'The Inner Game of Fingerstyle Guitar', by Adam Rafferty
Adam Rafferty's recent book, "The Inner Game of Fingerstyle Guitar", wants to make you a better fingerstyle guitar player.
(Editor's note: I actually wrote this quick post a long while back when I first read the book. For some reason, it sat in my 'drafts' queue and never made it out the door. But, given the podcast this week with Adam, it seemed like a good time to give it the final nudge to go 'live'.)
In "The Inner Game of Fingerstyle Guitar", Adam Rafferty wants to make you a better fingerstyle guitar player. His book is comprised of one part trusty guitar advice, one part mindfulness-applied-to-music, and one part autobiography.
Rafferty's time-honed advice for guitar players covers all aspects of playing, from practicing to performing. As a working fingerstyle guitar player - peforming, recording, and teaching - his advice comes from a place of experience. You can sense his recommendations are the same ones he follows himself and coaches his students on in his online guitar school.
The book title itself is a nod to the classic "The Inner Game of Tennis". That book, despite it's unassuming name, has been a 'go to' book for performers in all fields looking to develop their mindset. The book doesn't cover the mechanics of tennis - it covers the mindset of practicing to perform well. Rafferty covers similar material in his book.
"The Inner Game of Fingerstyle Guitar" also includes stories from Adam's own musical journey, of course. I alternately empathized and was inspired by the moments of his musical journey that he relates.
The book is a very worthwhile (and quick) read for any musician, but especially for fingerstyle guitar players.
Where To Buy
You can purchase it on Rafferty's website (www.adamrafferty.com/book) or on Amazon.
My Top Quotes
Here are a few of my favorite quotes from the book. Some of them aren't neccessarily profound, they just addressed something I needed to hear:
A very common mistake is that musicians think harmony is a pile of notes built from a bass note up. It is better thought of as a melody note, and then the harmony is built down from there.
For example, if you are in a band, consider the vocal line and the bass line. If you play fingerstyle guitar, consider your bass line and your melody line. Try to get those outer voices moving in opposite directions whenever possible. Your music will achieve a more 3D-effect from this simple hack!
You’ll need an environment where you can practice and concentrate without any distractions. When you play there, no one else should be able to hear you. You need total solitude.
If you stop and start when you make mistakes in practice, you are building a bad habit. Why? Because it will feel natural to stop and start, and then will feel unnatural onstage to stay in flow.
If you're a musician looking to hone your mental game, this is an incredibly helpful read.