# Jason Richardson / The secret of the sweep and to skip a string



## Juan_sa

I've considered buying those tabs that Jason Richardson sells to improve my speed and technique. Has anyone tried them? Are they worth the money? Are the exercises really hard or too easy? (I already know how to do sweep picking)


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## Beefmuffin

Juan_sa said:


> I've considered buying those tabs that Jason Richardson sells to improve my speed and technique. Has anyone tried them? Are they worth the money? Are the exercises really hard or too easy? (I already know how to do sweep picking)



I have both. Easy, no. You are in for a 2-3 year practice marathon. I'm currently at 16 months. If you already know how to sweep, to sweep 100% accurately and cleanly like him, you are going to be starting from square one. You have a 15 long page book of 6 string arppegio runs you have to learn to play at well over 120 bpm at 16th note intervals (so 480 bpm ALTERNATE picked) before he will even give you the next step and there is no short cut. Also, he doesn't allow you to bar notes, it's all individual fingering that sucks to get down. BUT it is all beyond worth it. I've grown so much as a guitarist in the past year and a half because of his lessons (I took some Skype ones too) and though it sucks, a lot (talking at LEAST 2-3 hours a night of practice....every night) it's well worth it in the long run. But just know, he doesn't allow any short cuts. he will watch every fretting move you make and he will make sure you alternate pick everything. If you start slow like he says, then you will be fine but anything you know now will be thrown out the window.


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## Juan_sa

Beefmuffin said:


> I have both. Easy, no. You are in for a 2-3 year practice marathon. I'm currently at 16 months. If you already know how to sweep, to sweep 100% accurately and cleanly like him, you are going to be starting from square one. You have a 15 long page book of 6 string arppegio runs you have to learn to play at well over 120 bpm at 16th note intervals (so 480 bpm ALTERNATE picked) before he will even give you the next step and there is no short cut. Also, he doesn't allow you to bar notes, it's all individual fingering that sucks to get down. BUT it is all beyond worth it. I've grown so much as a guitarist in the past year and a half because of his lessons (I took some Skype ones too) and though it sucks, a lot (talking at LEAST 2-3 hours a night of practice....every night) it's well worth it in the long run. But just know, he doesn't allow any short cuts. he will watch every fretting move you make and he will make sure you alternate pick everything. If you start slow like he says, then you will be fine but anything you know now will be thrown out the window.



I wish I could do sweep picking like him. I've been playing guitar for 6 years and the "hardest" sweep picking I know is the one from the intro and outro of "Empyreal" by Sylosis


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## Beefmuffin

This is a great way to do it but truth be told, I had no idea what it was going to take before going in. Everything makes sense later on and you see why he puts so much emphasis on proper (ergonomical) finger placing and why he makes you alternate pick everything (and to be honest, a LOT of his sweeps outside of the lightening fast ones are alternate picked on his albums). Once you are able to hit your cap of alternate picking the arpeggios, you set up a time with him and he shows you the "sweep" technique (after brutally reviewing what you have practiced to make sure you followed everything perfectly) And by this time you will have SO much control of your hand movements. Your right and left hand are in sync and things just become natural. You don't just improve with sweeping from following his lesson, it improves almost all aspects of your playing.


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## Juan_sa

Beefmuffin said:


> This is a great way to do it but truth be told, I had no idea what it was going to take before going in. Everything makes sense later on and you see why he puts so much emphasis on proper (ergonomical) finger placing and why he makes you alternate pick everything (and to be honest, a LOT of his sweeps outside of the lightening fast ones are alternate picked on his albums). Once you are able to hit your cap of alternate picking the arpeggios, you set up a time with him and he shows you the "sweep" technique (after brutally reviewing what you have practiced to make sure you followed everything perfectly) And by this time you will have SO much control of your hand movements. Your right and left hand are in sync and things just become natural. You don't just improve with sweeping from following his lesson, it improves almost all aspects of your playing.



I'm a little bit confused, how do these lessons actually work? Aren't they just Guitar Pro files?


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## Beefmuffin

You actually get 2 files. the GP or PDF files of the tabs. But then there is another PDF file about 2 pages long that explains the details of what you are to do with the tabs. He makes it very clear that if you just look at the tabs, you won't get anything outside of scales and exercises you can find online easily (this is true). You are spending money on the other file that comes with those tabs. This file explains how you are to tackle the excercises. It tells you how to read them as he has finger placements and picking (whether up or down) on every single note. Then he also gives you his info on how to contact him once you hit the first steps that he lines out in his instructions. So in a sense, yes it's just tabs, but if you want to get what you should out of them, and you follow his instructions, then it's much more than that.


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## Juan_sa

Beefmuffin said:


> You actually get 2 files. the GP or PDF files of the tabs. But then there is another PDF file about 2 pages long that explains the details of what you are to do with the tabs. He makes it very clear that if you just look at the tabs, you won't get anything outside of scales and exercises you can find online easily (this is true). You are spending money on the other file that comes with those tabs. This file explains how you are to tackle the excercises. It tells you how to read them as he has finger placements and picking (whether up or down) on every single note. Then he also gives you his info on how to contact him once you hit the first steps that he lines out in his instructions. So in a sense, yes it's just tabs, but if you want to get what you should out of them, and you follow his instructions, then it's much more than that.



And after learning and knowing how to play everything on the GP files you do a Skype lesson with him where he checks your progress and teaches you more? That's really good for how much it costs.


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## Beefmuffin

Juan_sa said:


> And after learning and knowing how to play everything on the GP files you do a Skype lesson with him where he checks your progress and teaches you more? That's really good for how much it costs.



Yep! I was very pleased with the purchase, I just didn't know what I was in for haha.


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## prlgmnr

I'm sort of torn between "that sounds like a pretty brutal and somewhat unmusical way to learn guitar" and "I'll try it for 12 dollars".


