Guitar Lessons Online

When trying to learn to play any instrument, it is not necessary to master the scales as that may be difficult for you. What happens is that the person might become irate and end up hating the instrument you lose patience. The key to this is enjoyment. If the note is not sounding as good as you think it should, let go; and in time it can be mastered subconsciously.

The very first necessary part of learning how to play the guitar is to know its parts. Right-handed players use their right hand for strumming and the left for picking and holding the guitar’s neck. The body of the guitar must sit comfortably on the right thigh as if following the player’s own body. The frets are the pieces of metal that are located along the guitar’s neck. This is where the strings are attached and they are the main source of the instrument’s sound. The strings vibrate when strummed, but only true sound can come out if the strings are pressed on the fret board.

The music that comes out of the guitar is based on the western or modern scale of twelve tones. The scales are actually easy to remember because the letters A to G symbolize them. And like other musical instruments you also have the “natural”, “flat”, and the “sharp.” The tones are read as A, A#, B, B#, C, C#, etc. Believe it or not, music is like math; there is an equivalent sound for every sound wave that travels in the air.

As for the strings, there are six on ordinary guitars but as many as 12 strings on some. If the guitar is resting on the lap, the lowest part of it is placed on top of the thigh. Pressing the frets on the fret board creates different notes. There are many instances when two notes of the same scales may not sound the same because octaves are different.

Tuning the guitar is easy. One can listen to a piano or pitch pipe for matching notes; or for those who have keen ears, all they do is listen to the notes the string create. Press the E string on the fifth fret to tune A. The exact sound of the note can be achieved with the help of turning the string pegs. Except for tuning the G and B strings, the same procedure is done to tune other notes.

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Slide Guitar Techniques

Making a slide requires good execution. This is a technique where a guitarist can create a loud wailing sound on the guitar. Here are some tips to make a perfect slide.

1. The tuning of the guitar must be replaced from its regular chord tuning of E-A-D-G-B-E to a more open tuning; with the chord alignment on the D major arranged as D-G-D-B-D. The change should be from the sixth string up to the first string.

2. He can make a slide by moving the fingers of his left hand. The execution should follow the correct positioning of the chords. A smooth and slow slide would be perfect to accurately play the new chords.

3. Make a gentle grip on the neck of the guitar and expose the end finger to have a feel on the strings. In this way, you can easily make the slide with simple finger movement.

4. To create a wailing sound, it is necessary that you must only cover the strings that are needed for the slide. Sometimes the guitar will produce an unwanted noise from the strings if the slide is not properly done, so be sure that strings are properly covered by the fingers.

5. Always remember to have a slide vertically aligned straight to the strings. This will allow you to exert effort when making a slide than the normal way of holding a guitar.

6. You can make a little movement along the strings with the fingers. It must be executed with smoothness and gentleness. A hard press or tight hold might create distracting noises on the fret.

7. You can execute a slide on the first and second string making E and B chords and a D-major key on the twelfth fret of the guitar.

8. Then execute the slide going toward the bottom from the D-major key, which is in the twelfth fret for a G-major key in the fifth fret. That would give a loud wailing sound because of the slide.

9. You can make a slide going back on the A-major key, which is in the seventh fret and then release your fingers removing the slide and make an open twelfth fret to create a D-major sound.

To have a perfect execution in sliding requires more practice. It is easy to learn sliding by practicing with an open tone because all of the strings will have similar chords when they are strummed. If the strings are set up with their regular tones, the player needs to make sure to cover the right strings when sliding.

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An Overview of Guitar Tuning

The guitar is such a simple and convenient instrument: just open the case and start playing. Well, it’s not THAT simple. A good practice before playing the guitar is to tune it first.

Tuning the guitar prior to playing it will ensure that you create harmonious music; for each string has a specific note to play and if it goes out of tune, the sound will seem to be disarrayed. Note that some guitars may not need frequent tuning (well constructed / expensive), but if it is played (to the point of abuse, actually), then it may need tuning. Read on for an essential guide for guitar tuning.

The guitar presents a particular kind of difficulty in tuning because it has six strings, each of which has an individual pitch or a place in the musical staff assigned to it. The string numbers, as more popularly known, from top to bottom are 6, 5, 4, 3, 2, 1, while their musical counterpart are mi, la, re, sol, si, and mi or E, A, D, G, B, and E respectively.

In order to tune the guitar correctly, you must have an axis or a reference pitch. You will need a commercially available pitch pipe or, better yet, acquire a tuning fork in case you don’t have a reliable instrument at hand to give you an axis. Pitch pipes have the bad reputation of changing pitches after some time. Tuning forks are more reliable and easier to use.

First, make the fork vibrate by tapping it lightly on any hard object while holding the handle and then let the handle touch the guitar’s soundboard below or above the sound hole while gently moving it toward the bridge. This will locate the spot where the resonance is at its loudest. You are supposed to hear a high pitched A (la) which should be the same as the sound produced by striking the first string while it is being depressed on the fifth fret.

