Here’s another Mini Guitar Lesson by Mike Jones from Killer Guitar Tips.

Great guitar players do not just happen out of thin air. Great guitar players have practiced their art and practiced on a regular basis! But be WARNED… Many people practice the wrong things. They actually practice BAD habits. In order to progress you need to practice the right things. I know this sounds blatantly obvious but many, many people get this wrong. They practice things that they actually like which could be reinforcing their bad habits they have already acquired.

YOU’RE in the minority! CONGRATULATIONS!!!! You’re in the select 5% of people who will be practicing the CORRECT methods and techniques that will catapult your guitar playing into hyperspace.

So stay tuned…

Let’s get straight on with this mini guitar lesson…

We will start with a really cool chord progression that’s great to play pentatonic riffs over when you are jamming with a friend, it will make you sound like a great player with no effort whatsoever!

So here it is, it’s real easy… Play one bar of each chord A, G, D, and A. Now keep on playing these chords over and over while your friend makes up a solo using the Am pentatonic scale at the fifth fret!! It sounds great.

Why not swop parts and get your friend to play the chords while you solo over this sequence in Am. Just listen to yourself sounding like a top pro player!

Now now have a progression you know that will fit in at any jam night or venue. You will be able to get up with a friend and sound like a real pro guitarist. It just takes a little practice ideally with your friend.

Another great little progression that goes along with this nicely and is the backbone of many great songs is a 4 bar sequence that repeats itself over and over again and is commonly known as the ‘turnaround’.

Lets take a closer look at this so here goes:

Play the 1st bar G, the second is Em, the 3rd is C and the last is a bar of D.

Play the rhythm of 4 beats to a bar and repeat this turnaround to your hearts content.

Again this is a superb jam sequence. Why not get your friends to jam along to it in the key of G. You play the rhythm and they solo over the top then change around, you solo they play rhythm.

Oh, and dont forget that my full guitar audio/video program is loaded with lots of amazing chord sequences that will allow you to lay down great sounding rhythm guitar that will astound your friends and rock your audience.

How To Play Hammer Ons And Pull Offs On Your Guitar.

If you recall in the last mini guitar lesson I showed you how to move the pentatonic pattern 1 round the neck. In this article we will expand on that to bring a technique called the “hammer on”.

Let’s take pattern 1 at the 5th fret (Am) as an example.

A “hammer on” is played by holding down the 6th string at the 5th fret and proceed to pick it. Now hit your 4th finger hard down onto the 8th fret hard enough to make the string hit the fret and sound out as loud as if you’d picked it!

In order to master thus technique you need to practice. Practice playing the hammer on on all the strings in the scale pattern… This is known as “hammering on”!!!

Once you are able to play the “hammer on” quickly you will build up your speed over time and find that you will be able to play notes quickly without having to pick the strings individually. This will speed up your overall playing ability…

Try to practice your guitar playing EVERY day, even if you only pick it up for a few minutes, your fingers will become more and more on auto pilot…

Following on from the “hammer on” we are now going to take a look at the “pull off” The “pull off” is another ‘must know’ technique and runs side by side with the “hammer on”. This is a technique you have got to master if you wish to progress to becoming a great player!

Again using pattern 1 at the 5th fret (Am) hold down the 8th fret with your 4th finger and also the 5th fret with your first finger on the 6th string.

Now pick the string sounding the note at the 8th fret (C)

Here’s the best bit: Flick the string with your 4th finger whilst the note is still ringing (pull off) to sound the note at the 5th fret (A), Do not use your plectrum at all.

Make sure you practice this on all the strings up and down pattern 1.

This killer technique combined with hammer on’s is regular feature in great sounding solos.

Practice until your fingers bleed! Only joking!!!!

About The Author – Mike Jones: Mike has been teaching and playing guitar as a pro for over twenty years. He has created an amazing guitar tutoring course created using his very own amazing speed learning techniques to get the beginner through to accomplished player in the shortest possible time. For more information and receive some super FREE tips and tricks visit his website at: guitar lessons

In this article we are going to learn how to play hammer on’s and pull off’s.

In the last article/mini guitar lesson you learned how to move the pentatonic pattern 1 around the neck. In this lesson we will expand on that to bring a technique called the “hammer on”.

For example let’s take pattern 1 at the 5th fret (Am).

