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Learning Guitar – Lesson One – How to Hold a Pick

Hopefully, you’ve found, bought or borrowed a guitar pick. If not, you’ll need to buy yourself some. Don’t be stingy, go and pick up at least 10 of them – guitar picks are easy to lose (they often don’t cost more than 30 or 40 cents each). You can experiment with different shapes and brands, but I highly recommend medium gauge picks to start; ones that aren’t too flimsy, or too hard.
The following documentation explains how to hold, and use a pick. When reading, keep in mind that your “picking hand” is the hand which is nearest to the bridge of the guitar, when sitting in the correct position. Open your picking hand, and turn the palm to face you.Close your hand to make a very loose fist. Your thumb should remain beside your index finger.

Rotate your hand until you are looking at it’s profile, with your thumb’s knuckle facing you.With your other hand, slide your guitar pick between your thumb and index finger. The pick should be approximately located behind the knuckle of the thumb. Be sure the pointed end of the pick is pointing directly away from your fist, and is protruding by about a half an inch. Hold the pick firmly. Position your picking hand over the soundhole of your acoustic guitar, or over the body of your electric guitar. Your picking hand, with thumb knuckle still facing you, should hover over the strings. Do not rest your picking hand on the strings or body of the guitar.

Using your wrist for motion (rather than your entire arm), strike the sixth (lowest) string of your guitar in a downward motion. If the string rattles excessively, try striking the string a bit softer, or with less of the pick surface. Now, pick the sixth string in an upwards motion. Repeat the process several times. Try and minimize motion in your picking hand: one short picking stroke downwards, then one short picking stroke upwards. This process is referred to as “alternate picking”. Try the same exercise on the fifth, fourth, third, second, and first strings.

Tips: Holding the pick in this manner will invariably feel awkward at first. You will initially have to pay special attention to your picking hand whenever you play guitar. Try and create fluidity in your alternate picking. Your downstrokes should sound virtually identical to your upstrokes.

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Learning Guitar – Playing a Scale

Now we’re getting somewhere! In order to become skillful on the guitar, we’ll need to build the muscles in our hands, and learn to stretch our fingers. Scales are a good, albeit a not very exciting way to do this. Before we start, look at the diagram above to understand how fingers on the “fretting hand” (the hand that plays notes on the neck) are commonly identified. The thumb is labeled as “T”, the index finger is the “first finger”, the middle finger is the “second finger”, and so on.

The Chromatic scale

Hear the chromatic scale (mp3 format)

The above diagram may look confusing… fear not, it’s one of the most common methods of explaining notes on the guitar, and is actually quite easy to read. The above represents the neck of the guitar, when looked at head on. The first vertical line on the left of the diagram is the sixth string. The line to the right of that is the fifth string. And so on. The horizontal lines in the diagram represent the frets on the guitar… the space between the top horizontal line, and the one below it is the first fret. The space between that second horizontal line from the top and the one below it is the second fret. And so on. The “0″ above the diagram represents the open string for the string it is positioned above. Finally, the black dots are indicators that these notes should be played.

Start by using your pick to play the open sixth string. Next, take the first finger on your fretting hand (remembering to curl it), and place it on the first fret of the sixth string. Apply a significant amount of downward pressure to the string, and strike the string with your pick.

Now, take your second finger, place it on the second fret of the guitar (you can take your first finger off), and again strike the sixth string with the pick.

Now, repeat the same process on the third fret, using your third finger. And lastly, on the fourth fret, using your fourth finger. There! You’ve played all the notes on the sixth string. Now, move to the fifth string… start by playing the open string, then play frets one, two, three and four.

Repeat this process for each string, altering it only on the third string. On this third string, play only up to the third fret. When you’ve played all the way up to the first string, fourth fret, you’ve completed the exercise.

When playing a note, place your finger at the “top of fret” (the area of the fret farthest away from the headstock). This will produce a clearer sound.Try to use alternate picking while attempting this exercise. If this is overwhelming, try using only downstrokes with your pick, but learn properly once you’ve gotten used to the scale.Once you’ve finished the scale, try playing the scale backwards, by starting at the first string, fourth fret, and playing all notes in exactly the reverse order.