Now that you have tuned the first string (E/mi), its open sound is the same as the sound of the second string pressed on the fifth fret. The third string on the fourth fret is equal to the open second string (B/si); the fourth string/ fifth fret equals open third string (G/sol); fifth string/ fifth fret equals open fourth string (D/re); and the sixth string/ fifth fret equals open fifth string (A/la).

In order to check the accuracy of your tuning, gently or lightly touch the fifth string directly above the fifth fret wire without pressing the string to the fingerboard. By striking the string in this manner, it should sound similar to that high-pitched tone produced by the tuning fork. Sounds of the string produced this way are called “harmonics.”

Harmonic 5 (Harmonic on the fifth fret) of the sixth string equals harmonic 7 of the fifth string (which is also similar to the open sound of the first string). Harmonic 5 of the fifth string equals harmonic 7 on the fourth string; harmonic 4 of the third string is equal to the harmonic 5 of the second string and harmonic 7 of the first string. Incidentally, harmonic 4 may require lots of practice for some, so I suggest that harmonic 7 of the sixth string be used to tune the open second string. These pairs of harmonics, when sounded together, should produce only one steady tone. If the sound they produce clashes or seems wavy, they are not in tune.

These two methods of tuning must always go together. You may use the harmonics method first then check with the other or vice versa. If, after crosschecking, the strings do not agree with each other, you may have to repeat the whole process. If you still cannot get them in tune, your strings might be defective. If your strings are new, this may even be worse – your ears need tuning!

To avoid all the hassles of manual tuning, a costly electronic device called a strobo tuner is available. Just turn the dial to the string’s name and it will pick the string’s sound through a condenser microphone and tell you if it is in tune through a meter

Other conventional methods of tuning are through imitation of pitches from different musical instruments like the piano, flute, etc. You can even use that portable but silly investment, the pitch pipe. But you have been warned!

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Playing Guitar Chords

The final stage in learning to play the guitar is learning to play the chords. This is the most satisfying part of learning the guitar because the beginner will already be playing music with the instrument. Playing a chord simply means striking simultaneously at least two or three strings on the guitar.

In order to play the chords, the beginner should first start with the three most common chords. They are the G major chord, C major chord and the D major chord. These are the easiest chords and they should be the ones practiced first.

When playing the G major chord, the guitar player should place the second finger on the sixth string of the third fret. Then he can place the first finger on the fifth string of the second fret. The third finger is then placed on the third fret of the first string. It is important to remember that the fingers should be curled and should not be touching any other strings that they are not supposed to touch. He can then strike all the six strings in one continuous strum. They should make the sound at the same time and not one at a time.

In playing the C major key, all he can do is place the third finger on the third fret of the fifth string. Then, the second finger may be placed on the second fret of the fourth string. He can finally place the first finger on the first fret of the second string. It is important to be careful and not hit the sixth string. Only the bottom five strings should be strummed when playing the C major key.

The D major key may be difficult for some beginners because all three fingers crowd into a very small area. After the technique id learned this should not be a problem to everyone. The beginner can put the first finger on the third string of the fourth fret. Then he can place the third finger on the second string of the third fret. Finally, he can put the second finger on the first string of the second fret. He can then strum the four bottom strings to play the D major key.

It is important to be familiar with these three basic chords before starting to learn the more complicated ones, as these are the chords that are commonly used to play many songs. He can start learning by choosing songs that only have these three chords for his practice and remember, it is by practicing that a person will be able to master playing chords with the guitar.

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20 Easy Tips That Will Put You on the Path to Being a Guitar Hero

20 easy tips that will put you on the path to being a guitar hero

By Justin Sours

http://www.guitarmadeez.com

Practice how you play

When you practice guitar chords, scales, songs, etc., make sure that you focus on quality and not quantity. The guitar sounds a lot better if all the notes in a chord ring or you hit every note in that scale with perfect timing instead of rushing through a scale or playing a chord and having some notes be muffled. Just remember to focus on playing things slow and with good technique (This is Key!). Learn whatever you are trying to learn slow and then increase the speed little by little until you get where you want to be. That’s how you guitarists learn to shred or solo extremely fast. They start playing a scale or riff slow and then gradually speed it up with a metronome.

Keep your guitar out of the closet or storage

This is probably one of the biggest mistakes that a person learning guitar could make. KEEP YOUR GUITAR OUT IN THE OPEN!!! Keep it next to your bed or in your family room on a stand or anywhere where it is out of the closet or out from under the bed. If it’s out in the open, this will force you to play it and force you to mess around and practice.

Memorize the fret board of the guitar

Memorizing the fret board of the guitar can turn out to be an interesting task. There are little tips and tricks that allow you to find notes really fast. The reason why all guitarist who would like to get good should memorize the fret board is because it allows you to play create chords in different shapes, find notes in different areas of the neck and allows the guitarist to familiarize and open up to playing in different parts of the neck. Memorization of the fret board is also very beneficial in soloing and improvising.

