Guitar Fun 101: Essential, Simple Tips for Beginners
The guitar is undoubtedly one of the most played musical instruments. Not only is this fun to play with but it is also fairly portable, relatively affordable, and can be learned by almost anyone! However, several beginners find themselves giving up so easily - providing a lot of excuses for their failure. While it is true that learning to play the guitar requires time and effort, the process can also be a lot of fun! And once you achieve your goal, you will be paid with years of very rewarding guitar-playing experiences!
If you are one of those who dream of being able to play this musical instrument, here are some essential, simple tips for beginners:
Stay Motivated
Learning to play the guitar, while fairly easy for the basic skills, is not a piece of cake. You will have moments of frustration because you simply sound terrible at first or your fingers are not coordinated. You will also deal with a lot of finger pain until you build callouses.
At first, people are very encouraging but after a few weeks of practicing, they may start to take back those words of encouragement. Do not, however, be disheartened by this. Set your goals and devise ways for you to stay motivated. You might want to imagine yourself performing in front of a huge crowd, making your own compositions, serenading a loved one or simply jamming with others! Without motivation, you might find yourself giving up.
Buy a Guitar
This might too obvious but you need to keep in mind that learning would be much easier if you have your own guitar. In line with this, you need to buy the best guitar you can afford (not necessarily the most expensive). Have a good sounding guitar because you don't really want to be frustrated just because your instrument sounds bad no matter what you do. Also, have it properly tuned (which is something you should also learn later).
Additionally, get to know your guitar. Know its parts, their uses and when they are best used. As you go along, memorize by heart the names of the strings and the notes for each fret along each string. It will also be very helpful if you have at least a simple background on music theory - chord chart reading, music notation, scales etc.
Learn the Basics the Right Way
Always start with the basics and learn them properly. For this, you can get a reference material, an online course or a teacher. Learn everything there is to learn - notes and chords, rhythms and leads, strumming and picking, etc - and never skip any lesson. However, do not be so in a hurry. Do this slowly but surely.
Make sure that you are holding the guitar the right way, pressing on strings properly, using the right fingers and the like. Nonetheless, keep in mind that there is not only one way of doing things. Comfort and preference may come into play but you should learn how to do things the most effective and efficient way. Again, learn things the proper way because once you teach yourself a bad habit, you will find trouble breaking it.
Learn to Listen
Every guitarist must not only learn to produce sound but also learn to listen to the sounds being produced. As you practice, you need to listen to your own playing. Is your guitar properly tuned? Do all the strings sound right? Are you playing the notes and chords evenly?
Aside from listening to yourself, you need to listen to others, too. Either live or through an album, listen to how a musician strums or picks his guitar, his rhythm and the tone he is achieving. Listening is certainly an essential skill which is most important when you are playing in a band. If you cannot differentiate a note/tone from the other, then you will surely be lost in a group or, worse, create chaos.
Practice
You will not become a great guitarist if you don't practice. Practice is not only essential for playing guitars but for all musical instruments (or any skill for that matter). In learning to play the guitar, you need to develop your motor skills. You fingers should know what to do before your brain even directs what they need to do - finger memory. This will surely help you play smoothly and in time, especially when switching cords. There is no better way of achieving this but through constant practice.
There is no definite number of hours or times one needs to practice, but at least do it daily for 30 minutes or one hour. Remember that you want to fully develop your motor skill so continuous practice should be done. Doing it for hours during the weekends is not the same as doing it for at least 30 minutes every day. Do not disrupt your routine! Regular, constant practice is a must in learning to play the guitar.
Enjoy!
Everything is of no use if you don't find the joy in what you are doing. Enjoy every bit of it because if you see this only as a task and not something you want and like simply because it makes you happy, then guitar-playing is not for you. To add some fun and excitement during your practice, try to add a variety in your style of playing. Of course it would be difficult at first but you will get the hang of it. Additionally, you can also play with family and friends. Remember, fun is a great part of guitar-playing!