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Barre Chord – 7 exercises to master the barre chord

You are invited to practice these exercises in parallel to the other lessons, practicing on average one exercise per week.

DEFINITION: To “bar” means to press several strings, on a single fret, with only one finger. In these exercises, barre chords will always be indicated by the letter C followed by a Roman numeral to indicate the fret where the “bar” occurs (example: C III represents a bar on the 3rd fret). Please note that all “bars” will be done by the forefinger of the left hand.

If after your first attempts, the sonority of your barre chord is not clear, or is even non-existent, try to correct it as follows:

play as close as possible to the fret use other fingers of the left hand to strengthen your thumb-forefinger grip (for instance, by pressing the middle finger on top of the forefinger)move your forefinger, from top to bottom, in the fret where you press it to obtain a clearer sound.

These exercises are graded by order of difficulty. Start with the first exercise and do not pass onto the next one until you play it correctly (sound, rhythm, etc.). The mastering of the barre chord requires a little perseverance: practice well, but don’t give up!

EXERCISE: Link the barre chord on the 2nd fret with the open string arpeggio. The sequence must be played in a steady beat! This exercise, like the others, must be practiced for one week. It is only at the end of this period that it will start to yield results.

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Rhythm of the Blues: difference between straight and shuffle beat

THEORY:

The eighth notes (straight by definition) divide time into two equal parts, i.e. you play two notes, of EQUAL duration, per beat.The shuffle eighth notes divide time into three equal parts. The first note occupies the first two thirds and the second note occupies the last third. See figure I.

EXAMPLE:
Here are two popular songs. One uses straight eighth notes (Are you sleeping brother John?), wheras the other uses shuffle eighth notes (My Bonnie is over the ocean.). See figure II.

If you have doubts as to the accuracy of your rhythmic interpretation, do not hesitate to consult the part entitled “How to play the rhythm” of this guitar course.You will recognize the pieces which are interpreted in shuffle eighth notes thanks to the presence of this logo at the beginning of the piece.

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Tuning the guitar – Various methods

Before you start playing your guitar, you have to tune it. After all, it’s quite impossible to make music with an untuned instrument. In addition, do not hesitate to check the tuning of your guitar if what you play sounds strange.

Tuning your guitar is extremely important. It is rather depressing to play with an untuned guitar. For in this case, even the most beautiful pieces are unpleasant to hear. On the contrary, it is a real pleasure to play on a well tuned instrument. There are several ways to tune your guitar, we will study three of them.

For a beginner it is the best method by far, for the two others require a little practice. It is thus, the one I recommend most, especially since a tuner is not expensive… On the tuner, choose the string you want to tune (note that some tuners make the selection themselves). Then, check on the tuner if the note is too low (the indicator moves to the left) or too high (the indicator moves to the right). The perfect tuning is reached when the indicator stays in the middle, on the zero (see figure I).

Tune the A string using the tuning fork, then check the other strings by comparing them two by two (play the frets indicated on figure II).

NOTE: you can hold the tuning fork between your teeth, at the point indicated by the arrow, then strike its branches by flicking it. The vibration will be transmitted to your ears via the jaw bones, and you will hear the sound in your head!

Pick up your phone, using the dialing tone tune the A string, then check the other strings by comparing them two by two (see figure III).

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The fingers of the right hand – Preparation for arpeggios

Playing with the fingers of the right hand supplements the pick technique. It gives the song a softer sound and makes it possible to chain chord progressions more easily using arpeggios. This technique will eventually allow you to play the melody and bass simultaneously (not approached in this volume, see volumes II and III of this guitar course).

Exercise # 1 is very simple. To allow you to understand and learn what you are doing, the left hand will not play for the moment. You just have to play the low E string separately, then the G string, then B and then treble E. Strictly respect the fingerings indicated for each string. Play regularly and with a steady tempo. AVOID MAKING THE FOURTH NOTE LAST LONGER THAN THE OTHERS (it is the most frequent error beginners make).