Jam with other people with different styles and techniques

You will not believe how much your guitar playing will improve when you jam with other people. If you ever feel like you are reaching a “plateau” (you feel like you’re not getting any better) in your playing, jamming with other people will definitely open you up to new tips and tricks. There’s always something to learn from someone else that plays guitar no matter how good or bad they are. Also, everyone’s individual style is different and the more open minded you are to other styles, the better player you will become.

Listen to new types music and try to play it

I know it’s hard, just force yourself to do it. When all else fails go back to the basics of music. A great way to do this is to listen to some classical music for inspiration. Elton John is an amazing musician and he says whenever he reaches a dull moment or block in his playing, he refers back to church hymns that he learned when he was younger.

Read guitar magazines

Guitar magazines have allot of cool stuff, but they also have allot of filler. The one thing I hate about guitar mags is that they are extremely complex (not for beginners). The articles, stories and advice are cool but some of the lessons are intense! The advanced guitar lingo having to do with intervals of certain modes and technical guitar talk gets to me sometimes. It’s nice to know that stuff but ehhhhhhh….. It can be boring.

Go to concerts

Nothings more inspiring then going to a concert and seeing someone rock out on stage and totally impress the crowd. I remember a couple of years ago; I went to Vans Warped Tour. Immediately after the show, as soon as I got home, I ran to my room and tried learning allot of the songs I had heard. When I saw The Eagles back in October of 06′, I couldn’t stop learning all their songs. It’s amazing to be extremely inspired and motivated once again about playing guitar and going to concerts definitely rejuvenates my interest in playing guitar.

Buy concert DVDs

If you’ve never seen any ACDC music video or concert DVD…. then we definitely need to talk. Angus Young is an amazing guitarist and It’s just amazing to see that this scrawny little Australian guy can play like he does and with such attitude and soul. Seeing that guy rip up the fret board definitely shows us that anyone can play guitar… all it takes is practice, discipline, motivation and commitment. Concert DVDs are great because they show you up close and in really good quality what exactly a guitarist is playing, unlike music videos where bands just dance around and they add in the music later. Concert DVDs are filled with raw footage of guitar playing at its best.

Always use your guitar strap

This is another biggie. When first learning how to play guitar, I never wore my guitar strap. I ended up paying for it later and basically having to relearn guitar standing up instead of sitting down. If you always play with your guitar strap on, there will be no difference to you while playing either sitting or standing. Playing with your guitar strap will also allow you to get to the “show-off” level so you can impress all your friends earlier.

A lot of people who use guitar straps find that they fall off very easy or tend to drop the guitar. There are many different types of locking mechanisms out there (I currently have two guitars that use the DiMarzio locking mechanism and it works very well)). Go to your local guitar shop and check all of them out and see which one fits you best.

Play with passion (slash)

Have you ever heard a guitar player who is a great player, but you feel that there is something missing…… THERE’S NO SOUL!!! Soul is the emotion, the love, the purpose behind guitar playing. Listen to that same talented yet boring guitar player and then compare him to Gun’s and Roses guitarist or Velvet Revolver guitarist Slash. Every solo that Slash plays has so much soul, so much emotion, and so much purpose. What I want you to do is Google “Slash – Godfather theme video” or get on Napster, iTunes, kazaa, etc. and download it. This video is nuts!! Slash plays with such a great amount of solo that it’s amazing. I really don’t know how to explain exactly how to add soul into your playing, however I will tell you that you will understand if you choose to stick with guitar and stay committed to the instrument. It’s basically playing to express yourself and not to just play because you have to or don’t want to but feel you should.

Watch the clips of legendary guitar scenes or solos

Here’s some instant inspiration…. Go to yahoo or Google and click on the “video” tab above the search bar and type in anything having to do with guitar solos. You will find some amazing solos along with amazing guitar tricks. One really cool guitar clip I remember is of this Asian guy playing the super Mario brothers theme for Nintendo. That guy can play that song like you wouldn’t believe. There’s so much inspiring guitar playing footage out there. It’s everywhere and anywhere you look, especially online. Also, checkout the movie with Ralph Maccio from the 1980’s called “Crossroads”… there’s some amazing guitar playing in it.

Try tabbing out songs by ear

This is extremely helpful. Tabbing songs by ear develops your musical ear very quickly. Choose one of your favorite songs and sit next to your cd player with a guitar and a piece of paper and try to figure out the chords in the song first, and then try to figure out the riffs within the chords. Once you find out the overall “key” of the song it’s easy to figure out all the riffs and chords.

Take a college music course (Beatles, history of rock and roll)

While I was at community college for two years studying to get my Associates Degree, I had taken a “History of Rock & Roll course”. This course was extremely interesting. There was so much music that this class opened my eyes up to. I gained so much more appreciation for the Beatles, Rolling Stones, The Who and many more bands of that era. Those bands really did change music forever. I definitely recommend taking a class like this anywhere you can; it will definitely open up your eyes to some great music out there and help you grow as a musician.

