video earlier...😅 But still not too late to follow good practices. 🎉

[@pawszu]

The most important guitar lesson period

[@joaniepeters2565]

Thank you for making this video on your practice approach, it makes perfect sense. This will help me immensely. Also very beautiful instrument and playing tone, sounds very similar to a piano

[@philipcooper8297]

The best advice I've ever got was to be relaxed at all time and build up the speed and accuracy eventually. Playing an instrument should not cause any strain, nor pain. If you feel like your fingers and wrists hurt when you play, stop. Many people want to play too fast soon and this only results in frustration and even injuries.

[@ErickJiuJitsu]

This is some extremely valuable information

[@davidwhite2949]

Very helpful, thank you!

[@HarryVerey]

Wonderful and inspiring guitar teaching

[@vanzamee]

Everyone absorbs at different rates, and in different ways. When you start to lose concentration, it’s time for a break, no matter how soon in. I hear a lot of folks talk about how much new information one can process in a given time. It can be 5 minutes, or 1 minute, or 15. Take that break when you start to glass over. I like to do some balance exercises (stand on one foot with eyes closed, swap to other foot, also taken slowly and swapped often,I’m 51, no spring chicken). Get some water, come back, take another nibble. My progress, like trudging uphill in deep snow, is measured in inches, not feet. Consistency and patience *will* reward you. Enjoy it.

[@Nickredshred]

Much respect, agree on a lot of this. The Joe Rogan approach is a great way to lose your mind entirely... Balance. 🙏🤘

[@BillStratton-j9r]

This moved me forward massively,. Thank you so much!

[@ichirofakename]

Dang this is going to help me with my piano practicing. Thanks.

[@paulgibby6932]

Brilliant and clear. Thanks!

[@gitmanjon]

So many great tips! Anybody who knows what kind of nails Lukas is using?

[@Uuur10]

I thought that was remarkable, it's the closest recorded demonstration I've seen of a practice method analogous to the Meadowmount method described in the Talent Code book

[@Sergio_deus]

well sometimes youtube suggestions really hit the nail in the head l gotta admit

[@delicrux]

so because of lack of access to proper lessons i practiced the guitar for 6hrs a day incorrectly, thanks for letting me know now back to the basics...

[@mer1red]

I practice only 2 hours a day. I'm advancing slower if I do more. Your brain and muscles need time to digest the optimal dose.

[@juanramonsilva1067]

I think it’s not that you advance slower but that your life will become dull and frustrating from practicing when your brain needs to heal, thus it affects the practice when you are supposed to get the most.

[@MassimoAngotzi]

2 hours a day is not bad! You’ll see that the more you play, the more your muscles adjust to your pace. It’s a question of time. Learning new pieces is harder than revising old repertoire, it takes a toll on our brains and hands. Try to find a balance between old and new pieces. My two cents. Keep on my friend.

[@adamkubiak1933]

It’s 45-60 minutes for me. Much better than I was playing 2-3 hrs.

[@GregDenver303]

Relatively new guitarist here. 65 years old and begin taking lessons about 16 months ago. Very disciplined (former engineer) and drove myself to practicing 2 hours/day. The discipline was easy but it robbed me of the joy. I now typically practice about one hour a day and if feeling good about my practice, sometimes 90 minutes. Love how Lukas’s Kuropaczewski practices as it encourages me to SLOW DOWN. I’ve finally realized the metronome is not for speeding up, but slowing down.

[@FlashRayLaser]

It's easy to just say that when you've never spent a month playing 8 hours per day because it's funner to believe what's easier is best.

[@guitar767]

Thanks. You gave me an idea👍👍👍

[@CotoMadrid]

Id like to hear about his nails - this can be important for certain playing styles but very hard to find good ones for playing?

[@chrisgmurray3622]

During the nineties I spent two years of 2 hour per day practice sessions at four fret, four finger scalar and interval alternate picking ( electric) I hated every minute of it, but decided to persevere in case my lack of self discipline might prevent me from achieving smoother clean lines. To my horror, I was unable to detect any progress or improvement in my pkaying at all. In fact my mind was numbed from any inspiration, and all my improvised passages were pedantic and lacking in any spirit or soul at all. Worst of all, my playing had a hard cold feel that took at least a year to free myself from. Every time I hear some proficient guitarist lauding the benefits of daily disciplined practice, I want to throw something heavy at their head. I'll never again allow myself to lose my musical soul sacrificed on the greedy altar of self obsessed technique achievement.

