Hammond Music

Posts Tagged ‘tutorials’

How to Play Guitar for Beginners

The internet is a truly wonderful resource. Young people today don’t all appreciate how lucky they are to have the worlds knowledge and skills at their fingertips via the internet.

I started playing in the 1970s with the famous Bert Weedon’s ‘Play in a Day’ book. I could never afford guitar lessons so I would take every opportunity to obsessively study the playing techniques and styles of every guitarist I managed to see.

Modern technology has revolutionised the way that people learn to play the guitar. There are so many excellent guitar tuition DVDs that can be played over and over again, unlike a face to face guitar lesson. And the internet provides an ideal medium for the delivery of some great guitar tutorials.

There are an abundance of guitar teaching websites but my favourite place for guitar tutorials is Youtube. You can find instructional videos on everything from choosing guitars to making your own electric guitar. There are plenty of videos that will help those who are just starting out with the guitar and lots more that are ideal for people like me, who’ve been playing for a while but want to learn more techniques and tunes.

Learning some new techniques, tunes and licks has become my favourite hobby. If the weather is bad then you will generally find me learning a new tune or two from Youtube. I think that my guitar playing skills have improved more in the past five years, thanks to Youtube, than it did in the prior twenty years.

What’s more, its interactive. If I find a video of someone playing a piece that I like I can easily make it one of my favourites and maybe leave a comment for the performer to see. Also, I will often ask the presenter a question or two and they always come back with a positive answer. It’s a bit like having every online guitarist in the world available as a personal guitar playing consultant.

I can’t help but feel a little envious of the young people who are just starting to learn today. I like to think that if I’d been born later, at a time when all of these great learning resources were available, I’d have been playing better than Eric Clapton by now.

It’s probably a bit too late to find a guitar instructor who teaches one-on-one lessons. You could try some online guitar lessons for beginners. Some courses are designed to help you learn to play guitar songs quickly. Don’t just dream or wish you could play the guitar – make it happen!

Imagine how impressed that someone you love (or someone you want to notice you or are trying to get a date with) would be if you showed up and played a song for him or her as a valentine gift.

Online Guitar Lessons:

Everyone knows there are tons of videos to watch at YouTube. The guitar lessons available online are mostly good (but not all of them are great). Many of these shared videos are inspiring or just plain funny. A better way to find guitar lessons for beginners is by searching for professional guitarists websites that have tutorials and videos. 

With so many online guitar tutorials and videos, it’s getting easier to learn to play any instrument, especially the guitar. The Internet is full of guitar videos and lessons to help you learn to play electric or acoustic guitar, plus blues, rock, folk, bass and other kinds of music. You may need to take some time watching various videos and visiting many websites to find a good online course. As a first step, go look at the free lessons at.About dot com, where they have a good overview (go to the website and search for free guitar lessons). Remember, you get what you pay for – free lessons are not always the best choice.

Often new guitar players start learning to play an acoustic guitar (though some people start learning on an electric guitar). If you need to learn quickly, use what you have, either will work to learn the basics. We’ll talk next about some guitar buying tips, in case you need a new guitar or don’t have one.

Tips on Buying a Guitar

First, do some research about whichever type of guitar you are going to buy (acoustic or electric). Research all that you can online, and also go to local guitar stores to look at the prices and the guitar brands available. Don’t buy anything until you’ve looked and learned about the guitars available.

Second, if you have friends who play guitar, ask them what they recommend or see if they will go guitar shopping with you.

Third, be patient and don’t be impulsive about your purchase.

Fourth, if you can’t get a friend to go with you, have someone in the store play the guitars so you can hear the differences of their sounds.

Fifth, take your time and try out as many guitars in as many stores as you want to. Holding and playing different guitars lets you get a feel for what suits you best.

Sixth, if you find a guitar you want, talk about any deals that the seller can make – they are often able to sell it to you for less than what is on the price tag.

Seventh, don’t forget to buy a guitar case – a hard shell case protects the guitar best.

If You Are Serious about Learning to Play Guitar

It’s best, if you are a beginner, to have a program that is specially designed to take you through step-by-step – starting with basic knowledge such as how to hold a guitar, guitar tuning, and learning basic chords. You can learn to strum, but without knowing some chords, it’s just a bunch of noise – that’s not how to make music!

If you want to learn quickly and have something to show for it as soon as possible, don’t start with learning scales or other technical, advanced stuff. It’s not hard to find easy guitar chords, music, songs or video instruction. If you don’t need to learn in the next week you could get a guitar course on CDs or DVDs which allow you to learn without being online. This is a really comprehensive course on DVDs (only look at this if you are serious) – Learn and Master Guitar.

So quit banging around on your guitar and take a few hours to learn to play a song for yourself or for your Valentine.