Read biographies of guitarists you appreciate

Some musicians out there have led incredible lives. The majority of them come from nothing and in the end, become legendary guitar gods. Look at Johnny Cash; he was a rural country boy that grew up almost penniless and turned into an amazing musician through inspiration and practice. There are so many interesting stories behind bands and musicians. Here’s some that I find interesting (off the top of my head): The Beach Boys, Def Leppard, Metallica, Van Halen, The Beatles and Thin Lizzy. Do some research online and try to mirror yourself with these artists. It will give you a whole new thought process to playing their songs and guitar in general.

“Steal” riffs and ideas from other guitarists

I know it sounds bad but every great guitarist does it. Clapton stole the “crossroad blues” from Robert Johnson and the Beatles used some of Elvis’ ideas and expanded upon them. Every musical generation steals ideas, riffs, chord progressions from the generation before and when it comes to music… its ok. I find this to help guitar players progress a lot, especially if you reach a plateau. One of the biggest things that helped me expand as a guitarist is to learn all my favorite solos by my favorite artists. Once I had learned them, I would play the same solo over different progressions in the same key and then play the same solos in different keys all around the neck and in different scale positions. Once I did this, I had “unlocked” all of the licks in the solo and I’m now able to use them in whatever I play. Just like how in video games you unlock new characters, levels and secrets throughout the game… you do the same in music. From there you can constantly expand upon your lick directory.

Play in front of others

This is one of the hardest parts about performing music. Playing in front of others is something that just takes time. Remember to relax and don’t think about everyone watching you. Just focus on you and the instrument. The more you play in front of others, the better you will get. Everyone’s first time playing in front of others can be pretty gut wrenching. Just remember that it gets easier every time and that you’ll get through it just fine. What you can also do is videotape yourself playing and then put it on the internet. Lots of people including myself put videos on Youtube.com or other online video sites and its up to the viewers to judge. Some people will rip your playing apart but most will applaud you for trying and really like it. The way I look at it… “Led Zeppelin didn’t write songs that everyone liked… they left that to the Bee Gees” – Wayne Campbell (Wayne’s World)

“What if I screw up”? Who cares?! In music, everyone screws up while playing music. When big bands record in studios they spend days, sometimes even weeks recording tracks so that they turn out absolutely perfect. What really creative people do when they screw up is to elaborate on the screw up. If you hit a wrong note, maybe trying hitting the note again within the rhythm of the song and maybe it will sound good.

The Internet and Youtube are valuable tools…

Eric Clapton learned guitar by listening to old Robert Johnson, BB King and many other great blues records on a turntable and then trying to mimick the same sounds on guitar. Eddie Van Halen would be in his room with his door closed for days just messing around with different sounds that a guitar can make just by moving his fingers around in different shapes and seeing what they sound like. Alex Van Halen (Eddies brother and drummer for Van Halen) would go on dates and leave the house listening to Eddie whale away at 5:00pm and then come home to Eddie still whaling away at 2:00am. These artists didn’t have the internet! They had a cassette player or record player and plenty of time on their hands. We’re incredibly lucky today to have such great resources like youtube.com and the internet in general. Youtube.com is great for learning how to play guitar. You can find lessons, people covering songs, tips and tricks and just about anything that you need to get off on the right foot when it comes to playing guitar. The great thing about Youtube guitar lessons is that “they get to the point”. No BS. Each lesson is usually under 5 minutes and they give you great info very fast, because who wants to watch a 30 minute video. Guitarists attention spans aren’t that long, I know mine isn’t. And Finally, you have the internet. The internet has absolutely everything you could ever possibly need, including Youtube.com, lessons, information, ultimate-guitar.com (for tabs), guitars101.com (for any other type of help that you may need), etc. The possibilities are endless. The point is that learning guitar today is and should be way easier than learning guitar in the past due to the great resources we have.

You can learn any riff from any song no matter how crazy or how fast…. just slow it down

Any riff is learnable, you just have to slow it down to a pace that you feel comfortable with, learn it, and then gradually speed it up. There are numerous programs out there that allow you to do this. One very popular one is called Transcribe. You can import any .mp3 file and then control the speed of the song. Practice the riff over and over and gradually raise the speed. If you can’t play the at a given speed, then slow it down 1%, if you can play it and feel comfortable with how you played it, raise it by 2%. Doing this will allow you to master any riff, any song, anything!

Try learning the difficult songs or riffs that you’ve always wanted to learn, no matter what level you are at and no matter how hard the song is…

This is what makes guitar fun, seeing your improvement (ie. Quick Results). I remember trying to play songs that were at my level when I first started playing guitar. Stuff like : The Animals – House of the Rising Son, and Don Mclean – American Pie. I could play them ok, but they weren’t really songs that I had started playing guitar for. I wanted to play Metallica’s fade to black and Eric Clapton’s Crossroads. I put the other two songs aside and started working on the new ones that had inspired me to play guitar. I had spent weeks and months on them even though they were outside my playing level. I was determined to learn them. I kind of wanted to be one of those guys that can’t play anything else, just cover songs note for note. If I couldn’t play any other song aside from the super hard ones note for note, I’d be happy. So I spent so much time learning these songs, and I could play them…. ok… not great…. However, when I went back to playing House of the rising son and American Pie, I could play them 100 times better. I played them like a pro. Its kind of like…. as long as you challenge yourself, you’ll get better. You play with musicians that are better than you… you’ll get better. You lift more and more weight than your used to… you get stronger.

