Write a Good Guitar Solo

Have you written an awesome song and solo that don't fit together? If so, you are not alone.When you write a song with a solo in it you want the solo to go with the flow right? Well don't get upset. Work on it! Others may like it. Here are some tips to polish off a nice solo.

Steps

  1. Learn the pentatonic scales
  2. Use other guitarists as inspiration, but look at many different guitarists because when it comes time to write it, it might be hard to come up with an original piece.
  3. Grab a pencil and notepad, Tab books are better, but if you are jotting down ideas, a notebook is best.
  4. Play with ideas. If something comes into your head, write it down.
  5. Rearrange what you have until you make something cool and powerful.
  6. Record what you have or put into a MIDI program like Guitar Pro so you can listen to yourself and make improvements.
  7. Listen to other solos. The more you know about solos, the better you'll write.
  8. If you don't like a solo for a song, don't give up.Take the time to edit it.
  9. Don't try to make a hard solo for your first one. Start off small. Usually slow and not so fancy solos are best for beginners. Most of the better solos are made up of several small solos.
  10. Make sure the solo fits the song you are working with.
  11. To make sure the solo fits the song, jot down the notes you use in the verse or chorus, and then use the notes in a higher octave.
  12. This is at times the most important step. Some guitar solos are harmonies or second melodies to the singing. If this is what you want, then hum the vocals and think of harmonies. This is a very useful technique.



Tips

  • If you can't think of anything, ask a guitar teacher.
  • When writing a solo, you want people to like it don't you? Make sure your solo fits well together.
  • Remember, most solos are made up of smaller sections, called licks, played together as a whole. Listen to Carlos Santana for a great example.
  • Use high and low notes. Stay within the same key but use different positions on the fretboard.
  • Try re-dubbing a song you like, or with a good rhythm beat, and re-do the solo in that song, and record it! You never know, you might come up with something better then the original!
  • Don't be afraid to experiment.
  • listen to a lot of other guitar players, get ideas
  • Once you get good at this, try improvising solos.
  • Don't be a poser and write a solo that sounds exactly like another artist. It might be handy at the beginning, when you're just getting into solo's, but if/when you start writing your own solos for a band it will really lack originality, and the the whole idea behind a solo is originality.
  • Use 2 note chords for parts for a more full sound(at parts)
  • As well as learning pentatonics, learn other stuff, such as scales (major, minor, blues, diminished and any others like that), and learn all there positionings on the fingerboard. You can play around with them and get something nice too. Also learn nice techniques such as tapping, tap harmonics, alternate picking, economy picking, sweep picking, palm harmonics, pinch harmonics, etc. They're good to spice up your solo and make you sound even better. And also take example for some of the greats such as; Randy Rhoads, Zakk Wylde, Michael Angelo Batio, Eddie Van Halen, Steve Vai, David Gilmour, Jake E Lee, Jimmy Page, John Petrucci, Adrian Smith, Dave Murray, Jimi Hendrix and other guitarists from bands from the 60's, 80's and 90's and more modern times. Learn some of their work and look at there technique. Zakk wylde for example, picks every note in most cases and adds heavy pinch harmonics with lots of vibrato. Randy Rhoads uses different types of scales and progressions. Van halen taps a lot and uses tap harmonics too. Adrian smith and Dave murray play their solos together which creates a rather nice effect. Michael Angelo Batio sweep picks a lot and nearly mastered it and the others have their own techniques. Learn their work and techniques and you'll have a basic idea of techniques and solos. And if you want, choose a technique and master it just like them!
  • Make sure your solo combines power with beauty.
  • Make your notes flow smoothly
  • Remember, no matter how bad the solo sounds, keep playing. Don't stop, even if you make a mistake or it doesn't sound right, keep playing. Eventually you'll find the correct positioning to your solo you're making and youll get better and more steady at it as well. Some solos can start to sound bad to, due to the guitarists idea or just the playing and bends or insane shaking of the string.

Warnings

  • You won't have something special overnight. It takes time to write something memorable.
  • Remember, try your best and always play, no matter how bad it sounds!
  • Don't copy the exact solo. Plagiarism can get you in jail, where you can't play guitar.
  • A solo doesn't have to be fast to be awesome. Just look at Dave Amato.

Things You'll Need

  • a guitar
  • pencil
  • notepad
  • an amp if you want the whole world to hear you
  • a chord book and a book of scales, some tabs from other guitarists as well if you want too learn some stuff and integrate it in your solo

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