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## Mathemagician

I bought it and it basically forced me to admit how sloppy I was and start guitar all over. I knew I needed to work to a click, but the point is every note counts equally so there is no shortcut. It's a very specific methodical process, and it forces you to improve if you want to get anything out of it.


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## prlgmnr

Sweeping is something I almost entirely don't do so it would do me good to build it from the ground up.


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## BentAnat

So I suckered out and bought the pack.
As background info to my opinion, I should say that due to my job, my studies and such, my "structured practice" time is about 20 minutes a day.
I recently decided that I wanted to check out Periphery's Marigold intro, and that really opened me up to systematic, slightly fascist feeling practice with a metronome. I found I like that sort of thing, and (though I feel a little bad for this) have to admit that this really worked for me, and Marigold's intro lick has made me a better player in various subtle ways (15+ years of slopping around without structure practice ended me in a rutt).

First impressions: The sweep bits (something I cannot do at all) are BIG moves. As was already pointed out, they immediately span 6 strings and 7+ frets. Jason insists on alternate picking things and NOT barring anything, which is something I can appreciate.
The String Skipping bits I am enjoying immensely (though one measure at a time). The super rigid "up,down,up,down" is easy to me, but the fingering of some things is not how I would do it, so that is an additional challenge to me. 
Everything he says in his Readme files makes sense when you think about it, and his maybe somewhat weird insistence of what finger goes where makes sense when you look at moving up and down the fretboard.
All in all - even if I never use the additional video call to Jason, I think this is money well spent, if you are either trying to develop speed (In my case, I have no delusions of ever achieving anything near his speed), or just clean, solid technique practice.


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## USMarine75

Alt picking of, um,
'sweep' arpeggios?


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## prlgmnr

Alt pick them all first to get the fingering patterns in with your left hand, so when you come to sweeping you've already got the fingerings completely down.


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## USMarine75

Ah, makes more sense then lol.


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## BentAnat

Also, Jason makes the point that Sweeping is often not as clean as alt picking. As such, it should (in most cases) only be used once you maxed out your alt picking/economy picking speed.


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## sezna

BentAnat said:


> t the fingering of some things is not how I would do it, so that is an additional challenge to me.
> Everything he says in his Readme files makes sense when you think about it, and his maybe somewhat weird insistence of what finger goes where makes sense when you look at moving up and down the fretboard.


I am the same way. I would have used a bar for a lot of those sweeps (like the very first one), but my arpeggios are cleaner using his fingerings.


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## nollyflip

I just purchased this after reading this post. $12 well spent. Ive only been practicing 30-45 minutes a day for the last week but have already seen a MASSIVE improvement in my arppegios and fingering


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## Mathemagician

Yeah it's not "magic" it just gets you to the step of "ok I'll practice something slowly and correctly". And then whaddaya know? You're playing cleanly and getting faster.


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## chris9

I bought the lesson bundle there are some great ideas. I already play arps with no bars as I play them with all hammer ons so his fingerings make sense to me.
Great string skipping ideas to well worth 20 dollars.


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## jbrin0tk

Just a heads up, all tabs, including the sweep picking and string skipping ones, are 50% off at his store through the end of today.


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## that short guy

I picked it up you so we'll see in a few months if its worth it. Some of the fingerings are awkward but I can see the point.


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## JustMac

Is the sale still on? I don't really want to buy this if it's not on sale, if I've missed it I'll just wait for another -- it's $11.99 now, is that sale price or not?


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## Beefmuffin

chris9 said:


> I bought the lesson bundle there are some great ideas. I already play arps with no bars as I play them with all hammer ons so his fingerings make sense to me.



Just as an FYI, his sweep lessons make you alternate pick all those sweep patterns up to AT LEAST 120 bpm at 16th notes (so 480 bpm). This is actually how he plays most runs that people think are swept. He doesn't use hammer on or pull offs at all unless tapping is involved. I only say this because if you go through the lesson and hit that benchmark, you can contact him and he will show you how to go from the alternate picking to the "sweeping"


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## chris9

I used to play everything with alternate picking too but I just like the sound of hammer ons these days. I bought the lessons more for fresh string skipping ideas really. I,ll post a short vid of some of my ideas as soon as I can.


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## nollyflip

Beefmuffin said:


> Just as an FYI, his sweep lessons make you alternate pick all those sweep patterns up to AT LEAST 120 bpm at 16th notes (so 480 bpm). This is actually how he plays most runs that people think are swept. He doesn't use hammer on or pull offs at all unless tapping is involved. I only say this because if you go through the lesson and hit that benchmark, you can contact him and he will show you how to go from the alternate picking to the "sweeping"


480BPM......WTF!?! i thought i was doing ok getting it cleanly at 100bpm like the guitar pro file....


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## sezna

nollyflip said:


> 480BPM......WTF!?! i thought i was doing ok getting it cleanly at 100bpm like the guitar pro file....



480BPM if you are counting quarter notes. But nobody counts that way. I've got the first exercise (eights) at 200BPM so I'm only 40BPM (counting eights) away.


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## Alternative-Perspective

Is there any chance you can post a screenshot of the most difficult arpeggio/exercise Jason gave you? I am interested in his lessons and content, but wish to asess the level of difficulty first.


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## jbrin0tk

I don't want to post a screenshot because I wouldn't want to do anything outside of Jason's wishes, but the degree of difficulty of the arpeggios themselves is relative to to what you know already. Many of the shapes are the standard ones you see in a lot of metal, but later on there some that go a bit further, such as minor/major 7th and half diminished arpeggios. All that said, if you are a beginner this might blow your mind a bit. If you have a fairly solid knowledge of arpeggios, you will recognize and be familiar with a lot of them. I think the key is to remember that there is no time limit on this and you get out what you put in. Learn a couple, get comfortable with them, then add another one or two and get comfortable with those, etc. It's going to take time to get them up to a decent speed with alternate picking as he says to do. If you start today and practice until next week thinking you'll be great at them, you will most likely be disappointed. They will probably still be slow and kind of awkward. But practice correctly each day and you will see definite improvement over time.