A great musician once said…..

A great musician once said that as soon as guitar becomes a chore and isn’t fun, that’s the moment that you should put your guitar down. Come back to it later. Now this doensn’t mean that when your first learning guitar and you get frustrated, you should put it down and forget it. Sorry, this rule only applies to guitar players who are advanced or who have been playing for a while. It sucks and is frustrating for everyone at first so you have to stick with it. The overall point is, guitar playing should be fun. Don’t turn it into a chore or a task.

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Five Steps to Help You Go From Beginner to Guitar Hero

The rise in popularity of guitar bands and the phenomenal success of the Guitar Hero video game franchise has lead to more and more people picking up the guitar recently. Sales of guitars in the UK has hit an all time high in the past three years and as more and more people are starting to play, the guitar has surpassed the piano as the most widely learned instrument in schools.
With all these people learning I thought I’d pass on some tips from my 10 years of experience playing guitar and help point people in the right direction as they start learning their technique. In this article I’ve listed some things that I feel are very important to playing well but are often overlooked by those just starting out. If you’re a seasoned player then there won’t be much here for you, but if you’re new to playing guitar then hopefully I can help out and perhaps shed some light on things you maybe hadn’t thought about before.
Theory
The one factor that has improved my guitar playing beyond any other was taking the time out to learn the basics of music theory. Once you manage to break out of the pentatonic scales so overly used by rock guitarists you’ll find that your song-writing and improvisation will come on in leaps and bounds. Believe it or not, by learning the scales you’ll actually become far more free than when you didn’t know them. Ironically, learning the rules of music has left me much more open to play expressively than before. Don’t forget that once you know them, you can break them, and this is where your playing can really start to become interesting.
So how did I go about learning the theory I needed for playing rock guitar, and how might you learn it too?
Well, it hasn’t been a fast process and I’m certainly not finished yet, I learn something new all the time and there is a massive amount I simply don’t know yet. I started by learning a couple of major scale shapes, E major, C major and D major are good ones to start out with. Try finding a song you know in one of these keys and play over it, picking out the notes that sound good, and the notes that don’t sound good. A good way to learn scales is by checking out some of the free guides floating around the Internet.
I started out by learning a couple of positions for each scale, taking one or two at a time. Once you’ve done that a great method to help your soloing is to learn each scale on each single string. Take it slow at first, one or two strings at a time and just move on when you feel comfortable. The advantage of doing this is that before you know it, you will know every note you can hit on every string to stay in key and switching positions becomes a breeze. Once you’re happy with the major scales you can start to pick up the minor keys, which is actually a lot easier than you might think.
As well as learning scales I looked at chords and how they’re built and how they work together. I would recommend learning the scales first, as once you have those down, constructing chords becomes much easier. The key factor when learning is not just knowing them parrot fashion like “this is a Cmin7″, but rather learning why it is a C minor seventh. Once you know why the chords are then you can build them anywhere you need and you’ll find it that bit easier to write great melodies over the top.
A detailed guide to learning music theory is beyond the scope of this article but hopefully I’ve highlighted an area that may be lacking in your guitar playing. Remember even the most basic major and minor scales can make a world of difference when writing that next song, or improvising with your band. There are a huge range of free lessons available on the web, and some great tutorials on YouTube, so make sure you check them out.
Bending
Something I feel is crucial to being able to play rock guitar well is being able to bend the string accurately. String bending is what makes the electric guitar the instrument it is, having been used by countless guitarists to convey every kind of emotion you can imagine. When it is done well a big bend sounds amazing, but done badly it can sound terrible. If you have a great ear for music then you shouldn’t have much trouble bending and keeping in key. If however you’re like me and aren’t blessed with a natural ear then you’ll need to train yourself to bend accurately.
For the best results when bending strings always try to use three fingers on your fretting hand. I find when playing rock the best method is to fret the start note with the ring finger and use your middle and index fingers to help control the string as you bend it. I generally bring my thumb over the neck and ’squeeze’ the fretboard to bend the note. Some guitarists might argue that bringing the thumb round is bad technique but I find it helps your control and is useful for muting the strings you’re not playing.
Once you have a solid technique the first thing you need to do is make sure you’re bending in key. Pick any note on your guitar. Then pick a note two frets up and play that. Play the two notes one after another getting used to the sound of the interval. Once you have the sound in your head, play the first note and then bend up to the second. This whole tone bend is the most commonly used in rock guitar playing and you should make sure you’re comfortable with it. Once you’ve mastered that you can try single fret (semitone) bends and even three fret bends. Remember to always bend up to a note that is in key with the song you’re playing, nothing sounds worse than an out of key bend!
To hear some fantastic string bending listen to any guitar solo from Dave Gilmour of Pink Floyd. You should be able to hear a lot of blues style bends as well as really controlled bends across wide intervals.
Vibrato
Your vibrato can be defined as your touch or feel as you play. How you vibrato the notes you play can often define you as a guitarist and help to differentiate you from everyone else. For example take Yngwie Malmsteen with his super wide vibrato and then Steve Vai with a much more smooth and controlled sound. You can tell the two apart instantly. In fact I’d go as far as to say you could have them both play the same passage of music and you’d be able to tell the difference, even when playing the same notes.
Vibrato is varying the pitch of a note as you hold it to give a vocal like quality and expression to your playing. The amount and the speed at which you vibrato the note is entirely down to personal preference, so really just experiment with everything you can think of. Try everything and see what you think sounds best. As a test, try playing a melody with some light vibrato. Then play again but don’t vibrato a single note. The time without vibrato will often sound rather lifeless and uninteresting. It is an important technique to work on as once you have it down you’ll sound like a real guitarist and not a beginner anymore.
When I vibrato notes the motion generally comes from the wrist. I try not to overdo it and generally let the mood of the music decide how aggressively I vibrato the note. There isn’t really a steadfast way to teach vibrato, I found the best method was to simply watch my favourite guitar players as they played and pick up techniques as I went along until I settled on a sound I felt comfortable with.
Try some songs from Yngwie Malmsteen, Steve Vai and BB King to get a good idea of some different vibrato sounds.
Timing
Timing is everything. It doesn’t have to as complex as Dream Theater but one thing is for sure, if you play out of time you’ll sound rubbish. The issue of timing applies to lead and rhythm playing but of course is ten times more important for playing rhythm, after all, that’s why you’re playing it.
A great way to make sure you play in time is to always practise with a metronome. They’re cheap and available from every music shop, and failing that there are several free software metronomes floating round on the web. By always playing with a beat you’ll be used to hitting your notes in time and sticking to a regular rhythm. Before I joined a band I never played to a beat and so for the first few practises my timing was quite out on places as I was just used to jamming around on my own.
Remember that even the most simple of passages must be in time and that you need to be able to play your rhythm parts consistently.
Picking
An aspect that is often overlooked by new guitarists is their picking hand. I was the same, generally all the focus goes onto the fretting hand to make sure those chords stick and the bends sound good. However the picking hand is just as important and will have a big impact on your sound. There are a whole host of approaches when picking your notes while you play, you can play fast and precise or loose and slower and everything in-between. If you ignore your picking technique you’ll have to go back and learn it again, which is what I had to do after three years of playing.
A solid picking technique is vital for rhythm playing as you’ll need to be able to reproduce the same thing every time you play the song. You’ll need to make sure that your picking hand is synched up well with your fretting hand, you don’t want to hit dead notes, especially on clean sections.
The technique of picking properly is enough for a separate article, but just remember not to overlook it. Try searching YouTube for some videos from Paul Gilbert and John Petrucci on picking technique. For a looser feel you can always turn to Jimi Hendrix, Wind Cries Mary and Castles Made of Sand have some great sections in them for getting some new picking ideas.
In conclusion.
While I haven’t covered anything groundbreaking here I certainly hope I may have uncovered some weaknesses in your playing that you can keep in mind as you work on your technique. These are often things I see new guitarists overlook in favour of playing some loud power chords or trying to shred away from the start. Remember that the key with learning anything new on the guitar is to start slow and make sure you can play it cleanly before moving up to speed. By taking things slow and learning the best techniques you’ll become a much better and more versatile guitarist in the future.

