Tag: metronome

Seven Ways to Use a Metronome for Better Practice

Published on by Leo GarciaLeave a comment

What do you call a dwarf who rides the subways of Paris?

A metronome should be your ally in the practice room. While it may seem like a cold, unforgiving taskmaster, it’s one of the most powerful tools you have for becoming a better guitarist and musician. Beyond simply keeping you in time, the metronome develops your internal pulse and reveals where your playing might be rushing or dragging. There is a lot of fun you can have with the metronome. Here are my favorite ways to use it when I’m practicing:

1. Gradual Tempo Building (“Clicking Up”)

Start at a comfortable tempo where you can play the passage cleanly. Slowly increase the tempo in small increments (2-10 bpm at a time) until you reach or even slightly surpass your target tempo. This method builds accuracy first, then speed.

2. Fewer Clicks, Longer Phrases

Keep the metronome at the same speed but reduce the number of clicks per bar—for example, setting it to click only on beats 1 and 3, or just on beat 1. This approach forces you to internalize the pulse and feel longer phrases instead of relying on every beat.

Metronome-Off Challenge

Set the metronome, play along to establish the tempo, then turn it off and continue playing. After a few bars or phrases, turn it back on to see if you stayed in time. This practice is excellent for developing your internal pulse.

4. Offbeat & Subdivision Clicks

Instead of clicking on the downbeats, have the metronome click on the upbeats (the “and” of each beat) or on subdivisions (e.g., sixteenth notes in a fast passage). For perpetual motion pieces, such as a Bach Allegro, this approach keeps you honest and aids in maintaining rhythmic stability and precision.

Half-Time or Double-Time Feel

Set the metronome to half the tempo so it clicks only once every two beats (or every bar). Alternatively, set it to double the tempo so it clicks on every subdivision. Both methods challenge you to maintain a steady groove and avoid rushing.

Random Dropout Practice (Advanced)

Some modern metronome apps allow the click to drop out randomly. This feature forces you to maintain steady timing when the click disappears, which helps train your internal rhythm consistency.

Polyrhythmic Practice

Set the metronome to a different pulse than the meter you’re playing—for example, a 3:2 feel (triplets against duplets). This develops rhythmic independence and makes you far more rhythmically flexible.

Recommended Metronomes

My favorite old-school quartz metronome is the Seiko Quartz SQ50-V but here are a few more that I’ve used in the past.

  • Tonal Energy Tuner (App)—combines metronome, tuner, and advanced rhythmic tools.
  • Dr. Beat DB-90 (Boss)—classic, reliable, and feature-rich with multiple patterns.
  • Metronome+ (App) is a helpful tool I have on my iPad because you can set tempo increases automatically. It is excellent for technique practice.

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No Numbers Challenge

Published on by Leo Garcia2 Comments

The other day, I took off my heart rate monitor after my run, uploaded the data from my Garmin, and reviewed the data on graphs and charts. The graph showed progress in how my speed/mile was increasing while my heart rate was decreasing. I then would measure out my post-run smoothie ingredients (a 3 to 1 carbohydrate to protein ratio along with enough dark leafy greens to make my young boys lavish me with looks of revulsion) to make sure my recovery was on track.

Later that day, I started my practice routine as usual with a very slow, controlled warm-up of some slurs with the metronome set to 52, going from single finger pairs and doubling, tripling, and eventually quadrupling the tempo. Then onto alternation exercises, all tied to divisions and subdivisions with a metronome clicking away. Then a few harder passages played carefully, all tied to the metronome in some form, and then a few very slow run-throughs of perpetual motion movements from larger works for endurance (preludes, etudes, etc…). After all of this, I usually have a bit of time to play through a few pieces, work on trouble spots, and test where they are before I pull myself together for teaching.

Between the persistent desire to become a better guitarist (and healthy endurance runner), my day and activities seem to be dominated by times, beats, numbers, portions, patterns, paces, pulse, measures, measurements. Data.

I’ve often reflected on this and know that when we quantify, we measure, and with the data can take action and make goals. But I also know that a piece of music needs to breathe, to wax and wane. Metronomes and heart rate monitors and scales (for weight) and scales (for music) are useful tools but creating music or running on trails should also feel organic, more intuitive, more human.

So, I’m challenging myself this week to lose the numbers, lose the measurements, and rely more intuitively on my heart and my senses than let the science lab I’ve constructed around my activities provide the usual feedback.