A “hammer on” is played by holding down the 6th string at the 5th fret and proceed to pick it. Now hit your 4th finger hard down onto the 8th fret hard enough to make the string hit the fret and sound out as loud as if you’d picked it!

You need to practice playing this on all the strings in the scale pattern… and it is known as “hammering on”!!!

Once you are able to play the “hammer on” quickly you will build up your speed over time and find that you will be able to play notes quickly without having to pick the strings individually. This will speed up your overall playing ability…

Try to practice your guitar playing EVERY day, even if you only pick it up for a few minutes, your fingers will become more and more on auto pilot…

To add to the “hammer on” we will now have a go at a technique called the “pull off” and is the next killer technique you must try to master on your road to becoming a great player!

We will start off again using pentatonic pattern one at the 5th fret (Am). Hold down the 8th fret with your 4th finger and also the 5th fret with your first finger on the 6th string.

Now pick the string sounding the note at the 8th fret (C)

Now here’s the clever bit : whilst the note is still ringing flick the string with your 4th finger (pull off) to sound the note at the 5th fret (A). Do not use your pick at all!

Make sure you practice this on all the strings up and down pattern 1.

These great and widely used techniques (hammer on’s and pull off’s) is a regular feature in fantastic sounding solos.

Practice until your fingers bleed! Only joking!!!!

About The Author – Mike Jones: Mike has been teaching and playing guitar as a professional for over two decades. He has created an unique guitar tutoring professionalgram created using his very own unique speed learning techniques to get the beginner through to accomplished player in the shortest possible time. To find out more and receive some super FREE tips and tricks visit his website at: guitar lessons

Hi Mike here from Killer Guitar Tips.

I am now going to show you a couple of mini guitar lessons in this article that you really should know to help get your guitar soloing of to a great start and stop you from sounding shall we say mediocre!

OK, let’s get into it…

This weeks mini guitar lesson is on how to use the Pentatonic Pattern #1 scale for major and minor solo’s.

The first thing we need to understand is that every pentatonic pattern can be used for major and minor scales.

The following are known as relative major and minors. That is, pattern #1 at the fifth fret produces two keys, A minor (Am) and C major (C).

As we can see, this pattern can now be used for BOTH these keys, Am and C major. So, to get a real cool, bluesy rock sound we can simply play Am over a track writtem in A major!

Now here’s the really cool part…

Keeping with this pattern, move the whole pattern down the neck towards the tuning pegs by just 3 frets. Now, when we play this same pattern here we will now be playing in A major that produces a very melodic, tuneful soloing sound!!!

The next little trick continues the theme of moving pentatonic pattern 1 around the neck to create killer solos.

In the key of A, play pentatonic pattern #1 at the 5th fret (Am) you will create a great bluesy rock solo.

Now here is a great little tip… Move the whole shape up the guitar neck by 7 to Em and continue playing! This will produce a great melodic sound using exactly the same pattern but played at a different part of the neck, try it, it’s a mainstay in the guitarists bag of tricks.

If you make a place on your hard drive and create a folder for all the little mini guitar lessons I will be giving you over the coming weeks and practice them regularly you will build up an awesome bag of tricks that when put together in a solo will produce a killer sound. Your friends will be amazed at your skill!

All these mini guitar lessons i will be giving you are just a very small fraction of material contained in the Killer Guitar Tips home study course but even so are invaluable in your journey to be come a great player.

Mike Jones – The Author: Mike is a professionalfessional Guitar Tutor and has been playing and teaching guitar for over two decades. He has created a unique guitar tutoring professionalgram constructed using his very own amazing speed learning techniques to get the beginner through to great player in the shortest possible time. To find out more and receive some fantastic FREE tips and tricks why not go to his website at: Learn Guitar

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If you play great with a bass guitar but don’t have a bass guitar, then it’s high time that you get one. If you are thinking of buying one, picking the best choice may not be as simple as plucking some strings. There are a lot of things to cover when you make a bass guitar purchase. Luckily, this guide will aid you in finding the perfect bass guitar for your act.

The body style of the guitar should be a top consideration. Do you play in a rock band or are you a part of an acoustic triumvirate? See, if you are into rock and loud music, then go for a solid body guitar. If you play for an acoustic tune, go for hollow ones.