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## jbrin0tk

I should also add that another tricky aspect of it is how he asks you to use certain fingers for each note. Some of them made sense right away, while others felt awkward. If you keep at it, though, you start to see why he has you using those fingerings.


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## Alternative-Perspective

Hmm I am very curious as to the shapes he has included in that lesson pack...


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## Mathemagician

Alternative-Perspective said:


> Is there any chance you can post a screenshot of the most difficult arpeggio/exercise Jason gave you? I am interested in his lessons and content, but wish to asess the level of difficulty first.



No. Because he's selling a service. And the "lesson" difficulty isn't in the exercise itself. It's in you as he individual putting in the work. His lessons include all fingerings and positions to show the "proper" way to move through them. So the point isn't that he has "some new magical exercises". Just a consistent method of teaching.

And if you're that desperate I'm sure some douche somewhere has posted them up if you google hard enough. I hate he idea of giving away someone's work for free.


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## jbrin0tk

Yes, exactly what was said above. The exercises are nothing special, and Jason says as much in the read me file. They are just standard arpeggios. The trick (for lack of a better word) is to use his fingerings and practice very slowly. Again, you get out what you put in.


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## that short guy

At this point if you're that curious spend the cash its only $12-15 . As stated before none of the shapes are anything special that you haven't seen before. Its not even the alt picking thing that's I'm finding helpful, Its the fingering suggestion that I find the most useful


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## jvms

I'm considering buying both books and I was wondering if the technique used for the alternate picking arpeggios are the same used by Steve Morse or by Petrucci on Glass Prison? Could I also use it as training for this type of playing before actually getting to the sweeping part?


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## jbrin0tk

The technique used is the same as Steve Morse or The Glass Prison. It's just alternate picking arpeggios. I would think it would be a great foundation to build on if you want to then learn stuff like the glass prison, etc. 

One thing to note is that Jason does not go into detail about the picking mechanics you should use; he is assuming that you already have a decent understanding of those. He does provide the most economic fingerlings to use. Some of them make sense right away; some make more sense as time goes on. 

I should also note that all of that information is for the sweep picking file. He recommends you to learn to alternate pick them first, then get in touch with him for the sweeping mechanics later. I can't speak to the string skipping file, as I don't have it.


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## Webmaestro

Just started working on both of these today. Good stuff so far, but I can see I'm gonna have to re-learn what I thought I knew about sweeping, heh


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## mikeylewis1291

just want to clarify b3fore I purchase, did I read it right that this includes Skype lessons?

I'm just curious what all im ordering is it just a one time pdf download that I read and practice, at my leisure? or will there be more lessons In the future for after I complete the first ones


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## IGC

Alternative-Perspective said:


> Hmm I am very curious as to the shapes he has included in that lesson pack...



+1 anybody got any vids of people trying to play these exercises?


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## Webmaestro

mikeylewis1291 said:


> just want to clarify b3fore I purchase, did I read it right that this includes Skype lessons?
> 
> I'm just curious what all im ordering is it just a one time pdf download that I read and practice, at my leisure? or will there be more lessons In the future for after I complete the first ones



The Skype lesson (I've no idea if Jason does one, or many) comes at the very, very end of the process. Read on...

"The $ecret of the $weep" is a one-time download--but it's a shit-ton of exercises. Yes, they are self-paced, so it's up to you to be disciplined and methodical in your practice. They aren't videos or "lessons" per-se, they're exercises and shapes that you have to master--and the arpeggio shapes aren't anything new to those already familiar with arpeggios. Depending on how much you practice, it could take you anywhere from 6 months to several years to truly nail them all.

You'll get a digital download which includes:


Guitar Pro files for Mac & PC
PDF version of the exercises (for those without Guitar Pro)
A "Read this First" PDF from Jason which stresses the importance of playing slowly, alternate picking everything, and following his fingerings EXACTLY.

Ironically,* Jason doesn't teach you to sweep in these exercises*. Instead, he teaches you how to efficiently alternate pick all the arpeggio shapes. He states that you MUST master the ability to cleanly alternate-pick all the exercises at full speed (minimum 100 bpm) before you can even think about learning to sweep them. This is his philosophy--how he developed *his* sweeping ability--and if you don't agree with it or aren't willing to do it, I would not advise purchasing the exercises.

Then, and only then, can you contact him through Facebook about scheduling a Skype lesson. His "Read This First" PDF gives his contact info. However, he gives no guarantees about his availability.

He states that, in your Skype lesson, you'll have to play all the exercises for him to prove that you're ready to learn to sweep the arpeggios. He'll watch you very carefully, and if he agrees that you're ready, he'll then show you his approach to actually sweeping the arpeggio shapes instead of alt-picking them.

"To $kip a $tring" is the exact same format, but there's no Skype lesson... since you're not trying to make a transition from alt-picking to sweeping.


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## Webmaestro

IGC said:


> +1 anybody got any vids of people trying to play these exercises?



I wasn't able to find any on YouTube, probably because such a video would be kinda pointless. Why?

The arpeggio shapes are nothing new. If you're already familiar with sweep arpeggios, they're the same shapes you already know. The shapes themselves aren't where the "lesson" is.

The key is in the fingerings, and how you're forced to alternate pick them. Deviate from the fingerings that Jason specifies, or try to skip alt-picking and go straight to sweeping, and you've wasted your money.

Jason doesn't teach you how to sweep (see my long explanation above). His philosophy is that you have to master alternate picking before you can even begin to try sweeping these standard arpeggio shapes.


