Sarah Longfield

First Flight Tapping Techniques

This course serves to both challenge and inspire intermediate and advanced players that want to unlock more creative possibilities on the guitar. Join acclaimed polyrhythmic tapping technician, Sarah Longfield, in exploring new creative skills and finding a different perspective for your guitar playing. Sarah will provide insight into her advanced techniques, share how she creates and records her music and much more. Even if you only have a 6-string guitar, taking this course is an adventure guaranteed to open up a whole new universe of possibilities for your music!

In this course, you will learn:
*Specific exercises you can practice to build and hone your tapping vocabulary
*How to apply tapping techniques to chords, legato runs, and more
*How to play key excerpts and motifs from Sarah's compositions First Flight, Tydes, Autumn Air, and Quiescent.

This exclusive, in-depth study of tapping techniques will challenge and inspire guitarists of all backgrounds. Learn more or start the course with membership

Course Details
30 Lessons
1 Hour+ Runtime
Tabs (gpx, pdf)
Playalong Tracks
HD+ Video
90 day guarantee
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Stream online, plus all other courses with membership.

The JamPlay Learning System

Like every JamPlay course, First Flight Tapping Techniques features world-class instruction and a dynamic learning system to help you succeed quickly.

It's not just videos, and not just downloads. You'll get:

  • Interactive tabs, notation, and fretboard
  • JamTracks for play along practice
  • Ask-a-teacher functionality
  • Speed up, slow down and loop the video
  • Bookmark exact moments in the lesson
  • Note-taking feature
  • 4k video with multiple camera angles
  • Track progress with the progress report
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Meet Sarah Longfield

Sarah Longfield learned numerous instruments at a young age, including piano, drums, and violin. At around age 12, Sarah became obsessed with metal music. She would spend most of her free time learning songs from bands such as Meshuggah, Born of Osiris, All Shall Perish and others. This eventually led to her uploading covers to her YouTube channel and creating a massive following online. In 2018, she was named one of the "15 of the World's Greatest Seven- and Eight-String Guitarists" by Guitar World.

A music and gear nerd, she has written and recorded many compositions. In addition to her band, The Fine Constant, she also releases instrumental compositions under her own name. She uses many excerpts from these compositions in her JamPlay.com master class.

Sarah tours all over the world with bands such as Animals as Leaders, Intervals, and Plini. She continues to grow her following of loyal fans, build partnerships with top instrument manufacturers and is on the cutting edge of modern recording techniques.

First Flight Tapping

Level Up Your Creative Playing

In this JamPlay course, acclaimed polyrhythmic tapping technician Sarah Longfield will help you gain new creative skills and find a different perspective for your guitar playing.

This course offers 30 lessons covering 1+ hours of material in step-by-step, digestible presentation.

Lessons in this Course
1

Series Introduction

Sarah gives you a quick rundown of what to expect from her new course.

3:21 Runtime

0.0 Difficulty

2

Basic Tapping Exercise

Sarah shows us a tapping warm up exercise that builds in complexity.

5:06 Runtime

3.5 Difficulty

3

Building Tapping Patterns

Sarah shows a tapping exercise that centers on a complex rhythmic motif.

2:06 Runtime

3.5 Difficulty

4

Tapping Chords

Sarah builds on the rhythm from the previous lesson, this time applying it to chords.

3:01 Runtime

3.5 Difficulty

5

How to Stash Your Pick

Sarah shows how she stashes her pick for tapping so that she is able to switch back and forth at any time.

2:26 Runtime

2.0 Difficulty

6

Legato Tapping Run

Sarah teaches a legato tapping exercise in four parts that takes you up and down the neck of the guitar.

3:51 Runtime

3.5 Difficulty

7

7-String Tapping

Sarah teaches a 2 pattern motif that starts on the 5th fret of the low b string and ascends to the 12th fret of the high e string. Utilizing string skipping extensively, this piece is a little more challening. Sarah breaks it down note for note and at slow speeds.

4:04 Runtime

3.5 Difficulty

8

Odd-count Fingerpicking

In this lesson, Sarah teaches the odd-count fingerpicking patterns that are prevalent in her body of work. She details 3 of her favorite patterns and teaches them using a fun chord progression. While challenging, these fingerpicking patterns are integral to the rest of the course.

3:45 Runtime

3.5 Difficulty

9

Paradiddle Tapping

Mixing drumming rudiments and tapped guitar playing, Sarah shows how to take rhythm playing to new heights. First, she teaches the rhythmic concepts and then how to sync both hands for some real guitar gymnastics. While complex, she breaks everything down to individual components to make learning much simpler.

3:47 Runtime

4.0 Difficulty

View this Lesson
10

Extended Range Tapping with Bass Lines and Chords

Drawing on the same techniques discussed in the previous lesson, Sarah takes a look at tapping while playing bass lines and chords simultaneously. This is a 7 string lesson, but it can be adapted to 6 string if you move the shapes around.

3:07 Runtime

4.0 Difficulty

11

Advanced Tapped Arpeggios

In this lesson, Sarah shows advanced tapped arpeggio techniques that are challenging for her to play. These are meant to be used as a warmup as well as technical tapping practice. Be forewarned, these are not for the faint of heart and will take time to get under the fingers.

3:44 Runtime

4.0 Difficulty

12

Legato Tapping Run #2

Sequenced legato tapping runs can be played very quickly, but they tend to sound predictable. So in this lesson, Sarah explains how to use the same concepts from the previous lesson sans the patterns. This is great for expansive solo playing.