NOTE: Playing with the thumb, forefinger, middle and third fingers may seem easier to you or, on the contrary, more difficult than with a pick. This is actually quite normal, certain people feel more comfortable with one technique than with the other.

Exercises # 2 & 3: the arpeggio is identical except that the thumb of the right hand plays either on the second low string (A) or on the third string (D). The playing instructions are identical to those in exercise 1.

Exercises # 4, 5 & 6 are played with only three fingers (the thumb, forefinger and middle finger of the right hand), the left hand still does not play. They will prepare you for the “Anatole” with arpeggios in the following lesson of “How to play the guitar – Volume I”.

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Learning Guitar – The B minor chord

Here’s where we take the next big step in our progress as a guitarist… learning about a shape of chord referred to as a “barre chord”. The technique of playing barre chords is one which we have utilized when playing the F major chord – using one finger to hold down more than one note.

The B minor shape We’re going to put your first finger to work on this chord. Your first finger has the job of covering the second fret, from the fifth to first strings (we don’t play the sixth string). Next, put your third finger on the fourth fret of the fourth string. Then, add your fourth pinky finger to the fourth fret of the third string. Lastly, place your second finger on the third fret of the second string. Got it? Now, strum the chord, and try not to get upset when most of the notes don’t ring clearly.
This is a tough chord at first, no doubt about it! You’re going to have to have patience, it WILL sound good soon, but it’s going to take some work. Here are some tips that will help you: Very slightly bend your first finger. A straight and rigid finger is not what we’re looking for. Roll the finger back slightly, so that more of the side of the index finger closest to the thumb is in contact with the strings. Try slightly pulling the body of the guitar towards your body, using the arm of your picking hand. Also gently pull the neck towards you with your fretting hand. This makes fretting barre chords somewhat easier.

Movable chord

One of the greatest things about the B minor chord shape is that it is a “movable chord”. This means that, unlike the chords we’ve learned so far, we can slide the same shape around to different frets to create different minor chords. The note we’re interested in is the note on the fifth string. Whatever note your finger is playing on the fifth string is the type of minor chord it is. If you were to slide the chord up the neck, so that your first finger was at the fifth fret, you’d be playing a D minor chord, since the note on the fifth fret of the fifth string is D. THIS is why learning the note names on the sixth and fifth strings are so important. We’ll be getting into different movable chords in the next lesson.

Hold the shape of the B minor chord, and play strings one at a time. Correct any notes that aren’t ringing clearly. Try moving from other chords to a B minor chord, then back to other chords. This will be a slow and difficult process at first. Keep trying! Try playing different minor chords by moving the B minor shape around to different frets (eg. try playing C# minor, F minor, G minor, Bb minor, etc.) Do NOT play the sixth string when playing a B minor chord. Pay careful attention to this.

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The Easiest Way To Learn To Play Guitar: JamPlay Online Lessons

Have you ever tried using the internet to learn guitar playing? Well, if you haven’t tried it, perhaps it’s now time to check out the options that you have online. You see, learning to play a guitar is now possible online. So you’d better start surfing the net.

Beginners are often confused and ask different kinds of questions pertaining to online guitar lessons. Paying a guitar teacher can cost you a lot of money but if you conduct an online research, you can learn inexpensively and if you’re lucky enough, you can even learn for free.

A good place to look for online lessons is JamPlay.com. You will never run out of guitar learning video lessons on JamPlay because new lessons are added all the time!

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Oftentimes, learning from a guitar teacher is really hard but through online guitar lessons, you can be provided with animated images, graphics, demo sounds, and video tutorials. It is much easier to learn online and in a short time, you can already play a simple song. The learning process is more enhanced online because tutorials are provided utilizing the different senses – sound, touch, and sight.

Whatever your reasons are in learning how to play a guitar, you can surely find fulfillment through online guitar lessons.  If you want to learn fast and easily in order to play in crowds or perform like the pros, try to determine all your learning options online. If you follow the video tutorials step by step, in a week’s time you can already play many songs. And with continued practice, you will soon playing like the pros.