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## mikeylewis1291

thank you for the reply, I'm going to purchase them soon


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## Alternative-Perspective

Webmaestro said:


> The Skype lesson (I've no idea if Jason does one, or many) comes at the very, very end of the process. Read on...
> 
> "The $ecret of the $weep" is a one-time download--but it's a shit-ton of exercises. Yes, they are self-paced, so it's up to you to be disciplined and methodical in your practice. They aren't videos or "lessons" per-se, they're exercises and shapes that you have to master--and the arpeggio shapes aren't anything new to those already familiar with arpeggios. Depending on how much you practice, it could take you anywhere from 6 months to several years to truly nail them all.
> 
> You'll get a digital download which includes:
> 
> 
> Guitar Pro files for Mac & PC
> PDF version of the exercises (for those without Guitar Pro)
> A "Read this First" PDF from Jason which stresses the importance of playing slowly, alternate picking everything, and following his fingerings EXACTLY.
> 
> Ironically,* Jason doesn't teach you to sweep in these exercises*. Instead, he teaches you how to efficiently alternate pick all the arpeggio shapes. He states that you MUST master the ability to cleanly alternate-pick all the exercises at full speed (minimum 100 bpm) before you can even think about learning to sweep them. This is his philosophy--how he developed *his* sweeping ability--and if you don't agree with it or aren't willing to do it, I would not advise purchasing the exercises.
> 
> Then, and only then, can you contact him through Facebook about scheduling a Skype lesson. His "Read This First" PDF gives his contact info. However, he gives no guarantees about his availability.
> 
> He states that, in your Skype lesson, you'll have to play all the exercises for him to prove that you're ready to learn to sweep the arpeggios. He'll watch you very carefully, and if he agrees that you're ready, he'll then show you his approach to actually sweeping the arpeggio shapes instead of alt-picking them.
> 
> "To $kip a $tring" is the exact same format, but there's no Skype lesson... since you're not trying to make a transition from alt-picking to sweeping.



I wrote this sequence of arpeggios recently. It's basically just one chord spread across the entire fretboard:


Have you seen similar shapes in Jason's course? I am interested in how other guitar players approach arpeggios.


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## Mathemagician

The. Shapes. Are. Basic. 

The point is to build up finger muscle memory via proper alternate picking, before building out into sweep picking.


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## IGC

Webmaestro said:


> I wasn't able to find any on YouTube, probably because such a video would be kinda pointless. Why?
> 
> The arpeggio shapes are nothing new. If you're already familiar with sweep arpeggios, they're the same shapes you already know. The shapes themselves aren't where the "lesson" is.
> 
> The key is in the fingerings, and how you're forced to alternate pick them. Deviate from the fingerings that Jason specifies, or try to skip alt-picking and go straight to sweeping, and you've wasted your money.
> 
> Jason doesn't teach you how to sweep (see my long explanation above). His philosophy is that you have to master alternate picking before you can even begin to try sweeping these standard arpeggio shapes.



So i just had to try alternate picking my coolest sounding classic A minor sweep arpeggio after reading this. I can definitely see how after mastering that tecnique it could be really neat and mesmerizing.


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## Webmaestro

IGC said:


> So i just had to try alternate picking my coolest sounding classic A minor sweep arpeggio after reading this. I can definitely see how after mastering that technique it could be really neat and mesmerizing.



The part of Jason's method that's kinda killing me is that he "avoids barring at all costs" when sweeping. Well, I got my sweeping where it is today by barring whenever necessary. I'm totally comfortable doing it and it's programmed into my muscle memory now. For example, on our old friend, the root 6 Am arpeggio....

-----------------------------5---8-----
-------------------------5-------------
---------------------5-----------------
-----------------7---------------------
-------------7-------------------------
----5---8-----------------------------

I do 2 mini-barres... once across the A & D strings, then one across the G, B, & high E strings. With Jason's method, there are no barres and every note in this arpeggio is played individually with a finger.

So, I'm essentially having to un-learn the way I've been doing it for years.

This is very similar to how I economy-picked everything my entire life, then discovered Rock Discipline, and went through a similar tearing-down-and-starting-over process with my picking.


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## chris9

If baring works for you why not stick to doing it as long as the notes sound nice it does not matter how you play them. I can,t barre at all, I have never used barres or sweeping all my arps are hammer ons so Jason's finger patterns work great for me. My point is we all play different lets do what works for us as an individual no need to play like anyone else.


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## Alternative-Perspective

Webmaestro said:


> The part of Jason's method that's kinda killing me is that he "avoids barring at all costs" when sweeping. Well, I got my sweeping where it is today by barring whenever necessary. I'm totally comfortable doing it and it's programmed into my muscle memory now. For example, on our old friend, the root 6 Am arpeggio....
> 
> -----------------------------5---8-----
> -------------------------5-------------
> ---------------------5-----------------
> -----------------7---------------------
> -------------7-------------------------
> ----5---8-----------------------------
> 
> I do 2 mini-barres... once across the A & D strings, then one across the G, B, & high E strings. With Jason's method, there are no barres and every note in this arpeggio is played individually with a finger.
> 
> So, I'm essentially having to un-learn the way I've been doing it for years.
> 
> This is very similar to how I economy-picked everything my entire life, then discovered Rock Discipline, and went through a similar tearing-down-and-starting-over process with my picking.



I am self-taught on the electric guitar, and I had to figure out fingerings for sweep-picked arpeggios. Barring never seemed like a good option. That arpeggio you have there? I play it like this. 


-------------------------------8-----
---------------------------10-----------
------------------------9-------------
--------------------10------------------
-------------7--12----------------------
----5---8-----------------------------

Another cool option is:


------------------------------------
-------------------------------13------
------------------------9--14-----------
--------------------10------------------
-------------7--12----------------------
----5---8-----------------------------

No wonder Jason can play so cleanly. Barring when playing arpeggios is likely to make certain notes sound unclear.