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Do You Want to Strum Like Your Guitar Heroes ?

There are few more enjoyable activities for a person than to interpret and create music by playing an instrument. And by far, the most popular instrument that people want to start to learn is the guitar. The guitar can be heard in practically any popular and rock music recordings, and nearly all people are aware of. It is an instrument that can be carried anywhere, and can be played for many kinds of music and songs. Whether you play the guitar with a band, a small instrumental group, or accompany yourself while singing, the instrument always delivers musical enjoyment.

After learning the rudimentary chords on the fretboard, the aspiring guitarist always starts to learn strumming so that he can carry a tune or song. Strumming is one of the most difficult parts of guitar playing for the beginner. Many people still believe that the key to playing depends on learning to keep the strumming hand comfortable, flexible and moving fluidly. However, how the fretboard hand is used is just as important in strumming.

Included in this article is a very short lesson to illustrate and study different 1-bar strumming patterns that can be adapted and applied to songs that the beginning guitarist would like to play.

When playing the guitar in the example, or in any tune, it is very important to remember the following things:

-Do not tighten the muscles of your strumming hand, keep them very loose;

-When strumming, always use an up and down motion, (as one would when shaking hands), from the wrist up and down to loosen it up;

-When playing sheet or tablature music, and you encounter a muted chord (shown as notes or tabs with an “x” crossed over them), take the pressure off the strings that you are pressing, and strum the chord. You should hear just a deep scratch of the strings, with no notes ringing;

-If the chord includes open strings, you might have to block them out by very lightly pressing on them with your non-fretting fingers. You can also just take the side of your fretting hand and lay it lightly across all 6 strings, and strum the guitar.

