How to Use the Metronome to Increase Playing Speed

If you want to play faster, and you bought a metronome, you are on the right track. The only problem is, metronomes, while simple, don’t come with a how to play faster manual. This means that you have to learn how to use the metronome correctly to achieve your desired goal.

So how do you do this?

First off, the most important step to using a metronome to increase your speed is the dial. Turn it down to sixty beats per minute. Why? Because starting off fast is a sure way to help the metronome decrease your speed.

Sounds ridiculous, but it is true. If you start off too fast, you will do more harm than good. Your playing will become sloppy and muddled, and thus you won’t technically be increasing your speed properly, only increasing your skill of hitting all the wrong notes and making a big jumbled mess.

Starting off slowly and allow the metronome be your guide. If you are playing in 4/4, each click is a quarter equal to a quarter note. This means that if you are playing an eighth note rhythm, you will play two notes for every click; one starting on the click, one halfway between. If you are playing a sixteenth note pattern, you will play four notes per click; one in the click followed by four more in quarter-click increments.

Sound confusing? It simply means that your metronome click is equal to one beat of your measure, a quarter note beat. Starting off slowly is the only way to build proper note timing. If sixty beats per minute are a bit too slow, you can bump your speed up to a hundred and twenty beats per minute, using each click is an eighth note. This would mean that eight click equal one 4/4 measure.

So why is it so important to start off slowly?

Starting off slowly not only helps you to build proper note timing as mentioned above, but it also helps you to increase your sense of rhythm. Increasing your guitar playing speed requires you to have a fully developed sense of rhythm. While many beginners tell themselves they have rhythm, the fact is, most of them don’t.

A metronome will help you realize this and keep you aware of subtle changes within your tempo while you are playing. All guitarists slow down when they get to a difficult passage, or when they mess up. The metronome doesn’t; it has no pity for you, and simply keeps on clicking. Playing along and learning to keep your rhythm consistent helps build muscle memory. Muscle memory is the foundation of fast playing. Of course, with that in mind, you will also need to apply proper alternate picking techniques and economy picking techniques.

Here's an exercise that you can use to play along with the metronome...

There are no cheat sheets to getting faster; it takes a lot of practice and hard work. Each day, sit down with your metronome for a set amount of time and go over your scales, keeping them in time with the tempo. The only way to use a metronome to get faster is to do this. When you feel comfortable at a speed, knock the tempo up. Once you feel comfortable with the heightened speed, do it again. Remember, practice hard, and you will see results.

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