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## IGC

Webmaestro said:


> The part of Jason's method that's kinda killing me is that he "avoids barring at all costs" when sweeping. Well, I got my sweeping where it is today by barring whenever necessary. I'm totally comfortable doing it and it's programmed into my muscle memory now. For example, on our old friend, the root 6 Am arpeggio....
> 
> -----------------------------5---8-----
> -------------------------5-------------
> ---------------------5-----------------
> -----------------7---------------------
> -------------7-------------------------
> ----5---8-----------------------------
> 
> I do 2 mini-barres... once across the A & D strings, then one across the G, B, & high E strings. With Jason's method, there are no barres and every note in this arpeggio is played individually with a finger.
> 
> So, I'm essentially having to un-learn the way I've been doing it for years.
> 
> This is very similar to how I economy-picked everything my entire life, then discovered Rock Discipline, and went through a similar tearing-down-and-starting-over process with my picking.


 
I know what you mean about tearing down and starting over. Some fingerings are more natural feeling because maybe they were the first fingerings you learned long ago. Or maybe its just the way your hands are...

Thanks for sharing the tabs, does Jason Richardson actually alternate pick thru this type of arpeggio?

This is the A minor arpeggio I tried applying Jason Richardsons alternate picking to;
-----------------------------------8------12---------8----------------
------------------------10--------------------------------------10-----------------------
------------------9-------------------------------------------------------9--------------------
-----------10--------------------------------------------------------------------10-----------
---12--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------12-----
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
-----------------------------------------------------------------------
-----------------------------------------------------------------------
(9 string herrr  )

And it turned out to be the same as Alternatives arpeggio below. 



Alternative-Perspective said:


> I am self-taught on the electric guitar, and I had to figure out fingerings for sweep-picked arpeggios. Barring never seemed like a good option. That arpeggio you have there? I play it like this.
> 
> 
> -------------------------------8-----
> ---------------------------10-----------
> ------------------------9-------------
> --------------------10------------------
> -------------7--12----------------------
> ----5---8-----------------------------
> 
> Another cool option is:
> 
> 
> ------------------------------------
> -------------------------------13------
> ------------------------9--14-----------
> --------------------10------------------
> -------------7--12----------------------
> ----5---8-----------------------------
> 
> No wonder Jason can play so cleanly. Barring when playing arpeggios is likely to make certain notes sound unclear.



Aww dude, the stretch on that second version is raw thanks for this different perspective!

Adding alternate picking to it like I guess Jason Richardson does? Seems tricky on top of what is allready pretty difficult to me.
. its allmost like economy picking, because economy is basically ascending/ decending your scale normally and sweeping on the string transitions.


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## Alternative-Perspective

IGC said:


> Aww dude, the stretch on that second version is raw thanks for this different perspective!
> 
> Adding alternate picking to it like I guess Jason Richardson does? Seems tricky on top of what is allready pretty difficult to me.
> . its allmost like economy picking, because economy is basically ascending/ decending your scale normally and sweeping on the string transitions.



Alternate picking stuff is the hardcore way to do things. How do you think Jason, Steve Morse and John Petrucci got their muscles? 

I once wrote this etude in alternate-picked arpeggios:
https://www.instagram.com/p/BUt_YmlAbzf/?taken-by=miguel_marquez_music

I wonder if the shapes you're encountered in your lesson packag from Jason are similar.


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## IGC

Alternative-Perspective said:


> Alternate picking stuff is the hardcore way to do things. How do you think Jason, Steve Morse and John Petrucci got their muscles?
> 
> I once wrote this etude in alternate-picked arpeggios:
> https://www.instagram.com/p/BUt_YmlAbzf/?taken-by=miguel_marquez_music
> 
> I wonder if the shapes you're encountered in your lesson packag from Jason are similar.



Hell yeah! And it looks like some string skipping with alternate picking too. I guess jason string skips too. 
It would take quite a while to learn your etude... all those notes. Did it take long to write that?


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## Alternative-Perspective

IGC said:


> Hell yeah! And it looks like some string skipping with alternate picking too. I guess jason string skips too.
> It would take quite a while to learn your etude... all those notes. Did it take long to write that?



Jason does indeed implement lots of string skipping in his solos.

It was more or less improvised (my etude)


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## IGC

Alternative-Perspective said:


> Jason does indeed implement lots of string skipping in his solos.
> 
> It was more or less improvised (my etude)



 I would have an e-tude on here if i could sweep like you or Jason


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## lewis

as amazing as he is. I kind of feel sorry for him. Being that good would come off the back of a vigorous amount of practice every day. Once you become a name and have contracts on certain things with public appearances and all that jazz to promote endorsed products and to make $$$ yourself, the pressures must be immense. He could be quite sad deep down. Im not saying he is but it could be possible.

Either way lets take a minute to think about the sacrifices he has and continues to make, to be this standard and better going forward.
Unreal talent.


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## Alternative-Perspective

lewis said:


> as amazing as he is. I kind of feel sorry for him. Being that good would come off the back of a vigorous amount of practice every day. Once you become a name and have contracts on certain things with public appearances and all that jazz to promote endorsed products and to make $$$ yourself, the pressures must be immense. He could be quite sad deep down. Im not saying he is but it could be possible.
> 
> Either way lets take a minute to think about the sacrifices he has and continues to make, to be this standard and better going forward.
> Unreal talent.



Most stupid post I've read on SS.org. It's like saying "I feel sorry for Cristiano Ronaldo because he has to constantly deliver".


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## lewis

Alternative-Perspective said:


> Most stupid post I've read on SS.org. It's like saying "I feel sorry for Cristiano Ronaldo because he has to constantly deliver".