-The muted chord is one of the most important aspects of strumming. In addition to stressing the rhythm of the song, the muted chord when strummed can aid a guitar player simulate a percussion instrument together with the regular guitar strumming.

First, let’s pick three simple chords that you can interchange to practice strumming. These three chords have a structural relationship to each other and are usually found used together in one song. Simple songs, such as pop or folk songs, are examples of songs that use these major chords frequently. The E major chord can be played with the open 1st, 2nd and 6th strings. The 1st fret of the 3rd string and 2nd frets of the 4th and 5th strings are pressed to complete the chord. The A major chord is played with the 1st, 5th and 6th strings open. The 2nd frets of the 2nd, 3rd and 4th strings are pressed to complete the chord. The D major chord is played by the 1st 4 strings, and the 4th string open. The 2nd fret of the 1st string, 3rd fret of the 2nd string and 2nd fret of the 3rd string are pressed to play the chord.

Prepare by trying to get familiar with fretting just one particular chord (for instance, the A major chord). Practicing getting both strumming and resting hands in place for muted chords and then comfortably switching them back into the next position to play a chord. By practicing a few times, you can do this faster with the fretboard hand. Soon you can alternate muted chords while continuously moving the strumming hand up and down at the same time. This will make your guitar strumming sound a lot better.

In the short sample below, the timing is in 4/4 measure, meaning there are 4 beats to a bar. Down arrows mean a down strumming stroke, up means and upstroke and an “x” denotes a muted chord. Start slowly and complete the bars, then work up to a faster tempo when you are comfortable. Try to change the patterns and chords to develop your own practice sequence. Afterwards, apply this to chords and bars of a song you know, and you are on your way to playing songs on the guitar. The pattern is: ? ? X ? ? ? X ?

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Know Your Guitar Parts

Guitars have been used with so much diversity in many musical forms. The instrument is known by many as a classical solo instrument and the basic musical instrument in rock music.

Get acquainted with this magnificent instrument; know its parts:

1. Headstock. This is found at the edge of the guitar’s neck. It is tailored with the instrument’s head for adjusting the pitch.

2. Tuners. The tuners keep the strings of the guitar stretched beginning at the base down to the knobs. Tuners likewise allow the guitar player to alter or modify the pitch either flat or sharp, depending on the player’s choice of music.

3. Nut. This is a tiny strip of hard medium or material which supports the strings at the intersection where the “headstock” meets up with the “fret board”. The strips can be made of plastic, bone, graphite, brass or any hard medium and indented to secure the stings in position. The nut acts as one of several endpoints assisting the tension of the string.

4. Fret board. Also known as the fingerboard, it is a lengthy wood plank inserted with frets of metal that composes the top of the guitar’s neck.

The fret board of a classical guitar is flat and is a little curved diagonally on an electric or acoustic guitar. The curve is calculated by the radius of the fret board that is the range of a “hypothetical circle” and which the surface of the fret board makes up a segment.

The smaller the radius of the fret board, the more that the curve is evident. When a string is pinched against the board, the string’s “vibrating length” is shortened thus creating a higher pitch sound or tone.

5. Frets. These are strips made of metal, particularly nickel alloy set in alongside the fret board that are positioned in conjunction with the string’s length that mathematically divides it.

When the strings are pushed down from the rear of the frets, this cuts the string’s length of vibration to emit different tones or pitches.

6. Neck. The neck is composed of the guitar’s fret board, frets, tuners, truss rod and headstock; all are fastened to a long extension made of wood. Usually, the wood that is used for the fret board will be of a different kind from that used on the remaining neck parts.

The firmness or stiffness of the guitar’s neck in accordance to its body is one determining factor of whether it is of good quality or not.

7. Body. The acoustic guitar’s body is an echoing cavity projecting the vibrations through the guitar’s sound hole which enables the audio of the instrument to be clearly heard even with no amplification.

In acoustic guitars, its body is a big determining factor in the overall sound it produces. The soundboard or guitar top is a delicately engineered and crafted component that is usually made out of red cedar, spruce or mahogany.

This very thin slice of wood, generally measuring only 2 – 3 mm thick, supported by different kinds of internal brackets, is the most pronounced and important element in influencing sound quality.

Most of the sound is brought about by the guitar’s top vibration as the momentum of the vibrating cords are transmitted to it.

8. Pickups. This is what really amplifies the cords sound. Most guitars have one to a maximum of three pickups. The kind of pickup is reasonably important, depending on a particular sound that you are aspiring for.

9. Pickguard. Commonly called the scratch plate, is a plastic guard or any laminated medium which protects the guitar’s top finish.

The pickups as well as almost all electronics in other electric guitars are framed and inserted atop the “pickguard”. On “acoustic guitars” and several “electric guitars”, the pickguard is directly inserted to the top of the guitar, and on guitars having carved tops; the “pickguard” is raised.

10. Bridge. On acoustic guitars, the key objective of the guitar’s bridge is to hand over or shift the string’s vibration to the “soundboard”, which then shudders the air within the guitar; thus increasing and strengthening the sound created by the cords or strings.

Go ahead, explore the parts of your guitar to better acquaint yourself with this wonderful instrument; test it too and see where it will take you. Enjoy!

