Hints and tips for guitar beginner

[jkartik]

I know all of the above, plus I'm getting more of a handle on the damned F Chord, A Major, D 7th & E Minor.

well, in this case i'd suggest you get a good hold of the A Major and E Minor.
and you'll get lot of songs on the internet which use these chords.

try Neil Young's Heart of Gold.
it uses E minor, E Minor7, D Major, back to E Minor and the small riff at the end.

 

[Dutch]

Another way to add some vaiation in your playing is by playing little riffs that join one chord to the other.

Say you are playing a progression that at a certain point goes from em to A major: as you go to the A major chord you play just the 6th string open string, 2nd fret, third fret and then the A major chord.

You need to figure out the timing to get it within the rhythm of the song you are playing bit it can sound cool. Any chord can be approached in this way either from "below" or "above" to achieve a dynamic effect.

Also you don't need to strum every measure in the same way: first measure straight 1 and, 2 and, 3 and, 4 and, strum, second measure 1, 2 and, 3, 4 and, strum etcetera etcetera. (If you get what I mean!)

 

[MasterBlaster76]

@Dutch: It seems that I find playing chord progressions easier if I sing along to them - the gaps between chords reduce dramatically, in some cases, they disappear entirely. The thing is, the sound of the chords can vary - sometimes they ring clearly, sometimes not. Should I carry on like this, or concentrate on having each chord ring out properly before moving onto the next one?

 

[Dutch]

@Dutch: It seems that I find playing chord progressions easier if I sing along to them - the gaps between chords reduce dramatically, in some cases, they disappear entirely. The thing is, the sound of the chords can vary - sometimes they ring clearly, sometimes not. Should I carry on like this, or concentrate on having each chord ring out properly before moving onto the next one?

I would do the following: discover which chords are not ringing clearly. Say it is the F (a known culprit!), or A major.

Spend a couple of minutes looking really carefully at why it isn't ringing properly. Usually because a finger that is holding down a string is getting in the way of another string, or you are pressing too tightly with one finger so the other finger can't 'grip' properly.

Add each finger one at a time and play the chord: so if it is A major play that chord with one finger on the 4th string; add the next finger. Is it still okay? Add the next finger; still okay? What about your thumb, is it sliding towards you too much, decreasing the reach and flexibility of the fingers?

So in short you take an investigative approach to the problem, clinically looking and adjusting.

Just do it a couple of minutes then go off and play and enjoy and don't expect it to be resolved immediately and just enjoy playing.

Next time you play spend a couple of minutes working on things.

Remember to do some finger stretching exercises before you start: length of fingers is not important, flexibility and independence very important!

Remember those little exercises I described in the beginning of this thread???? Very important! I still do them every time I play!!!!

 

[MasterBlaster76]

Thanks, Dutch. The dreaded F is coming along well - I can usually get it ringing clearly (apart from the high E string, finger strength still isn't quite there yet. If I press my index finger down hard on the two strings and add a lot of pressure with the thumb, then it's clear). So, to sum it up, I should carry on singing along, but also dedicate a few minutes of the session (or whenever I pick up the guitar to play, which is very often, especially since I now have a strap) to making sure the finger position is completely right, and eventually, the two will come together (in other words, I'll be able to change the chords quickly and have them sounding good as well)?

God, I hope you get what I'm going on about there!!

Edit: Your exercises were copied and pasted into a document about Guitar exercises that permanently lives on my desktop.

 

[jkartik]

i can just about play the F chord properly....
but the real challenge now would be to play it cleanly while doing the changes. :crying

 

[MasterBlaster76]

i can just about play the F chord properly....
but the real challenge now would be to play it cleanly while doing the changes. :crying

Amen to that! When I'm playing the chords (not strumming them properly, just gliding the pick over the strings), I can change between most chords quite fluently, apart from that damn F! When it comes to strumming away, there's still a bit of a gap between chord changes, but I'll get it! It's like: (Strum, 2, 3, 4, gap, 1, strum 2, 3, 4 - if that makes sense) This is such a great instrument to learn - even though I can't do much at present, I just love picking it up and strumming chords!

How do you know when it's time to change the strings? Do they go out of tune more easily and so on?

 

[Simbazz]

The F Chord is a pretty difficult chord. I still sometimes mess it up first time, the trick is to get your hand comfortable, if I try to force my hand into it I get those horrible noises you get when you've not properly barred it, put the barre down first, and then the other fingers.

Simbazz added 3 Minutes and 13 Seconds later...

Amen to that! When I'm playing the chords (not strumming them properly, just gliding the pick over the strings), I can change between most chords quite fluently, apart from that damn F! When it comes to strumming away, there's still a bit of a gap between chord changes, but I'll get it! It's like: (Strum, 2, 3, 4, gap, 1, strum 2, 3, 4 - if that makes sense) This is such a great instrument to learn - even though I can't do much at present, I just love picking it up and strumming chords!