Once you have the body figured out, its time to check the neck. Picking the guitar with the perfect neck is easy. Just take a look at the size of your hands. The type of neck is relatively dependent on how big or small your hands are. Whether you prefer round, flat back, oval, “vee” and asymmetrical types of neck, small hands mean thinner necks and vice versa.

Anther important factor is the scale length. A bass guitar that sports short scale lengths is the best instrument for people with small hands. But you can still pick guitars that have longer scale lengths provided play them well and in tune with the other instruments of the band.

A bass guitar should also come with an extremely functional tuning machine. This little device is what you use to fine tune your instrument and hold pitch, so you are better off if you have the best one available. Also, a tuning machine with an enclosed head is much better than an open air tuning head, which is very exposed to the elements.

Do not worry much about the number of frets for when choosing a bass guitar. The number of frets is always left on your personal preference. You can choose bass guitars that have 21, 22, or 24 frets. But in the end, it does not really matter since you will be playing a lot of notes in the lower frets anyway.

The material of your guitar is also a vital attribute when picking a bass guitar. The type of wood totally affects the tone and the weight of your instrument. If you will be playing on your feet, better pick a guitar that is made of lightweight wood, such as swamp ash. Alder is also a very good choice.

In closing, you have to be very thorough with the process. But at the end of the day, pick the bass guitar that really produces the sound you want. Do not worry much about the guitars finish. It does not do anything that affects the sound.

This article teaches you a nice little chord change for you to use over and over again. It can be used in many different situations adding another item to your bag of tricks that you should be building up over time. Even if you are not yet at a level to be able to play this piece you still need to keep it as you will be able to refer back to it when you are at a level to be able to play it. Your bag of tricks you will be building over time will be invaluable in times to come and will help tremendously in your quest to becoming a great player. This sequence is really effective but it does assume you have some understanding of playing the guitar.

Clarifying what I have just mentioned as I feel it is really important to understand is that if you are not yet at a standard to be able to play this sequence – don’t panic! Store this tip in your bag of tricks and at a later date when you ability improves you will be able to pull it out to use at will. From the FREE articles I will be posting over the coming weeks you will be able to throw lots of tricks into your bag to be used whenever you choose.

Ok, give this a whirl:

Play one bar with all down strokes and on the beat using an ‘A major’ chord in the open position using your 1st, 2nd and 3rd fingers.

Next lift off your 3rd finger to reveal the open B string (this chord is called Asus2) and play one bar.

Now, hold down using your 4th finger the ‘B string’ at the 3rd fret (1st and 2nd finger remain unchanged at the second fret throughout this sequence) and play one bar, this is an Asus4 chord. Then finish with one bar of ‘Amajor’ to complete this four bar sequence.

And thats it!

This is a really nice sounding sequence and can be used by the relative beginner. It arises in many, many songs and sounds really effective. Give it a whirl.

Making the decision to learn electric guitar is a source of excitement. An entire world or sonic colour, passion and musical bliss opens its doors! Often its some kind of inspiration such a great rock solo you’ve heard or simply life telling you go here, that makes you want to take it up.

It’s going to help a lot if you’ve already had some experience playing chords and strumming on acoustic guitar. Usually starting with acoustic guitar is the cheapest and safest option because it allows you to see if you are really going to take to the instrument or not.

An important decision is what style of guitar will be your main interest? What is the style you’re most excited about and feel the most motivation to learn? It’s important as learning electric guitar is a very different experience depending on what you want to learn. Someone taking electric guitar lessons for Jazz, for example, is going to be a world apart from another learning Metal right?

There’s no real hard and fast rule for how to learn electric guitar correctly. That’s why its so cool and accessible to everyone. For the fastest results my advice would be to use a combination of lessons with a local tutor and teaching yourself online. There are many resources for how to play electric guitar so take advantage of them all in combination.

As a final thought please avoid jumping into the deep end and trying to learn things which are currently beyond your ability. You have to build up your technique gradually over time and this requires some patience, common sense and restraint. Its really for the best since to kill yourself trying to play something way beyond your technical level as a beginner is a one way street to frustration and failure. You’ve been warned!

To learn electric guitar successfully do a little bit of practice each day, use all the resources available to you with private tuition and the web, stay within your level and you’ll avoid most of the major pitfalls! [youtube:d9iAMXsV988;[link:learn electric guitar];http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=d9iAMXsV988&feature=related]