[@michaelcoppola7523]

Amazing lesson

[@davidsummerville351]

Great info so I liked and subscribed.

[@QuiqueTrenco-y5t]

That dude scares me, I wouldn't like to be in the shoes of that guitar.

[@kof3017]

😂

[@101depech]

Shoes or a guitar bag 😅

[@unclassicfusion]

But man it seems he cares so much about his guitar

[@kof3017]

@@unclassicfusion Thanks for commenting here! I was looking exactly for this video. The notification made me find it!😂😂

[@yeeyee2018]

Guitars don’t wear shoes bro cmon. You obviously don’t play🙄

[@c.p.1589]

This approach ties in with neuroscience research about learning in general. Check out Cal Newport's books, 'Deep Work', 'How to be a Straight A Student' and others. There's an interesting Huberman podcast interview too. This is a great lesson but I have to say that the straight pointing left hand index finger on the second chord is way too far from the fretboard for efficient economy of movement.

[@Harrier_DuBois]

I think he must be doing that just for the video, to show where his fretted fingers are more clearly. He must know that.

[@Bahimo3154]

This is very insightful from this wonderful Man

[@McFaulio2401]

What about when you want to play at full speed and you’ve done that for a while on any given piece? Do you slowly bump up the metronome or if you do the 60BPM properly enough you should be able to full speed it?

[@jurekwiater]

Thank you

[@nikoo1969]

That is one of the best lessons ever. Thank you so much ❤❤❤❤❤❤❤❤❤❤👍👍👍🙏🙏👏👏🌹

[@001sequoia]

I notice you are playing with acrylic nails on your right hand.. Is this to allow for specific right hand position or an issue maintaining natural nails.. I always struggle to get tone I want with an acrylic.... Thoughts?

[@janezimmerman7987]

That's the advice everybody can use to learn to run as fast as Usain Bolt. Good luck.

[@johnterpack3940]

Fundamentally changed how I look at practice.

[@mboyer68]

The statement that people claim Einstein said, "the definition of insanity is doing the same thing over and over and expecting a different result." First, there's nothing even remotely close to that attributed to Albert Einstein. More important, doing the same thing over and over and expecting a different result is called practice. Musicians and athletes are famous for it. It's what allows us to get better, AKA to expect a different result. So again, if you hear anybody say that, they're not very intelligent, they do not think about the things they say.

[@phant0mdummy]

You're just misinterpreting the quote. It's implication is that doing the same (wrong) thing leads to failure. If you're practicing with the right technique, then yes. You can improve. The insanity comes from bashing your head against the wall mindlessly and thinking you're going to get where you're going.

[@barryweeks6229]

How excellent!

[@plawp69]

Twenty years in and apparently I've never practiced before 😅

[@szymonrojek6480]

Hello. Is the 'Tonebase guitar' good for classical beginners? I used to play jazz, fingerstyle - completely different technique of playing. Thank you.

[@ahamefulehenry8455]

This is painfully slow. But I can imagine that it's super effective. I find it difficult to play slow, but my progress is slow....so I guess I now know my issue...or I always knew

[@anandaurora]

Excellent

[@oswinhull4203]

THIS IS MY GUITAR. THERE ARE MANY LIKE IT BUT THIS ONE’S MINE. MY GUITAR IS MY BEST FRIEND. IT IS MY LIFE. I MUST MASTER IT AS I MUST MASTER MY LIFE. WITHOUT ME, MY GUITAR IS USELESS. WITHOUT MY GUITAR, I AM USELESS. I MUST PLAY MY GUITAR PRECISELY. I MUST PLAY CLEANER THAN EVER BEFORE. I WILL! BEFORE GOD, I SWEAR THIS CREED. MY GUITAR AND MYSELF ARE ONE. WE ARE THE MASTERS OF MUSIC. SO BE IT, UNTIL THERE IS NO RIFF I CANNOT PLAY. AMEN!

[@avibortnick]

At what point do you move from super slow practice to proper tempo?

[@baddayFlo]

Very interesting to watch, but can someone explain to me why he uses its pinky to do the bare at the first chord and not the Ring Finger like in a powechord and the second chord is without the Index Finger? I am self trained, so I may miss a crucial point.

[@adhoc37]

This may, or may not, suit you as a method. But... there are things in here we can all take away. Very interesting.