Most stupid response I've read on SS.org


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## prlgmnr

lewis said:


> Either way lets take a minute to think about the sacrifices he has and continues to make, to be this standard and better going forward.
> Unreal talent.


For heavens sake.


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## lewis

prlgmnr said:


> For heavens sake.


I remember speaking to Andy James about exactly this point, and he too was sick of the schedule and strict demands of companies who were paying him to "be the best". Last minute jobs incl flights to Japan and all sorts of other ridiculous demands. 10hours+ a day practicing with no exceptions.
People are actually ridiculous if you think that these dudes can bounce out of bed whenever they want, lead a bum life style, not practice at all really, and just be this good.

Companies end up having them by the balls. Big time. So there is no for Heavens sake about it mate.


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## prlgmnr

I think we might be able to live in the space between acknowledging that it's a bloody hard job that takes its toll on people*, which I think is known, and "let's take a moment to think about the sacrifices he has and continues to make".

*But still, I'm thinking "tell that to the people who work on oil rigs, or do deep-sea welding, or work for MSF in Africa or so on and so on and so on".


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## Alternative-Perspective

lewis said:


> Companies end up having them by the balls.



This applies to most people who are nothing but a number for the companies they work for. Living off music is hard, and demanding, but it is something a lot of people would love to have. Having to fly to Japan just to play guitar and give lessons? Damn! That sounds so boring. I'd rather stay in my office cubicle and try not to jump off the nearest bridge during lunch break.


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## lewis

Alternative-Perspective said:


> This applies to most people who are nothing but a number for the companies they work for. Living off music is hard, and demanding, but it is something a lot of people would love to have. Having to fly to Japan just to play guitar and give lessons? Damn! That sounds so boring. I'd rather stay in my office cubicle and try not to jump off the nearest bridge during lunch break.


you are missing the context.
Imagine getting a call saying "get your shit together now, we need you on a plane in the next 2 hours for a last minute Guitar event in Asia. Cancel any plans you may have had. Bye"


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## Alternative-Perspective

lewis said:


> you are missing the context.
> Imagine getting a call saying "get your shit together now, we need you on a plane in the next 2 hours for a last minute Guitar event in Asia. Cancel any plans you may have had. Bye"



You just described my perfect life.


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## lewis

Alternative-Perspective said:


> You just described my perfect life.


sorry but I value having a life with loved ones over that. Imagine if the plans you had to cancel included seeing your daughter/son, who you already havent spent much time with?


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## Alternative-Perspective

lewis said:


> sorry but I value having a life with loved ones over that. Imagine if the plans you had to cancel included seeing your daughter/son, who you already havent spent much time with?



I am happily unmarried and childless. In other words, free ;D


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## crankyrayhanky

well, thanks to this thread as I never heard of Jason Richardson outside of the NBA guy. I watched a few of his videos, determined he smokes at arpeggios, saw the details in here and set down my $10.
Strange feeling trying to get these down on day 1. I hope to stick with it as I have a few cool sweep licks but basically suck. I want to fly.


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## crankyrayhanky

Oh wow, day 2 and I am close to getting that first arp set at a decent speed. Strange finger approach but I get it as the clarity is huge. STOKED


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## Zeus1907

Alternative-Perspective said:


> Alternate picking stuff is the hardcore way to do things. How do you think Jason, Steve Morse and John Petrucci got their muscles?
> 
> I once wrote this etude in alternate-picked arpeggios:
> https://www.instagram.com/p/BUt_YmlAbzf/?taken-by=miguel_marquez_music
> 
> I wonder if the shapes you're encountered in your lesson packag from Jason are similar.


 


What's up? The Sweep Lesson is exactly what you posted in your IG


Alternative-Perspective said:


> Alternate picking stuff is the hardcore way to do things. How do you think Jason, Steve Morse and John Petrucci got their muscles?
> 
> I once wrote this etude in alternate-picked arpeggios:
> https://www.instagram.com/p/BUt_YmlAbzf/?taken-by=miguel_marquez_music
> 
> I wonder if the shapes you're encountered in your lesson packag from Jason are similar.




What's up? What's in the Sweep Lesson is almost exactly what you play in your IG clip as well as your YT video. 
If I remember correctly min, Maj, dim, the 7th chords.


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## Zeus1907

Anyone on the fence, I'd say get the Sweep Lesson. It's good for what it is. The fingerings are the important thing. 
On top of it, if you like Jason's playing, support him and buy a Lesson pack, tabs, his album, something.


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## Alternative-Perspective

Zeus1907 said:


> What's up? The Sweep Lesson is exactly what you posted in your IG
> 
> 
> 
> What's up? What's in the Sweep Lesson is almost exactly what you play in your IG clip as well as your YT video.
> If I remember correctly min, Maj, dim, the 7th chords.



So the sweep lesson has only chords in the key of D# minor? I wonder if it has augmented arpeggios or dominant seventh chords with flat ninths on top, too. Or min(add9) arpeggio shapes. Or half-diminished chords.

I wonder why in metal we don't use arpeggios with tension notes added. It's all triads.


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## Zeus1907

Alternative-Perspective said:


> So the sweep lesson has only chords in the key of D# minor? I wonder if it has augmented arpeggios or dominant seventh chords with flat ninths on top, too. Or min(add9) arpeggio shapes. Or half-diminished chords.
> 
> I wonder why in metal we don't use arpeggios with tension notes added. It's all triads.




Really doesn't matter what key they're in, they can all be transposed. 
It's just the triads, and the 7th chords of the triads. 
No tensions, tension notes is more of a jazz thing. I agree, I think metal should have more of those extensions. Some players do use them in metal, but you won't find them here. 
Hope I helped.


