Introduction
Every musician wants to play faster - whether it's shredding guitar solos, rapid piano runs, or blazing drum fills. But here's the truth: speed without control is just noise. This guide will show you how to systematically build speed the right way, ensuring every note is clean, accurate, and musical.
⚠️ Critical Truth:
You can only play as fast as you can play accurately. Rushing to play fast passages with mistakes doesn't build speed - it builds bad habits that are incredibly difficult to fix later. Slow, perfect practice is the fastest route to genuine speed.
The Foundation: Why Speed Comes Last
Speed is a byproduct of several foundational elements:
- 1. Correct Technique: Inefficient movements create a speed ceiling. Fix technique first.
- 2. Relaxation: Tension is the enemy of speed. Tense muscles move slowly.
- 3. Accuracy: Your fingers/hands must know exactly where to go without hesitation.
- 4. Rhythmic Precision: Even notes at any tempo, not rushed or dragged.
- 5. Muscle Memory: Movements must become automatic through repetition.
Build these elements at slow tempos, and speed will come naturally. Skip them, and you'll hit a frustrating plateau that feels impossible to break through.
The Slow-to-Fast Pyramid Method
This is the gold standard for building speed. Here's how it works:
Example: Building a difficult passage from 80 to 160 BPM
- Day 1-3: Practice at 80 BPM until you can play it perfectly 5 times in a row
- Day 4-6: Increase to 88 BPM (10% increase), same perfection standard
- Day 7-9: 96 BPM - notice the pattern?
- Continue: 104 → 112 → 120 → 128 → 136 → 144 → 152 → 160 BPM
Total time: About 8-10 weeks to double your speed cleanly.
Yes, it's slow. Yes, it requires patience. But it works every single time and builds speed that lasts forever.
The 80% Rule: When to Increase Tempo
Never increase tempo until you meet these criteria at the current tempo:
- ✅ You can play the passage perfectly 5 times in a row
- ✅ It feels comfortable and relaxed (no tension)
- ✅ You can maintain it for 2-3 minutes without mistakes
- ✅ You can do it first try when you come back the next day
If you can't meet these standards, you're not ready to move up. That's okay! Spending an extra day or two at a tempo is far better than moving up prematurely and reinforcing sloppy playing.
💡 The 80% Rule:
Increase tempo by only 5-10% (roughly 4-8 BPM for tempos between 80-160). Smaller increments = better retention and cleaner technique. Use your metronome's tempo trainer to automate this!
Using the Tempo Trainer Feature
A tempo trainer automatically increases the BPM for you during practice. This is incredibly useful for:
- • Building endurance at progressively faster tempos
- • Testing your current speed ceiling
- • Gradually pushing your limits in a single session
Sample Tempo Trainer Session:
- Starting BPM: 100
- Target BPM: 130
- Increase by: 2 BPM
- Every: 60 seconds
This will gradually accelerate from 100 to 130 BPM over 15 minutes. If you start making mistakes, that's your current limit - back down 10 BPM and practice there until solid.
Chunking Difficult Passages
Don't practice entire songs or long passages when building speed. Break them into "chunks" of 2-4 measures:
The Chunking Process:
- 1. Identify the hardest 2-4 measures
- 2. Practice ONLY those measures at 50% of target speed
- 3. Build that chunk using the pyramid method
- 4. Once mastered, add the next 2-4 measures
- 5. Practice the combined section
- 6. Repeat until you've built the entire passage
Pro tip: Practice the transitions between chunks separately. The seams between sections are often where speed breaks down.
The Speed Burst Technique
This advanced technique helps you break through plateaus:
How it works:
- 1. Set metronome to your target tempo (where you want to be)
- 2. Play the passage at that speed - mistakes are okay!
- 3. Do this for only 15-20 seconds
- 4. Rest for 30 seconds
- 5. Return to your comfortable tempo and play it perfectly
- 6. Repeat 3-5 times per session
The speed burst "shows" your muscles what the target feels like. When you return to the comfortable tempo, it often feels easier. Don't overuse this technique - once or twice per week is plenty.
Identifying Technical Bottlenecks
Sometimes speed is limited by specific technical issues:
Common bottlenecks by instrument:
Guitar:
- • Inefficient fretting hand position
- • Poor pick angle or grip tension
- • Not muting unused strings
- • Large unnecessary finger movements
Piano:
- • Wrist tension or incorrect wrist height
- • Inefficient fingering choices
- • Lifting fingers too high between notes
- • Not using thumb pivots in scales
Drums:
- • Death grip on drumsticks
- • Playing from the wrist instead of fingers
- • Uneven double stroke rolls
- • Tension in shoulders/elbows
Fix these first! Record yourself in slow motion, work with a teacher, or study videos of professionals to identify and correct technical issues.
Mental Approach to Speed Development
Speed building is as much mental as physical:
Mindset Principles:
- Patience is speed: Rushing the process actually slows you down long-term
- Celebrate plateaus: Plateaus mean your brain is consolidating new skills
- Perfect practice: One perfect slow rep > ten sloppy fast ones
- Trust the process: You WILL get faster if you follow the system
- Stay relaxed: Mental tension creates physical tension
Complete Speed-Building Practice Routine
Here's a 30-minute daily routine for systematic speed development:
- 0-5 min: Warm up at 60% of target tempo, focus on relaxation
- 5-15 min: Primary passage at current "working" tempo (70-80% of target)
- - Play perfectly 5 times before moving on
- - If you make a mistake, start the count over
- 15-20 min: Increase tempo by 4-8 BPM and repeat
- - Can you still play it perfectly?
- - If yes, this is your new working tempo tomorrow
- - If no, stay at previous tempo for another day
- 20-25 min: Speed burst (once per week only)
- - Play at target tempo for 15 seconds
- - Rest 30 seconds
- - Return to working tempo
- 25-30 min: Cool down at 50% tempo, focus on musicality and expression
Common Mistakes That Prevent Speed
❌ Increasing tempo too quickly
Jumps of 10+ BPM are too large. Stick to 4-8 BPM increases and your technique will stay clean.
❌ Practicing with mistakes
Every mistake you practice is reinforcing bad muscle memory. If you can't play it perfectly, slow down immediately.
❌ Not recording yourself
You can't hear timing and accuracy issues while playing. Record every session and listen critically.
❌ Skipping slow practice
Always start sessions at a comfortable tempo. Never jump straight to your fastest speed.
❌ Tensing up at faster tempos
If you feel tension, you're going too fast. Speed requires relaxation, not effort.
Conclusion
Building speed is a marathon, not a sprint. The methods in this guide work for every instrument and every skill level. The key is consistency: 30 minutes of focused, methodical practice every day will produce dramatic results within 2-3 months.
Remember the golden rule: You can only play as fast as you can play accurately. Perfect your technique at slow tempos, increase incrementally, and trust that speed will come as a natural byproduct of solid fundamentals.
Ready to start your speed-building journey? Use Metronome Time's Tempo Trainer to systematically increase your playing speed, track your practice sessions to monitor long-term progress, and save custom presets at each milestone tempo for easy access.