Online guitar lessons often make use of techniques like hear first and play later. You have to be sensitive to the songs or music that you want to play and this requires sufficient training. All the needed details are provided in the online lessons so you will not encounter many problems. Oftentimes, you will be asked to listen first to the song that you want to play and then later on, you will be playing it yourself. You can easily use your imagination, subliminal mind, and senses through online guitar lessons as compared to learning from a private guitar teacher.

You don’t have to worry in case you’re not very good in using the computer. At first, you can even request from a friend or a family member who knows how to use the computer and surf the net. Afterwards, you can do it yourself. This is not a very difficult task and rest assured that in a very short time, you can learn all the things that you need to know about guitar playing.

If you want to save money on your guitar lessons, don’t hire professional help. Instead, turn to the internet and find out more about online guitar lessons. You can learn a lot and so don’t waste your time. Start surfing the net now and very soon you will be playing your guitar together with your friends and loved ones. Learn guitar online now.

Check out the different video tutorials available online and make sure that you choose the one with positive testimonials to make sure that you trust only the best. I have tried many learn guitar forums, and liked JamPlay.com best because each lesson is filmed from multiple camera angles so you can focus on the teacher’s picking and fretting hands. Very helpful for beginners! And it’s a lot of fun to meet likeminded people in the forum.

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Learn And Master Guitar: Tips For Lefthanders

It is estimated that about 10% of all people are left handed. Are you one of them? There are some activities that left-handers can’t easily do especially playing guitar. Obtaining a left handed guitar can be difficult. But what if you want to learn and master a guitar? Good news is you can also learn to play guitar even if you’re among the left-handers.

Even left-handed individuals should not worry if they too can play a guitar well just like the right handed individuals. There are some helpful tips that you can make use so that the learning process will be quite easy. Now, you have a chance to play guitar together with the right handed pros.

Well of course, you should prepare yourself for some problems that might arise while you’re learning to play the guitar. Here are the helpful tips that will guide you while you’re learning to play guitar.

1. Most left-handed guitarists are confused when choosing the appropriate guitar. You have to options when it comes to accomplishing this task. The first option is to get a guitar used by right handed individuals and then have the strings’ position changed. If you don’t know how to do this, you can ask help from expert guitarists. Now, some left-handers are not comfortable with this set up but if you can pull it through, go ahead. The second option is to get a guitar for left-handers. Yes, there are now guitar especially designed for left handed people. Before you make any guitar purchase, you have to determine first which of these two options suits you.
2. Guitar lessons are sometimes hard to understand especially for lefties. You see, most guitarists are right handed and so you might get confused with the lessons. Always have this in your mind – try to reverse the lessons and everything will fall into place.
3. When you’re shopping for a new guitar, make sure that you buy from a reputable store. You see, there are some stores that deliver defective guitars especially if they notice that you’re an inexperienced left handed guitarist. Shop around and you can also ask help form fellow lefties so that they can show you the best stores in your area. If you want, you can also shop online and you will surely have a lot of choices.
4. Are you quite confident in learning to play the guitar? You have to be so that you will not feel ashamed to play the instrument even in the presence of other people. Being a left handed individual is not your fault. Many brilliant and famous guitarists are known all over the world like Paul McCartney, Curt Cobain, and Jimmy Hendrix.
5. For beginners, it would be helpful to not play a guitar for right handed people in a left handed way. You will surely encounter problems with the guitar chords if you do this. Some complicated chords will be very difficult to play.
6. What matters most when learning to play guitar is to have fun. If you’re comfortable with left hand guitars, don’t immediately replace it with right handed ones.

These are helpful tips that you should know especially if you’re a lefty. If you’re equipped with the right knowledge in playing guitars, all the guitar lessons that teach you how to learn and master guitar will be very easy to learn and in no time at all, you will be playing with fellow lefties as well as with right handed guitarists.

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