Your Metronome is Not Enough

The metronome is a powerful practice tool. The problem is that we could spend hours "chasing the metronome" and not develop the sense of timing we hoped. Here are a couple tips to help tighten up your metronome practice.

Record Yourself Playing with the Metronome

Recording your practice with the metronome will give you better feedback on how you are doing. Listen for where your notes land in the relation to the metronome. Are you playing on the beat, behind the beat, or in front of the beat? Listen for shifts in the feel. Do you fall behind the beat in one section but are spot on in the others? You may need to work on that section.

Practice Playing Ahead of and Behind the Metronome

To get a better feel for what it means to be ahead of the beat and behind the beat, practice playing ahead of and behind the beat. You can do this by playing only one note. Here is how...

1. Pick a note and a tempo. 
2. Start your metronome.
3. Play you note as close to on the beat as you can.
4. Once you are comfortable with that, try to play just a little ahead of the metronome.
5. Move back to playing on top of the beat.
6. Next try to play behind the beat.
7. Finally, move back to playing on top of the beat.

There are two extra tools for your practice sessions. Have fun keeping the beat.