How can I improve my creativity in music (electric guitar)?

Question

I havent really had a major creative idea for a while and my musical imagination is so great nowdays, I'm never content with anything I play with nowdays, I've been playing guitar for 3 years, so I guess Im intermediate (forgive my spelling!). Do I need guitar lessons for broadining my horizons or do I simply need to improve my creativity and imagination? If so for either could you please advise me.

Many Thanks

Answer 1

Try branching out into other instruments, it can be hard to be creative with a guitar because of the vast majority of music released in the past 50 years has been guitar driven.
Try the synthesizer, or the musical saw.
hope this is helpful,
cheers!
.t.

Answer 2

You need to broaden your horizons through experience. Get out and travel. Meet people. Experience new things. Build a house. Sleep on the beach. Go to prison for a while. Your creativity will not expand until you give it the room to grow.

Answer 3

Miles Davis used to practice playing sheet music for clarinet on his trumpet. The lesson in this is that everyone needs to get out of their element in order to grow.

Listen to music that is utterly foreign to you and play along. If you're into classic rock, try some punk. If you're into punk, try playing prog rock (Genesis, King Crimson, Yes). If you're into all of that, try jazz or classical. Or just do like Miles and start playing music written for other instruments... piano melodies, horns, percussion... whatever works.

Change your style. If you mainly strum chords, drop the pick and start trying finger picking (folk or classical style).

I knew a guy who started imitating animal noises on guitar - elephants, his cat, crickets... whatever. I've practiced for hours in complete darkness to better learn the fretboard and to learn to rely on my hands and ears more than my eyes.

Hope that helps!

Answer 4

Listen to more music. Different music. Start Here.

http://www.magnetmagazine.com/