Tag Archive | "musician"

Learn to Play the Guitar


Kevin Sinclair asked:

Here are some of the more common ways to learn to play the guitar. Try each method to see what works best for you.

Group Lessons: Learning guitar in a group setting can be less intimidating for the beginning musician. You not only get the benefit of having a teacher to help you along you can often judge your progress by where the other students are in the class. The worst part about taking guitar lessons in a group setting is the teachers time is divided so you may not get as much attention as you might need.
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Private Lessons: This is the best way to learn to play the guitar if you can find the right teacher. The instructor can gauge your progress each week and custom design your lessons for you. You have your teachers’ undivided attention and you can ask anything you feel is not clear.

CD Lessons: There are many instruction CDs available in nearly any style you can think of. The advantage of this style of learning is you can listen to the CD as many times as you want. Any part that is not clear can be replayed as many times as needed. The disadvantages include the songs may not be the ones you desire to learn and the instruction is more general without any way of knowing where you are in your musical journey.

DVD Lessons: Instruction on DVD includes all the good and bad points of the CD instruction. The number one advantage to learning guitar by watching DVD video is you can see what the instructor is doing. Visual learning goes a long way toward answering the questions burning in your mind.

Music Books: Music books are a time-honored way to learn how to play the guitar. You can find more books on more different styles than most any other way to learn. You need to be proficient in reading music if you do not know the song you are learning. Most folks have a hard time getting the song right if they do not know the song they are learning.

Internet: In these modern times the Internet is a wonderful resource in learning to play the guitar. There are many websites that will show you how to play the exact notes your guitar hero plays. Membership sights are plentiful where for a small monthly fee you can learn most any style you choose.

Friends: Do not overlook your guitar playing buddies. Most guitar pickers are a friendly bunch who will be more than happy to help you along.

Slowing Down Recordings: You can purchase software that slows down your favorite recordings. This allows you to hear each phrase at a speed where you can pick out the different notes. This is a great way to learn to play.

Playing With Other People: The very best way to learn to play the guitar is to get together with other people and play. This is the fastest way to learn. You will learn more by getting out and playing with other people than you ever will sitting at home playing by yourself.

The method you decide to use to learn to play guitar is up to you. Try to practice four or five times a week for 30 minutes at a time and you will be playing guitar before you know it.

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Guitar for Beginners – Learning to become a Rock Star.


by Ari Cooper-Smith

Guitar for beginners sounds like a pretty cut and dry statement. No matter who you are or how talented you are musically you will need to start at a basic point and approach guitar for beginners exactly how you would anything else, in the beginning. Guitar is one of the easiest instruments to learn to play however, it will not happen over night and you will need practice and have dedication to become skilled in the art of playing guitar.

After picking up your guitar the first thing you will want to learn is how to play some chords and perhaps some simple strumming techniques. After learning anything new you should go back and apply it. Practice it until you are confident that you can play it and them move on to learn something new. Don’t forget to constantly come back and practice things you have learnt in the past.

Learning guitar for beginners can be a daunting task at first as coordinating your hands to play the right notes ad hold the correct chords while strumming the guitar can be challenging. When you first start of you will find it uncomfortable and your fingers will hurt. Just remember all great guitarists have gone through this. You just need to push through and continue the practice. The more you play the faster you will see yourself improving.

After you have learnt how to play notes and move your hand along the the different frets the next thing you will need to work on is the way you strum. Nearly everyone strums their guitar a different way and this will create a different sound. It is crucial that right from the beginning you spend the necessary time learn how to strum your guitar properly. You must master this as you will be strumming a lot.

After you have learn to physically play the guitar and strum you will move on to playing actual songs. As you are learning guitar for beginners you should start of with very simple songs and move your way up. Break down the songs into parts and practice each part until you comfortable playing them. Once you have done this you can put it all together. You will see yourself improving very quickly and you will be able to motivate yourself.

Many people learning guitar for beginners don’t see themselves improving as they don’t play and practice enough. You must have a hunger to master the skills of a guitarist. Constantly play your guitar even if you are simply playing one chord. Just practice, practice and practice some more.

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Start Your Electric Guitar Effect Collection With These Top Three Effects


by Matt Rushton

One of the biggest advantages of playing the electric guitar is its ability to create different and unique sounds. Because you are using electricity to create the sound that you hear it gives you the ability to manipulate the electrical signal the guitar creates. Today Im going to write about the three most common electric guitar effect pedals.

The first effect I want to talk about is the Overdrive, or Distortion pedal. These pedals add a warmth and thickness to the sound of your electric guitar. They do this by clipping and compressing the original guitar signal.

You can choose from hundreds of different distortion pedals. Everything from heavy 60’s fuzz to light distorted overdrive is available in a distortion pedal. So it goes without saying the you must have a Distortion in your effect collection whether you’re playing Metal, Country or Rock-N-Roll.

The second effect I’d like to talk about is the Delay Effect. The delay effect is created by replicating your original guitar signal and playing it back at an interval after the original signal. You can have the signal be repeated once or as many times as you wish to create the desired echo effect.

You will use your delay effect primarily for increasing the depth of your guitar sound as well as layering the repeats to create complex harmonies. Using shorter delay times to thicken your sound and longer delays to create rhythmic harmonies are essential functions of the delay effect. Delay effects are used in every musical genre there is.

The third type of effect pedal you should have is the Chorus effect. Chorusing is created when your original guitar signal is slightly delayed, modulated and then combined with the original guitar signal. The effect created simulates the sound of multiple guitars being played at the same time.

Guitarists use the Chorus effect to thicken the sound of their guitar. When a stereo chorus effect is used the spatial separation of the signals can give a lush, full sound to the electric guitar. Chorus effects are used in every type of music played on electric guitar.

At some point in their development, all guitarists begin to search for more sounds for their instrument. Guitar effect pedals offer an easy and affordable way to increase your tonal pallette. That’s why I recommend Delay, Chorus and Distortion as your top three choices for getting your effects collection going.

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