Alanis Morissette Ironic by Ysela Lujan

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TGNeil
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Mon Oct 19, 2020 12:09 pm

So, I picked a song that was a bit beyond me but I have been at for about a month. A few of the things that I'm trying to do here I am trying for the first time. I really struggle transitioning to the descending C. It really stops the song as I try to transition. I have some other rhythm struggles that I'm trying to sort out. Some messed up lyrics here and there but oh well. Any help appreciated. Thanks!


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TGNeil
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Tue Oct 20, 2020 7:15 am

Hi Everyone,
Vanessa has posted a Review to Ysela's upload. Watch it here-
Vanessa's Review of Ironic


michelew
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Thu Oct 29, 2020 6:52 pm

Ysela,

Thank you so much for sharing this with the community. It’s a great song and you’re obviously making excellent progress, much more than you’re giving yourself credit for. By the way - you’ve got an amazing voice; WOW. When you get this song where you want it to be you’ll sound phenomenal.

Vanessa has given you fabulous advice as always. I also need to work more getting my chords down all at once. It really is worth slowing it right down and just going between two chords focusing on placing your fingers simultaneously.

Another thing Vanessa is a role model for is playing relaxed. Watch how little pressure she applies while playing - just the right amount - and how relaxed her body looks. You look as if your wrist and hands are tensing up a bit while strumming. That’s a natural response to being in front of the camera of course, but it can make it harder to play and harder to play in time. If you can follow Vanessa’s example and try to loosen up a bit you’re likely to progress faster and feel better.

Great job and thanks.

Michele


Ysela Lujan
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Fri Oct 30, 2020 11:48 pm

Michele,

Thank you so much for the kind words. I will admit I am impatient and it is not serving me to be so. Have you uploaded a video of yourself? I'd love to see your progress as well. Yeah, Vanessa makes it seem so easy, it's a bit frustrating. And I don't have as much time to commit to improving as I would like so I have to be okay with that. Anyways, thanks again for your reply. It was much appreciated. Here's to seeing your entry soon!

Ysela


michelew
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Sun Nov 01, 2020 4:42 pm

Hi Ysela,

I’ve been a member of TG for a long time and uploaded many videos for review and lots of stuff just for fun, included lots of collaborations. For me teaming up with other people is the best fun; in person or by working on projects together.

My circumstances have changed a bit so I won’t be uploading anything soon but if you’ve got the time keep doing it. Recording something and uploading it for review is a great way to keep motivated and to keep improving.

Recording sucks of course. Here’s an old thread where lots of us talk about the challenges of recording, you might get a giggle and some good advice. viewtopic.php?f=213&t=24550&hilit=Camera+sucks

I get being impatient. Another thing I’d suggest is trying to get the song down as well as you can before singing it too. In fact you’ve sort of got to get the playing and the singing down as well as you can separately before you put them together. Once you put them together, you’ll find all of the places that need more work. I find it helpful to play against the original at a much slower pace. That way you’re getting the timing and the lyrics into your head without working on them, but you’re mostly focusing on playing. It helps me to keep my motivation up and to learn more quickly. When you slow it down, you give your brain more time to get ready for the next thing it has to do. There are some threads of this in the old forum. Unfortunately I couldn’t find the right ones, but hopefully you get the idea.

Have fun.

Michele


michelew
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Sun Nov 01, 2020 8:17 pm

Ysela,

Regarding Vanessa making everything look so easy, a couple of things to note:
  • she’s a profession music teacher
  • she’s been playing for more than 40 years - believe it or not - I know she doesn’t look a day over 30 - and yeh she was probably born with a ukulele in her hands.
Anyway - for us mere mortals - while Vanessa’s proficiency is definitely worth aiming for, compare your progress to how you were playing before. Down the track when you look at earlier recordings you’ve made you’ll surprise yourself with how much you’ve progressed in a short time. Some people record themselves without posting for this very purpose.

Just have fun.

M


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Lisa.C
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Mon Nov 02, 2020 12:50 pm

I really enjoyed your cover of this song, Ysela! Thanks for posting :D Lisa


Craig
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Mon Nov 02, 2020 2:59 pm

Ysela,

Nice job! I apologize for taking so long to comment. I watched your video a few days ago. You have a great start on this song and you have a wonderful voice! I see you received some great advice from Vanessa as well. I hope you continue to post videos from time to time. It's always nice to see what other TGers are up to!

Keep up the good work!

Craig


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