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## Alternative-Perspective

Zeus1907 said:


> Really doesn't matter what key they're in, they can all be transposed.
> It's just the triads, and the 7th chords of the triads.
> No tensions, tension notes is more of a jazz thing. I agree, I think metal should have more of those extensions. Some players do use them in metal, but you won't find them here.
> Hope I helped.



Yeah...before jazz existed tensions were never used... -_-*


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## nothing12987

Hello, just a question to those who've purchased the secret of the sweep. Do some of the fingering positions seem to be either extremely weird or "wrong". I'm quite a novice on the guitar hence why im asking more experienced people such as yourselves. For example, look at bar 122 on the pdf file, the fingerings for the first D# going down to the first C just seem illogical to me, jason also puts a similar fingering on bar 94 from the first E going down to the first C. Can someone please explain how Jason's fingerings make sense in these bars. It's driving my novice guitar mind crazy.


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## Lorcan Ward

Looks like a mistake since those fingerings don't make any sense. When you come across something like that just use what you feel is comfortable or what Jason would use based on the rest of the examples.


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## nothing12987

Yeah I guess I'll just try that, seems like the most logical thing to do. There are also a few more examples similar to this in the pdf. E.g. One fingering ascending the arpeggio but a different fingering descending, (First G# bar 103 and Last G# bar 106 are played with different fingers even though they are the same notes in the arpeggio, same goes with the start of bar 114 and 124, and the first C in bar 99 and 111, same notes different fingers) which just doesn't make sense to me. The annoying thing is the "read me" file which emphasises that you should use the EXACT fingerings in the pdf even if they seem weird at first. I emailed Jason about these unorthodox fingerings twice a few months ago but sadly got no response.

As "Beefmuffin" said earlier in the thread "he shows you the "sweep" technique (after brutally reviewing what you have practiced to make sure you followed everything perfectly)". So I'm curious to see how "Beefmuffin" practiced these parts as he passed Jason's review.

Just an interesting thing to add: Jason's teacher (Matthew Mills) who is technically insane and taught Jason his lovely sweeping technique released an Instructional Arpeggio DVD a few months ago which I purchased. Some of the fingerings Matthew Mills uses for the same arpeggios are actually different from Jason's. I guess it shows that every player has their own approach to this stuff, both Jason and Matthew are insane players.

I'd recommend checking out Matthew Mills if you're REALLY into the technique side of sweep picking. I'm not a big fan of his music (Neo classical stuff) but his flawless right hand technique is lovely to watch.

Any thoughts on anything I've said would be greatly appreciated. Always eager to hear other peoples opinions.


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## Alternative-Perspective

It's hard to say something without seeing any images.


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## FUNGUSAMONGUS

Beefmuffin said:


> You actually get 2 files. the GP or PDF files of the tabs. But then there is another PDF file about 2 pages long that explains the details of what you are to do with the tabs. He makes it very clear that if you just look at the tabs, you won't get anything outside of scales and exercises you can find online easily (this is true). You are spending money on the other file that comes with those tabs. This file explains how you are to tackle the excercises. It tells you how to read them as he has finger placements and picking (whether up or down) on every single note. Then he also gives you his info on how to contact him once you hit the first steps that he lines out in his instructions. So in a sense, yes it's just tabs, but if you want to get what you should out of them, and you follow his instructions, then it's much more than that.


Do i have to pay to contact him on Skype or is it covered in the price?


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## FUNGUSAMONGUS

Does jason provide instructions to how to play his solos (Regarding his I album guitar tab)or is it only guitar tab?


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## FUNGUSAMONGUS

Beefmuffin said:


> I have both. Easy, no. You are in for a 2-3 year practice marathon. I'm currently at 16 months. If you already know how to sweep, to sweep 100% accurately and cleanly like him, you are going to be starting from square one. You have a 15 long page book of 6 string arppegio runs you have to learn to play at well over 120 bpm at 16th note intervals (so 480 bpm ALTERNATE picked) before he will even give you the next step and there is no short cut. Also, he doesn't allow you to bar notes, it's all individual fingering that sucks to get down. BUT it is all beyond worth it. I've grown so much as a guitarist in the past year and a half because of his lessons (I took some Skype ones too) and though it sucks, a lot (talking at LEAST 2-3 hours a night of practice....every night) it's well worth it in the long run. But just know, he doesn't allow any short cuts. he will watch every fretting move you make and he will make sure you alternate pick everything. If you start slow like he says, then you will be fine but anything you know now will be thrown out the window.


But he always bars his finger while sweeping arpeggios.Why would nt he let us do it?


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## HungryGuitarStudent

I'm on the fence about purchasing Richard's lessons. Namely because I've been barring my sweeps since a long time ago. I'm not the most clean sweeper out there, but I'm wondering what incremental gains I'll make by spending months re-learning fingerings without barring and alternate picking every note (all that, before re-learning to sweep).



Alternative-Perspective said:


> No wonder Jason can play so cleanly. Barring when playing arpeggios is likely to make certain notes sound unclear.



A lot of players bar arpeggios, e.g. Paul Wardingham, Per Nilsson. Actually, all players that I know of bar their arpeggios when required, with the exception of Jason. While their sweeps may not be as clean as Jason's, they still sound pretty clean to my ears.

For example: check the solo starting at 2:40 in the following video.


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## sirbuh

For me the payoff was just a different way of approaching sweep picking and relatively cheap entertainment for a few weeks.

Found it helpful when learning parts of perpetual burn.
For what it is worth Cooley will vary his sweep picking at slower speeds.


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## Beefmuffin

I honestly don't know if JR does anything over Skype anymore, including the next step of the sweeping lessons. I took the lesson back in 2015 when he was still doing regular lessons as well for money. Since then, I was at JP's Guitar Universe last year and a gentleman asked him if he did Skype lessons anymore, to which Jason's reply was no, as he no longer needs that extra revenue. However, someone here mentioned Matthew Mills, who still takes on students and provides Skype lessons, and he can certainly show what comes next after the alternate picking is down. Or he has the nifty instructional video that was also mentioned. 