How do you know when it's time to change the strings? Do they go out of tune more easily and so on?

Generally they lose there clear ring, and also tend to look a little dirtier. Best trick is to clean them after every time you play it, but as a whole, change them every month or two. I'd say every month but even for me, its fairly expensive paying nearly ?100 a yr on strings.

 

[Dutch]

Practice barre chords higher up the fret to help you get the right tension (easier to place the fingers up the fret!). Play the f-shape on the fifth fret and go up a fret at a time to say the 10th fret and go back down to fifth. After a while go down from the fifth to the 4th fret etcetera. Think about the thumb with barre chords: it always wants to come towards you, restricting the reach of the fingers. thumb usually in the middle of the neck, nice and firm.

Strings can last anything up to 6 months if you keep your guitar in a case between plays, don't play with dirty hands and wipe the strings after each session. I usually wash my hands before playing and never, ever eat while playing!

Masterblaster: you got it. Couple of minutes work-out with the fingers, couple of minutes investigative research and problem solving and all the rest is fun playing! Do that evry time you pick up the guitar and you will be a good gutarist with a firm foundation in a lot less time than many who either A) only practice practice practice without enjoying themsleves or B) only muck about without improving!

 

[jkartik]

Practice barre chords higher up the fret to help you get the right tension (easier to place the fingers up the fret!). Play the f-shape on the fifth fret and go up a fret at a time to say the 10th fret and go back down to fifth. After a while go down from the fifth to the 4th fret etcetera. Think about the thumb with barre chords: it always wants to come towards you, restricting the reach of the fingers. thumb usually in the middle of the neck, nice and firm.

Strings can last anything up to 6 months if you keep your guitar in a case between plays, don't play with dirty hands and wipe the strings after each session. I usually wash my hands before playing and never, ever eat while playing!

Masterblaster: you got it. Couple of minutes work-out with the fingers, couple of minutes investigative research and problem solving and all the rest is fun playing! Do that evry time you pick up the guitar and you will be a good gutarist with a firm foundation in a lot less time than many who either A) only practice practice practice without enjoying themsleves or B) only muck about without improving!

dutchy()....have you ever played the guitar drunk on stage ??

 

[Dutch]

dutchy()....have you ever played the guitar drunk on stage ??

couple of days ago...i was so drunk..i couldnt even play the E Minor properly.

Been drunk a few times, played on a stage many times. have yet to combine the two!!

I am more of an acoustic man: I own five guitars: a classical, nylon string guitar, a nylon semi-acoustic guitar, a gypsy-jazz guitar and two normal acoustic guitars.

I play a lot in different styles and bands and make my own songs and recordings.

 

[jkartik]

Been drunk a few times, played on a stage many times. have yet to combine the two!!

I am more of an acoustic man: I own five guitars: a classical, nylon string guitar, a nylon semi-acoustic guitar, a gypsy-jazz guitar and two normal acoustic guitars.

I play a lot in different styles and bands and make my own songs and recordings.

ahhh...thought so. i love acoustic...but am more into Led Zeppelin, Jeff Beck, Joe Satriani, Pink Floyd, GNR etc.

other favs include Mark Knopfler, Albert King, BB King, Jimi Hendrix etc..

recently been listening to brian may and liking his music as well.

whos your top 5 guitarists ?

 

[Dutch]

ahhh...thought so. i love acoustic...but am more into Led Zeppelin, Jeff Beck, Joe Satriani, Pink Floyd, GNR etc.

other favs include Mark Knopfler, Albert King, BB King, Jimi Hendrix etc..

recently been listening to brian may and liking his music as well.

whos your top 5 guitarists ?

THose are some great names you list there, probably the best guiatrists of their genre ever. I have varied tastes so my top 5 would look like this:

1. Django Reinhardt (Gypsy Jazz: only had three fingers on his left hand!!!!!)
2. Stochello Rosenburg (Also Gypsy Jazz but more modern.)
3. Mark Knopfler for "inventing" a unique style and being bloody good.
4. Ferdinad Sor (The inventor of classical guitar music)
5. Villas-Lobos, Brazilian guitarist and virtuoso player.

 

[Simbazz]

Dutch, you don't own an electric?

Do you not crave to hear those noises only amps can bring?

 

[pcfan123]

No list of good guitar players is complete without Eric Clapton, Stevie Ray Vaughn, Robbie Robertson, Neil Young and James Taylor.

BTW just created a piano thread, if any of you guys out there are pianists.

Hmarka added 1 Minutes and 0 Seconds later...

http://www.planetcricket.org/forums/general-chat/piano-tips-sheet-music-63603.html