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guitar

 
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Well, I brought guitar few days back.

I need some help, tutorials, tips and most important motivation. Though I also brought �learn guitar in 30 days� book but finding difficult to understand music.

How should I proceed?
I can play all six strings without looking down but can�t have my hand on frets properly.

How did you learn? Please share.

Thanks.

 
(instanceof Sidekick)
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Search for guitar lessons on YouTube. There are many bad ones, but a couple pretty darned good series. My brain is not working right now ... I'll try to look up a couple names I wrote down at home later tonight.

What kind of music fundamentals give you trouble? Note names, rhythms,key signatures, strange jargon, tablature? There are lots of musicians here.
 
ankur rathi
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Originally posted by Stan James:
Search for guitar lessons on YouTube. There are many bad ones, but a couple pretty darned good series. My brain is not working right now ... I'll try to look up a couple names I wrote down at home later tonight.

What kind of music fundamentals give you trouble? Note names, rhythms,key signatures, strange jargon, tablature? There are lots of musicians here.



Thanks a lot Stan.
I will surely put some doubt once I finish my current assignment in 3-4 days and get my guitar and book in my hands.
 
Greenhorn
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ankur
i dont have any idea about playing the instrument..but i do know that a website http://www.musiciansfriend.com/ is a good one..
 
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First, start with technique. If you don't fret, position the guitar, strum, etc properly, you'll always have problems and those can be hard habits to break if you start out wrong.

First, I'd start with basic chords. If you can play nothing else, at least you'll feel like you accomplished something. And hell, if someone asks what you know, you can strum a few chords and they'll think you sound like Clapton.

With those chords, practice your technique; fretting properly, strumming, etc. Oh, and for now, stick with a pick. Fingerpicking can be a pain in the arse.

One of the things that a teacher I knew taught FIRST was to know what note EVERY fret was on the fretboard. The first lesson was a layout of the fretboard and you had to have it absolutely memorized before the next class or you couldn't go on. Not a bad idea.

Do some reading on how to play scales, how your fingers (ALL FOUR) should be used and what it means to be effecient on the fretboard.

After all that, just have fun. Buy some TAB sheet music, listen to songs and try to pick out what the guitarist is doing. Something that was suggested to me is to play while watching TV and try to play theme songs or whatever is on the TV. It'll force you to listen and pay attention to pitch and develop your ear.

Good luck with your new toy.
 
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Fingerpicking can be a pain in the arse



If this is the case you need to look very carefully at where you're picking. Whilst playing the guitar your fingers shouldnt be ANYWHERE near your arse!
 
author
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wow!

It looks to me like you started off with a Martin! I guess that's from the "go big or go home" dept.

Congrats! My two cents would be that if you have 2 hours a week to practice, make it 15-20 minutes / day.
 
Sheriff
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If you can find a decent teacher, start out with one.
Having someone who can catch bad techniques and help you correct them up front will make a big difference; especially when you start getting into more intermediate levels.
It's much harder to un-learn bad habits than it is to build proper technique from the beginning.
 
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A word to the wise from long, hard years of experience on guitar and piano:

1. Learn songs. Don't just mess around.

2. Learn from a real, human teacher. Try several before considering that you may not have talent.

3. Use a metronome.

There are some good sites out there as well. I have no affiliation but really enjoy http://www.wholenote.com Lots of lessons for every level and style.
 
Sheriff
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That sure is a heck of a first guitar! I'd like to echo what smoe of the others have said. The best thing you can do is get yourself a teacher. It will cut your learning curve down immensely and prevent you from being one of those guys who doesn't use his pinky. Try to set aside an hour a day or so for practice. And as soon as you learn a few chords, try to have your instructor teach you a couple of songs that you enjoy in order to keep up your motivation.
 
Matt Fielder
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I forgot something!!!

VERY IMPORTANT!

Stretch and warm up!
Get your wrists moving, get the blood flowing, make sure your fingers are loose and pay attention to your Carpel Tunnel. If you EVER feel any pain in your hands or wrists, STOP immediately. Let your hands cool down and relax.

Pay attention to the angle that you create at your wrist while playing. If it's too sharp, you're stressing the tendons that run through the CT and they'll start hating you. When I mentioned technique earlier, this is one place where good technique will pay off.

After years of playing insanely fast and heavy metal, I've punished my wrists and am doing all that I can to avoid surgery and constant pain.
 
Stan James
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Hey, I finally ran across those online lesson links. These were from an NPR story.

Justin Sandercoe
David Taub

Both of these guys have millions of hits on YouTube.
 
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