guitar for dummies image
Maya
My mom recently gave me one of her old acoustic guitars, (I've been wanting one, but hadn't been able to afford one). Anyway, she also gave a guitar for dummies book, haha! I'm totally new to this, so I'm wondering how to even begin? I've started reading the book and I'm getting alot out of it, but was wondering what if anything else I could do that would really help?
Thank you! You all are giving me great answers! =)
Answer
From my experience, nothing will compare to an instructor. It helped me out more than any book or video or online article. Mostly because if you are confused about any single aspect, you can ask and they'll tell you. Also, if you have a hard time with a certain chord progression or something, they'll show you how to make it easier.
Expect $40+/hour. It's costly, I know, but it can be worth it really quick.
Above all, though, it's going to be a long, slow process that time, patience and practice will never cease to help with. It will get aggravating and you might feel like giving up on more than one occasion, but please persist. It is so much fun once you start making music that is all your own.
One of my biggest issues was confidence. Once I learned to play "Amazing Grace(My Chains Are Gone)" the way Chris Tomlin plays it, that was the point I decided I wanted to get serious with it. Once you learn to play a song you know and love, it'll never be the same. It gives you such a confidence boost that you'll feel like you can take on any song.
As others have said, learn the string names.
The thinnest, highest sounding string is 'E', and the thickest, lowest sounding string is also 'E'. Most places have the higher sounding string written as a lowercase 'e' to differentiate.
From bottom up(lowest sounding to highest sounding), the strings' note names are E-A-D-G-B-E(think of it as the first letters of the sentence: Eddy Ate Dynamite; Good Bye Eddie). Hope that helps you with remembering. It did for me.
And all the note names (starting at C, so it'll be a bit easier to write down) are like this:
C-C#-D-D#-E-F-F#-G-G#-A-A#-B-C. The # meaning sharp.
Notice there is no sharp(#) in between B and C, or between E and F? I don't know why that's like that, but it just is.
Also, an "A#" is also a "Bb"(B flat). Anything that is sharp(#) is another name for the flat(b) of the next highest note(D# is also Eb, F# is Gb, and since it only goes to G, a G# is an Ab).
I recommend buying a book of chords with diagrams.
The one I recommend specifically is called the "Picture Chord Encyclopedia". It has 2,640 chords in it, with about 98-99% of those being some you'll never use, but it is nice to have it just in case. It's $14.95 new, and you should be able to find it at pretty much any bookstore or music store.
You might try some finger exercises.
http://www.ultimate-guitar.com/lessons/guitar_techniques/speed_buster_part_1_-_more_practice.html
That is mostly for speed building, but you might find the first part of it helpful. I did.
If your guitar book doesn't have it, look up a Pentatonic scale.
It might look weird when you are starting off, but don't try to play all the notes at once. Play them sequentially. It's made for playing over chords(when someone else is playing alongside you), but don't worry. Practice it by yourself, and practice as many scales as you can as long as you can stand to. It gets boring pretty quick, but it builds finger dexterity and muscle, and gets you used to moving your hand in a way you're probably not used to.
I can't think of anything else... I hope this helps you out in one way or another.
EDIT: not to sound rude or picky, but tab is actually very different from sheet music. No offense intended.
Tab shows the frets and strings only.
Sheet music has notes and key signatures(in case you feel like transposing to other keys), rhythm markers, speed markers, a time-scale and a beat pattern which is used with every instrument.
Sheet music takes a very long time to learn to read, and I don't recommend even trying to read it until you're comfortable with your playing and understanding of your instrument.
From my experience, nothing will compare to an instructor. It helped me out more than any book or video or online article. Mostly because if you are confused about any single aspect, you can ask and they'll tell you. Also, if you have a hard time with a certain chord progression or something, they'll show you how to make it easier.
Expect $40+/hour. It's costly, I know, but it can be worth it really quick.
Above all, though, it's going to be a long, slow process that time, patience and practice will never cease to help with. It will get aggravating and you might feel like giving up on more than one occasion, but please persist. It is so much fun once you start making music that is all your own.
One of my biggest issues was confidence. Once I learned to play "Amazing Grace(My Chains Are Gone)" the way Chris Tomlin plays it, that was the point I decided I wanted to get serious with it. Once you learn to play a song you know and love, it'll never be the same. It gives you such a confidence boost that you'll feel like you can take on any song.
As others have said, learn the string names.
The thinnest, highest sounding string is 'E', and the thickest, lowest sounding string is also 'E'. Most places have the higher sounding string written as a lowercase 'e' to differentiate.
From bottom up(lowest sounding to highest sounding), the strings' note names are E-A-D-G-B-E(think of it as the first letters of the sentence: Eddy Ate Dynamite; Good Bye Eddie). Hope that helps you with remembering. It did for me.
And all the note names (starting at C, so it'll be a bit easier to write down) are like this:
C-C#-D-D#-E-F-F#-G-G#-A-A#-B-C. The # meaning sharp.
Notice there is no sharp(#) in between B and C, or between E and F? I don't know why that's like that, but it just is.
Also, an "A#" is also a "Bb"(B flat). Anything that is sharp(#) is another name for the flat(b) of the next highest note(D# is also Eb, F# is Gb, and since it only goes to G, a G# is an Ab).
I recommend buying a book of chords with diagrams.
The one I recommend specifically is called the "Picture Chord Encyclopedia". It has 2,640 chords in it, with about 98-99% of those being some you'll never use, but it is nice to have it just in case. It's $14.95 new, and you should be able to find it at pretty much any bookstore or music store.
You might try some finger exercises.
http://www.ultimate-guitar.com/lessons/guitar_techniques/speed_buster_part_1_-_more_practice.html
That is mostly for speed building, but you might find the first part of it helpful. I did.
If your guitar book doesn't have it, look up a Pentatonic scale.
It might look weird when you are starting off, but don't try to play all the notes at once. Play them sequentially. It's made for playing over chords(when someone else is playing alongside you), but don't worry. Practice it by yourself, and practice as many scales as you can as long as you can stand to. It gets boring pretty quick, but it builds finger dexterity and muscle, and gets you used to moving your hand in a way you're probably not used to.
I can't think of anything else... I hope this helps you out in one way or another.
EDIT: not to sound rude or picky, but tab is actually very different from sheet music. No offense intended.
Tab shows the frets and strings only.
Sheet music has notes and key signatures(in case you feel like transposing to other keys), rhythm markers, speed markers, a time-scale and a beat pattern which is used with every instrument.
Sheet music takes a very long time to learn to read, and I don't recommend even trying to read it until you're comfortable with your playing and understanding of your instrument.
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