[@Mark_135]

So helpful and practical. Wish he is my neighbour.

[@epiphanydrums5427]

Pure wisdom

[@bradking1536]

Thank you for sharing 🎉 hope you are well God loves you deeply shalom 🤗🐼♥️✝️💐 Philippians 4:8

[@mmenjic]

This La pastoreta souds 700 times better slowed down like this than original, and when you do listen to original after this video it will sound like it is playing at 4x warp speed :) I know most of the serious musicians will not agree with me on this, but really this slowed down version sounds awesome to me at least :) How or why his guitar sounds like this, almost like it is not a guitar but some smaller instrument which I don't know the names of, sorry ?

[@Legendoftherock]

I wonder if this is the same for bluegrass playing (improv with constant fluid lines). Scales, arps, and licks, guys and gals!

[@milesgrooms7343]

I think you could use this technique. You could take one chord within the standard bluegrass progression (put it on a loop) and play slowly with as much accuracy possible, working through every note or “lick”/ideas as possible over each chord in the progression, in isolation. Then possibly looping the whole progression (slowly as well) and attempting to put all the licks and ideas together. You don’t get to think like this while playing or improvising!! Or take your favorite solo or chord playing (both!) and finding the tab (or learn by ear) and slow down the notes to a snails pace…..keeping your hands relaxed, accurate, with the least amount energy used for each note and hand position. I understand how it would be strange for improvised music but if you’re able to work through notes, licks, ideas slowly, bringing them up to speed and improvising should feel more comfortable. Or ensure you learn all the notes on the fretboard without any hesitation. Then learn all triad shapes and forms and be able to play them up and done the fretboard (once again, extremely slowly so you hade no doubts!) this would help immensely with improvising and crafting your on solos!!

[@66szary]

I wish he was around available for lessons... Przyjedź do Szkocji Łukasz...

[@thesaw5614]

Where can I find like this teacher 😢

[@CanadianDivergent]

dude reminds me of UFC fighter.! awesome lesson!!

[@andreaszeug3692]

pinky is not the weakest....it is the ringfinger

[@federicoparatcha8623]

Depende bastante de cada persona

[@Omega-wj8vf]

I’m pretty he was talking about the left hand when saying that

[@MassimoAngotzi]

They depend on each other. When the pinky becomes stronger; the ring finger becomes nimbler. Have faith!

[@Baerrock]

Pinky is weak… and the Ringfinger is Slow… thats why many people think Ringfinger is weak

[@bruncher11]

kzbin.info/www/bejne/h4nRn4Knrax6hLM What the film (at least watch it from 18:00 min on) does not explain: You cannot move your ringfinger independently at the same precision than toe other fingers, and it even worsens on the deeper strings (due to the hand joint angle, it is easier over E4 than over E2). Ringfinger and pinkie even share the same flexor tendon. This tendon bifurcates shortly before its - then two - branches insert into the two fingers. Ringfinger and pinkie are a functional pair). Thus moving the ringfinger PRECISELY is more difficult than positioning the other fingers, including pinky. We take a lot of practice time daring not to move middlefinger or pinkies TOO FAR when we try to move our ringfingers. This holds for left and right hand, because their anatomy is the same. I am one of those 50+ years electric guitar students who are good in short, unfocused practicing.

[@ClassicalGuitaristWannabe]

Question is... are you practicing or giving yourself a performance?

[@kateb6866]

how get one get in touch with this teacher for private tutoring ? I tried to find something through on the internet but to no avail...

[@AnthonyClegg-d2v]

A bit at a time is best.❤🎸.

[@davpat2112]

Great lesson, hey are those artificial nails? They sound great and I am never able to get artificial to sound good, what's your secret? Thanks very much!

[@michalwalenciak2478]

I loved when after two minutes I got annoyed and switched this shi.t. off 😂😂😂😂 I loved 😍🤩

[@chadrew6]

I’ve practiced eight hours a day for decades and I did all sorts of things. It wasn’t a joke. The joke is that you don’t think practicing is any different from playing. Sure practicing does involve playing, but it also involves a lot of other things. Educate yourself.

[@KrwiomoczBogurodzicy]

[03:01] Mind-finger control [03:45] Economy [05:54] Demo [10:13] Actual demo

[@Viajealduende]

Paco de Lucia practiced 8 to 12 hours a day as do most of the greatest flamenco guitar players.

[@irishfruitandberries9059]

Practicing is a problem solving exercise