Guitar Lessons Made Simple, Portland, Oregon

The guitar is one of the world’s most popular instruments. Its timeless appeal comes from its versatility and its romantic appeal, as well as its amplified power in modern music. Light enough to be easily portable, it can be played as a solo instrument or as part of a band or music ensemble. A guitar’s musical tone compliments a singing voice and it has a wide note range so it makes a perfect support instrument for singers. It is entertaining to play and many find a lot of satisfaction in learning this skill.

Before you can learn to play, however, you need a guitar. Contrary to popular belief, just any old guitar you happen to have will not do if you plan to learn correctly and become a competent guitarist. A beginner guitar should be manufactured to play the type of music you want to play and make the type of sound you plan to produce.

Types of Guitars and Guitar Strings

Beginner Guitar Tabs

Guitar tablature (tabs for short) serves the same purpose for the guitarist as sheet music does for the pianist. Guitar tabs are a visual equivalent that allows anyone to read and play guitar music without knowing how to read sheet music. Beginner guitar tabs is a skill all beginners must learn. Tabs are graphics that show the frets and strings of the fretboard.

and ------- ------ O- and B B ------- ----- ------- O-- G G ---- O-- - D D --- O ---- ------- ------- A A - O ------- ----- And E-O ---- -

Reading the tabs is simple. The six guitar strings are represented from the thickest at the bottom to the thinnest at the top by the lines on the page. If there are numbers, they represent the frets to play on that particular string. A zero stands for an “open string” — one that is played without any of its frets being pressed.

On the left side you notice there are letters naming the strings. In traditional music theory the names of musical notes are represented by the first seven letters of the alphabet: A, B, C, D, E, F and G. The strings on the guitar are named for their notes. From the bottom up from the thickest string to the thinnest, they are:

• e (first string) • A (second string) • D (third string • G (fourth string) • B (fifth string) • E (sixth string)

A simple way to remember their order is with this aid: Every August Dogs Go Biting Elvis. There are also sharps and flats. For an excellent description of comparisons between guitar notes and piano notes, see www.youtube.com/watch?v=-jW1Xx0t3ZI.

With your new knowledge of basic guitar tabs and notes, you can play some guitar songs for beginners. One of the easiest to start with is the classic “Happy Birthday” tune. Played only on the low E string (the thickest sixth string) and no other string, you can simply concentrate on which frets to put your fingers on. Here is the tab for the song:

(No lines are furnished because you are only playing on the low E string.)

O 2 5 4 2 7 O O O 5 4 4 2 5 9 10 10 9 7 5 5

One major different between guitar tabs and a music note is that guitar tabs don’t tell you anything about the timing of the notes. They tell what note to play but not how long to play it. For that reason, guitar tabs are only helpful for songs you know. Since you know “Happy Birthday”, you know how to pace the notes and you know how the rhythm of the music should go.

For more guitar songs for beginners that include the guitar tabs, simple sheet music and videos of the song being played just as the tab writes it out, check out www.guitarnick.com/index.html. Another wonderful source of easy songs in chords only or easy guitar tab music for absolute beginners is www.chordie.com/publicbooks.php?cat=Absolute+beginner.

Guitar Chords for Beginners

Playing a chord is not as difficult as you might think. It involves using your pick or thumb to strum or strike at least two notes (usually more) simultaneously. The three most common and easiest to play guitar chords beginner guitarists learn to play first are the C Major, G Major and D Major chords.

The guitar fingerings for these chords are easy to describe. The C Major Chord, usually referred to as the C chord, is fingered this way:

• Put your index finger on the first fret on the second string (B string). • Put your middle finger on the second fret on the fourth string (D string). • Put your ring finger on the third fret of the fifth string (A string). • The first (e) string and the third (G) string are played open. • The sixth (E) string is not played at all.

To strum this chord use downstrokes and only strum five out of the six strings. Evenly count off sets of four as you carefully strum in downstrokes. This diagram uses a D to indicate when to strum while you count.

D D D D 1 2 3 4

The fingerings for the G Major, or G chord, are:

• Index finger on the second fret on the fifth (A) string • Middle finger on the third fret on the bottom (E) string • Ring finger on the third fret on the first (e) string • Keep your middle and index fingers arched so they won’t brush against other strings.

The fingerings for the D Major, or D chord, are:

• Index finger on the second fret of the fourth (G) string • Middle finger on the second fret of the sixth (e) string • Ring finger on the third fret of the fifth (B) string

This is the first chord that is a little more difficult to finger but mastering this one will make it easier to progress to the F Major Chord. The F Chord is hard to finger but harmonizes well with the other three. Mastery of all four of these beginner guitar chords will allow you to play hundreds of songs. For a basic guitar chord chart with all the main chords on it, go to www.bigpictureguitar.com/downloads/basic_chord_chart_lo.jpg.

Mastering the tricky F chord will allow you to move forward in your progress much faster. The F chord fingering is:

• Index finger across the first fret on ALL of the strings • Middle finger on the second fret on the third (G) string • Ring finger on the third fret on the fifth (A) string • Pinky finger on the third fret on the fourth (D) string

Once you have mastered this chord, you are ready to start practising how to play chords on guitar while switching back and forth between them. To our earlier strumming and counting exercise, we now add the letters of the two chords. Count out loud while carefully and cleanly strumming in downstrokes in first one chord and then the other. Go slowly at first. You are aiming for a clear sound, smooth transition and accuracy. As the chord change becomes easier and more natural, you can work on increasing your speed. C F C D D D D D D D D D D D D 1 2 3 4 1 2 3 4 1 2 3 4

General Guitar Tips for Beginners

There is a wealth of information, fingering exercises, great video lessons and other information for newcomers to the guitar on the internet. Take advantage of the knowledge and help of those who know more than you do. Be sure to progress at your own rate. Take your time to learn one skill or technique and really master it before going on to another one. It will make all the difference in the world to how fast you can become a proficient guitarist. If you develop sloppy habits now, it may take you years to overcome them.

Set manageable goals. Give yourself two weeks to master the first four major chords and learn to finger them and strum them very well. Then advance during the next two weeks to switching between chords until you can make the changes smoothly and the sounds are clear and nice. That way you’ll build your progress layer upon layer in an organized way that prepares you for the next stage.

A good benchmark for daily practice is an hour a day. If that is not possible in your schedule though just remember that regular practice is more important that the amount of practice. You will learn more from thirty minutes every day of the week than you will from four hours all over the weekend. Be sure you don’t count the time you just fool around “noodling” with the guitar and jamming as practice. You know the difference.

Spend time in practice on both theory and technique. Reading tabs and chords is theory. Practising fingerings and chords is technique. You need a balance of both. If you get impatient with yourself or frustrated to the point that you’re ready to bash your guitar to pieces, stop and do something else for a while. You are not racing or competing with anyone. Take a step back and figure out what is bothering you. If it is a particular skill, slow down and practice it some more, slowly and carefully.

Take your time and remember to have fun while you are playing your guitar. The ultimate goal of learning to play the guitar is so you can enjoy yourself by expressing your uniqueness through music.