Most beginners will definitely experience a lot of frustrations, but if you know how to deal with these, it is through these frustrations that we best learn things. May these simple tips guide you on your way to becoming a great guitarist!
If you are one of those who dream of being able to play this musical instrument, here are some essential, simple tips for beginners:
Stay Motivated
Learning to play the guitar, while fairly easy for the basic skills, is not a piece of cake. You will have moments of frustration because you simply sound terrible at first or your fingers are not coordinated. You will also deal with a lot of finger pain until you build callouses.
At first, people are very encouraging but after a few weeks of practicing, they may start to take back those words of encouragement. Do not, however, be disheartened by this. Set your goals and devise ways for you to stay motivated. You might want to imagine yourself performing in front of a huge crowd, making your own compositions, serenading a loved one or simply jamming with others! Without motivation, you might find yourself giving up.
Buy a Guitar
This might too obvious but you need to keep in mind that learning would be much easier if you have your own guitar. In line with this, you need to buy the best guitar you can afford (not necessarily the most expensive). Have a good sounding guitar because you don't really want to be frustrated just because your instrument sounds bad no matter what you do. Also, have it properly tuned (which is something you should also learn later).
Additionally, get to know your guitar. Know its parts, their uses and when they are best used. As you go along, memorize by heart the names of the strings and the notes for each fret along each string. It will also be very helpful if you have at least a simple background on music theory - chord chart reading, music notation, scales etc.
Learn the Basics the Right Way
Always start with the basics and learn them properly. For this, you can get a reference material, an online course or a teacher. Learn everything there is to learn - notes and chords, rhythms and leads, strumming and picking, etc - and never skip any lesson. However, do not be so in a hurry. Do this slowly but surely.
Make sure that you are holding the guitar the right way, pressing on strings properly, using the right fingers and the like. Nonetheless, keep in mind that there is not only one way of doing things. Comfort and preference may come into play but you should learn how to do things the most effective and efficient way. Again, learn things the proper way because once you teach yourself a bad habit, you will find trouble breaking it.
Learn to Listen
Every guitarist must not only learn to produce sound but also learn to listen to the sounds being produced. As you practice, you need to listen to your own playing. Is your guitar properly tuned? Do all the strings sound right? Are you playing the notes and chords evenly?
Aside from listening to yourself, you need to listen to others, too. Either live or through an album, listen to how a musician strums or picks his guitar, his rhythm and the tone he is achieving. Listening is certainly an essential skill which is most important when you are playing in a band. If you cannot differentiate a note/tone from the other, then you will surely be lost in a group or, worse, create chaos.
Practice
You will not become a great guitarist if you don't practice. Practice is not only essential for playing guitars but for all musical instruments (or any skill for that matter). In learning to play the guitar, you need to develop your motor skills. You fingers should know what to do before your brain even directs what they need to do - finger memory. This will surely help you play smoothly and in time, especially when switching cords. There is no better way of achieving this but through constant practice.
There is no definite number of hours or times one needs to practice, but at least do it daily for 30 minutes or one hour. Remember that you want to fully develop your motor skill so continuous practice should be done. Doing it for hours during the weekends is not the same as doing it for at least 30 minutes every day. Do not disrupt your routine! Regular, constant practice is a must in learning to play the guitar.
Enjoy!
Everything is of no use if you don't find the joy in what you are doing. Enjoy every bit of it because if you see this only as a task and not something you want and like simply because it makes you happy, then guitar-playing is not for you. To add some fun and excitement during your practice, try to add a variety in your style of playing. Of course it would be difficult at first but you will get the hang of it. Additionally, you can also play with family and friends. Remember, fun is a great part of guitar-playing!
Most beginners will definitely experience a lot of frustrations, but if you know how to deal with these, it is through these frustrations that we best learn things. May these simple tips guide you on your way to becoming a great guitarist!
Source...