3:40 Runtime

4.0 Difficulty

13

Extended Range Tapping

Sarah likes to take full advantage of the extended range that 7 and 8 stringed guitars provide. Her compositions regularly feature simultaneous bass line, chords and melody playing on one guitar. In this lesson, she explains how to work systematically to achieve this sound.

3:10 Runtime

4.0 Difficulty

14

First Flight Excerpt #1

A slightly more advanced musical piece, Sarah teaches this excerpt to further solidify polyrhythmic tapping techniques. Learn this fun and challenging solo lick by lick while developing percussive dynamics and tapping chops.

5:49 Runtime

3.5 Difficulty

15

Tydes

Applying what has been learned so far, Sarah uses an excerpt from her song "Tydes". Using only 2 fingers on each hand, this is a fun and simple way to practice the concepts so far in the course. The concepts in this piece are integral to exploring the fretboard in new ways.

4:31 Runtime

4.0 Difficulty

16

Autumn Air

Sarah teaches a 2 pattern motif that starts on the 5th fret of the low b string and ascends to the 12th fret of the high e string. Utilizing string skipping extensively, this piece is a little more challenging. Sarah breaks it down note for note and at slow speeds.

5:09 Runtime

4.0 Difficulty

17

Sweep Tapping

This lesson uses one of Sarah's favorite 5-string minor sweep arpeggios. Using 16th note triplets and tapping, this is fun to play yet challenging. Sarah assumes the student has a basic understanding of sweep picking. If not, there are many great lessons on the topic in the member's area.

3:28 Runtime

4.0 Difficulty

18

Sweep Picking Cleanup

In this lesson, Sarah teaches how to clean up sweep picking technique. This will help those who are just starting out all the way up to advanced players. Using 3 to 6 string sweeps, she teaches how to practice using only the strumming hand. Once clean sweeping is achieved, the student learns to incorporate the fretting hand.

6:37 Runtime

4.0 Difficulty

19

Creativity Boosting Tunings

Alternate tunings on a 7 or 8 string guitar can dramatically alter the tonal possibilites. In this lesson, Sarah explains how to creatively tune extended range guitars to get beyond overused chord shapes. She also explains her favorite tunings and corresponding chord shapes.

3:51 Runtime

4.0 Difficulty

20

Quiescent Intro Lesson

Learn the 16th note intro to Sarah's song "Quiescent." The open C tuning and 110 bpm tempo make this a great way to explore tapping melodies. She teaches how to lead with the tapping hand while filling space with the fretting hand.

3:56 Runtime

4.0 Difficulty

21

Chords in Open Tuning

Building on the concepts of the last lesson, Sarah shows how to use open tuning chords to full effect. She uses backing tracks, at multiple tempos, to illustrate. She also teaches how to master the chords that have tricky fingerings.

3:42 Runtime

4.0 Difficulty

22

Finger Tone

The importance of good finger tone for tapping cannot be overstated. Sarah teaches how to get a pleasant percussive sound without the need to use a compressor. This gives the player much more control over the dynamics of the sound.

4:19 Runtime

3.5 Difficulty

23

On Self Recording

Sarah believes that recording one's self is a great way to improve. Recording allows the student to listen back and hear mistakes clearly. She explains the best way to do this and the techniques she recommends all students start with.

4:38 Runtime

1.5 Difficulty

24

Overcoming Technique Obstacles

Getting stuck and hitting plateaus is part of the process of improving at guitar playing. In this lesson, Sarah explains the mindset needed to overcome obstacles and she reveals her go-to tricks to break out of ruts. This is a can't-miss lesson for any guitar player.

2:51 Runtime

1.5 Difficulty

25

First Flight Intro

Learn the tapped intro to Sarah's song "First Flight". One of her favorite tapping parts, this one jumps around the fretboard and has a bouncy, fun feel. Quite fast at 140bpm, Sarah breaks it into sections and provides multiple tempos to learn and practice with.

4:10 Runtime

4.5 Difficulty

26

Ambient Fingerpicking

This ambient fingerpicking lick makes use of both multiple simultaneous notes and individual notes to give it a haunting sound. This is useful as an exercise to improve your dexterity with both hands, as well as familiarize yourself with unusual chord changes.

5:42 Runtime

4.0 Difficulty

27

Return to Ambient Fingerpicking

Sarah returns with another ambient fingerpicking piece. This features chords that flow and meld into one another creating an almost other-worldly ambient sound. This exercise will improve your dexterity, accuracy and open up alternate musical realities.

3:05 Runtime

4.0 Difficulty

28

Brutal Fast Tapping Lick

The tense and aggressive feel of this lick stems from the fact that it was born during a period of frustration and intense musical writer's block. Learn the lick that helped Sarah break out of her creative drought.

2:57 Runtime

4.5 Difficulty

29

Ruthless Metal Lick

Sarah Longfield introduces a fast metal lick. This lick is one of her favorites for good reason, it uses all the strings, moves all over the fretboard and offers the flexibility to transition between tapping and picking. Whether you want to use this lick as a ruthless practice tool, or modify it to include in your own music, you won't be disappointed.

4:22 Runtime

4.0 Difficulty

30

The Multi-Instrumentalist

Sarah attributes her unique sound to the fact that she is a multi-instrumentalist. Her rhythmic tapping technique was born from her love of piano and the drums. In this lesson, she explains how learning other instruments will expand your guitar playing.

3:41 Runtime

1.5 Difficulty