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can You Learn Guitar Overnight ?

Most music-oriented people always have the desire to learn how to play the guitar. Those who know how to play the instrument want to explore ways to improve their playing skills. Many people do not have the patience to dedicate themselves to learn how to play the guitar.

Some old methods may teach a person how to play the guitar but these older styles of teaching are not necessarily effective today. The new method uses guitar books and visual handouts that show the hand and finger position on the chords and on the strings. This may help those who want to learn by themselves and think that they do not need any help from an instructor.

For some reason, they always end up hiring an instructor. The biggest problem is that a person may find it hard to find a good one that can teach him. There are instances one will learn little or nothing from a “not-so-good teacher’s” influence: becoming discouraged will result in the student stopping his lessons. This might cause a total lack interest in learning to play the guitar.

For a person who wants to learn, he may check the internet where he can find new updated learning tools that will help him learn to play the guitar in just a short period of time. An overnight session may just be enough for a fast learner to understand the basics and learn to play the guitar. Here are premium lessons that will help a person learn to play the guitar overnight from an internet site:

1. Find the desired listed button. This will be an audio file that will let a person hear a quality sound that is played correctly. It will also help the person have an idea if the notes that he is executing matches those of the audio file on the listed button.

2. He may go to the main tutorial screen. The interactive part of the lessons may be found here. A guitar fret board is displayed and has a guide that will enable a person ton see the proper fingering of the chords. He will also see the correct way to change chords and strum at the same time.

3. It is always recommended to see the hand’s page that will explain every detail and will show visuals on how to execute the hands and fingers.

These online lessons found on the internet can help a person to play the guitar in an instant – relatively speaking. It will help a person save time and he may no longer need the assistance of an instructor. Most importantly, passion is needed to make the learning faster and easier.

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Learn the Guitar – Learn the Lingo !

The guitar is one of the most sought-after musical instruments today. Its popularity is manifested through-out the radio stations and the music videos on MTV. Almost all types of music in modern pop culture have been influenced by the guitar in one way or another.

For people who would like to get their hands on a guitar, they must first learn the guitar lingo. The guitar lingo is made up of weird-sounding words that are unique to the guitar world.

The guitar lingo also applies to the guitar parts. You must be able to know the parts of a guitar to be able to know how to play it. Here are some of the guitar parts:

-Body

This is also referred to as the sound box. This is the largest guitar part and it comes in different shapes and sizes. The acoustic guitars usually have a hollow body, while electric guitars have solid or semi-solid bodies. Acoustic guitars have hollow bodies because they rely on the body structure for sound resonation and electric guitars use electronic pick-ups to amplify the sound.

-Headstock

The headstock is the part at the end of the guitar which holds the tuning keys. It is connected to the neck of the guitar.

-Nut

The nut is the piece between the guitar neck and the head. It is a small rod with indentations to hold the guitar strings in place.

-Neck

The neck is the long section which holds the fret board.

-Fret board

The fret board is divided into different notes by small metal rods. The number of frets in a fret board varies depending on the type of guitar and the brand. Modern electric guitars usually have 20-22 frets in the fret board.

-Bridge

It is a part of the guitar’s body and it is important for sound resonance. It gives elevation to the guitar strings so they can produce vibrations.

-Pick-up

The pick-up is an electronic device which acts like a microphone: it picks up the vibrations from the strings and converts the vibrations into electrical impulses. They are usually found in electric guitars

-Amp

The amplifier a speaker box from which the sounds of the electric guitar are magnified.

-Capo

This is a device which is attached to the fret board which allows a player to play the same chord structures but in a different key.

Listed below are some of the different words that you might encounter in learning how to play the guitar.

-Riff

Guitar riffs pertain to musical pieces which are parts of a song.

-Reverb

It is added to the sound of the guitar through an effects box or through amplifiers to make the sounds more natural.

-Tablature

Guitar tablatures or more commonly known as guitar tabs are written music for guitars. It is similar to musical pieces (with notes and other musical symbols) but the notes are translated into guitar frets. It’s a useful tool in learning how to play the guitar.

-Vibrato

It refers to a guitar technique where the string is slightly bent at a fast rate to Produce a longer resonating sound.

-Arpeggio

This refers to a technique where you remove notes from a specific chord. You can then use these to create an adlib lead technique or add to the rhythm of the song.

-Pick

This is the small device which guitar players use to strike the guitar strings and is usually made of plastic.

-Whammy bar

This is an attachment to the bridge of electric guitars that can be used to bend the pitch of the notes. You can pull the whammy bar to be able to make your guitar “cry.”

-Plucking

It’s a picking technique where a player does not strum the strings all at once but hits the strings one by one to attain a softer and more defined tone.

-Palm mute

This is a technique where a player uses his picking hand (usually the right hand) to mute the strings while strumming to be able to attain a distinct tone. It is very popular in the punk rock world.

The world of guitars is composed of many other new words and you must be able to master these or at least have an idea of what they are to be able do to appreciate the wonderful instrument that is the guitar..

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