For those looking not to spend money or are not getting responses from Jason at his email address that was provided with the lessons (if it still is), I can try to describe the next step here, as it is pretty simple. Once you have the alternate picking and finger placements down with a decent speed, it almost starts to happen naturally. Instead of alternate picking everything, you now will continue with your down or upstroke movement for any string that has only one note. For strings with 2 or more notes, you will alternate pick that part. You do not want to hammer on/pull off anything. This is where so much of the clean/consistent sound comes from. Another big thing that is tested is the muting of the strings, which is done with a mix of the flesh of your picking hand for strings under the note that is played , and the flesh on the fingers of the fretting hand for strings above the note that is played. To be honest though, the transition from alternate picking to sweeping was way easier than I had thought it would be as it was very natural, but I did have to back off the speed quite a bit when first getting the hang of the "sweep" vs the full alternate pick.


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## Avedas

I bought this lesson a couple months back. I found some of the fingerings more convenient than what I was doing and others less convenient. I mostly use his fingerings unless I'm playing something stupidly fast though.


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## Vyn

I purchased the lessons on the weekend and am liking them. The fingering whilst initially feels strange actually makes a tone of sense as you always end up in the right place for the next part of the sequence. Also, being someone who learnt to sweep barred, the difference with playing with individual fingers is awesome - it's definitely cleaner at the same speed than barring for me. I'm going to report back in a few months after of doing this every day.


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## Pietjepieter

Bumping this threat with a little question. 

I bought the secret of the sweep a couple of weeks ago. Practiced some exercises in the last few weeks. I can play two exercises (minor arp exercise 1 and minor exercise 2) fairly up two speed (around 95 bpm when notes are counted as 16th notes).
Now i was wondering should I first bring those further up to speed (to lets say 110/120bpm) or learn more exercise and bring them as a whole up to speed, any recommendation?


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## orlando chirinos

I think is bullshit how he basically tricking people into a skype lesson once you “master” his method lmao why cant he fucking make a video lesson and sell it or include it in a package

Instead he wants you buy a expensive real virtual lesson so he can watch you play with no guarantees that he will decide if youre ready sounds like a con plan

So basically he sells a bunch of stupid exercises with fingering and tells you to play alternate picking lol

I can see how that can help but still im buying a sweep picking he didnt teach you shit about sweep picking without having to fork down a lot more money basically is a bait plan

A bait trick to get people sign up for lesson with it

How much is a virtual lesson can he teach sweep picking in one lesson? no

Probably $100 

Just pure bait and switch


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## tian

Thanks for the necrobump (lol), just found this and grabbed the sweep lesson and enjoying it a lot.


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## olejason

orlando chirinos said:


> I think is bullshit how he basically tricking people into a skype lesson once you “master” his method lmao why cant he fucking make a video lesson and sell it or include it in a package
> 
> Instead he wants you buy a expensive real virtual lesson so he can watch you play with no guarantees that he will decide if youre ready sounds like a con plan



Because the whole point is that you're working one on one with someone and not just watching a generic video.


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## Emperoff

orlando chirinos said:


> I think is bullshit how he basically tricking people into a skype lesson once you “master” his method lmao why cant he fucking make a video lesson and sell it or include it in a package
> 
> Instead he wants you buy a expensive real virtual lesson so he can watch you play with no guarantees that he will decide if youre ready sounds like a con plan
> 
> So basically he sells a bunch of stupid exercises with fingering and tells you to play alternate picking lol
> 
> I can see how that can help but still im buying a sweep picking he didnt teach you shit about sweep picking without having to fork down a lot more money basically is a bait plan
> 
> A bait trick to get people sign up for lesson with it
> 
> How much is a virtual lesson can he teach sweep picking in one lesson? no
> 
> Probably $100
> 
> Just pure bait and switch



Thanks for necrombumping this. I might check it out too, lol.


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## CanserDYI

orlando chirinos said:


> I think is bullshit how he basically tricking people into a skype lesson once you “master” his method lmao why cant he fucking make a video lesson and sell it or include it in a package
> 
> Instead he wants you buy a expensive real virtual lesson so he can watch you play with no guarantees that he will decide if youre ready sounds like a con plan
> 
> So basically he sells a bunch of stupid exercises with fingering and tells you to play alternate picking lol
> 
> I can see how that can help but still im buying a sweep picking he didnt teach you shit about sweep picking without having to fork down a lot more money basically is a bait plan
> 
> A bait trick to get people sign up for lesson with it
> 
> How much is a virtual lesson can he teach sweep picking in one lesson? no
> 
> Probably $100
> 
> Just pure bait and switch


Did you make an account to post this? lol


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## HungryGuitarStudent

orlando chirinos said:


> I think is bullshit how he basically tricking people into a skype lesson once you “master” his method lmao why cant he fucking make a video lesson and sell it or include it in a package
> 
> Instead he wants you buy a expensive real virtual lesson so he can watch you play with no guarantees that he will decide if youre ready sounds like a con plan
> 
> So basically he sells a bunch of stupid exercises with fingering and tells you to play alternate picking lol
> 
> I can see how that can help but still im buying a sweep picking he didnt teach you shit about sweep picking without having to fork down a lot more money basically is a bait plan
> 
> A bait trick to get people sign up for lesson with it
> 
> How much is a virtual lesson can he teach sweep picking in one lesson? no
> 
> Probably $100
> 
> Just pure bait and switch


Jason doesn’t owe you anything. It’s a personalized lesson, you’re not forced into anything.


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## tian

(Very) slowly been working through this and enjoying it a lot.

Really clarifies why Jason Richardson picks so lightly but also how he retains so much clarity.


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