Learn to Play Bad Company

First step, put away your plectrum. That Mark Knopfler sound comes straight from the fingers! It’s the way in which he strikes and plucks the strings with his index finger and thumb that results in his incredibly unique tone. Your ears will have to do the majority of the work but you have got to get used to using your fingers first so here’s a great exercise to get you started:

In the example above you should be using your first finger for the first note, and thumb for the pull-off and G string note… then repeat. So the pattern goes ‘finger, thumb (with pull-off), thumb’, and then repeat…

Once you’ve got your fingers singing like Knopfler’s, the next step is to get your brain doing the same! A big part of his playing is the way he sees and treats chords You’ve got to understand how chords are built, break them down into scales and arpeggios, and clearly visualise them all over the neck because Mark Knopfler targets chord-tones. Once you’ve set that foundation,(no easy feat) I highly recommend reading up on ‘voice-leading’. Voice-leading Is all about economically transitioning to the next note smoothly and harmoniously.

The end result of all this work would see you able to comfortably convey chord changes to a listener with just your note choice. Achieving this takes many years of hard work but there”s a reason Mark Knopfler is as revered as he is!

and Holton

Wanna improve your technique or slow down any solo? Check out Riffstation, our awesome jam and practice !

If you would like to really take your guitar playing to the next level than please check out Dan’s  with his online company , or alternatively, for live  or one to one sessions check out his  website, .