Alternate Picking

Sydney Ellen

Guitar

Instructions

Begin by playing the G minor pentatonic scale on fret 3. On the first string, play a down pick followed by an up pick. Continue this pattern on each string and play both forwards and backwards.

Focus areas

Primary

Smooth and consistent sound with alternate picking

Secondary

Keep your pick as close as you can to the string in between picks.

This helps with:

Techniques Picking

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About the coach

Sydney Ellen

Guitarist, Songwriter, & Performer

Guitar

Sydney Ellen is a guitarist, songwriter, and live performer, hailing from Southern California. A multi-faceted musician, Sydney was first a trained pianist at age five. Growing up listening to Classic Rock and being heavily influenced by the performance style of Jimmy Page (Led Zeppelin), Sydney expanded her musical talent to the guitar, and soon after discovered her love for songwriting. Sydney attended Berklee College of Music, graduating Summa Cum Laude, and after two decades of curating her skills, still dedicates herself to perfecting her craft every single day. No stranger to the stage, Sydney has years of experience performing Classic Rock, Metal, Hard Rock, Funk, Motown, and Pop, but perhaps her greatest skill is her ability to perform on stage with an enviable sense of ease - a skill that has left her decorated with numerous awards as one of the top rising female guitarists in the rock scene. Sydney's music has been featured on 95.5 KLOS and Nikki Sixx's radio show - Sixx Sense. Sydney has also worked with top brands like Barbie, Mattel, Hilton, EMG Pickups, Bones Coffee, and more. As a coach for over 10 years, and a Fender Play Instructor for over 5 years, she discovered a passion for helping others find the joys of learning an instrument. Sydney loves improving her abilities as a coach like developing new approaches to learning and memory, discovering techniques and skills through songs, and redefining the meaning of “practice” in our daily routine.

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