Learning (Acoustic) Guitar

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God's lonely asperger

Protestant
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I have an acoustic guitar since a bit before quarantine. I play it every once in a while, but I'm as experienced as that guy in a party that can only play Wonderwall.
I took a few classes, but those got ruined by the lockdowns, then I was busy with exams for quite a while, then I'm here making this thread.

Anyone have experience with learning this? Good methods? Good practice?
Thanks in advance.
 
Get a songbook that shows the guitar chords, of songs you like - if you like Dylan get one of his, or the Beatles, or "Pop hits" of some decade ... a book with some songs you know. You can get some decent ones at the Internet Archive and probably other places if you want digital.

Take a peek inside first and make sure there are songs with relatively simple chords you can see yourself being able to play. Some music is not guitar based, or is just uses really hard chords, and these will leave you frustrated. In my experience it would be lucky to find a book with more than 5 or 10 songs I could play starting out. Sometimes there are only one or two.

The goal is to learn to play a song, or a few songs, hitting the simple chords in it perfectly.

Just play them over and over until your hand gets strong enough and you can make the chord changes cleanly. Then, take on some more songs, etc. This should keep you busy for roughly the first year. In the meantime you will also be able to just sit and play and create your own music, and gradually get a sense of what happens if you make changes to the chords, and your dexterity will improve so you can learn to hit individual strings more cleanly with your picking hand.

Your hand will get tired and your fingertips sore, you have to build them up. The more you can practice the more calloused and strong your hand will become, but the fatigue will regulate the amount of time you can invest the first few months.

Getting a few sets of light strings is a great practice for starting out. They break sooner but are much easier to hit the frets cleanly with which will give a sense of accomplishment. Also a digital tuner but you probably have one of those already.

There is no reason to not simply move ahead learning guitar, it is the quintessential solitary activity.
 
God's lonely asperger said:
I have an acoustic guitar since a bit before quarantine. I play it every once in a while, but I'm as experienced as that guy in a party that can only play Wonderwall.
I took a few classes, but those got ruined by the lockdowns, then I was busy with exams for quite a while, then I'm here making this thread.

Anyone have experience with learning this? Good methods? Good practice?
Thanks in advance.
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Having a nice guitar helps a lot (stays in tune, smooth action, sounds good, etc.). Takamine and Taylor make good guitars in the $500 to $1000 range (you get what you pay for). Good news is, a guitar of this quality will last you a lifetime, so it's a one time purchase.

It's also a tortoise and hare journey. If you play 30 minutes to an hour a day four or five days a week you're still looking at a good two years to actually get anywhere. Of course if you're young, physically gifted (good at sports), put in extra time (2 hours a day 7 days a week), or just have a knack for it you could get really good within a year.

Some of the best players have never had a lesson and some of the best players are also classically trained. Everyone's trajectory with the instrument is different. It depends on what your goals are? Do you want to write songs or do you just want to be able to jam with your friends on the front porch? Either way, it can't hurt to memorize every note on the fretboard and be able to identify the notes quickly by site. It also can't hurt to learn how a chord is constructed and what the most common chord progressions are (the 1/3/5 for example).

I would also watch Rick Beato's beginner lessons on JewTube and consider ordering his entire ear training and music theory catalog (he puts the $400 package on sale a couple times a year for $100).
 
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When you're starting out, there's a steep initial learning curve with left hand strength and coordination. You'll get some callouses and it will feel difficult. The good news is this phase doesn't last too long - maybe a month or two if you play every day. You have to push past it. Once you're on the other side, and can comfortably finger some basic chords, a whole world of music opens up to you. There are tons of songs you can play with basic open chords, and tons more once you learn a barre chord (which is a bit more difficult than an open chord, but still quite doable with a bit of practice).
 
This is just me but I really enjoyed nylon string classical guitar over steel string. The strumming acoustics aren't as nice but you have way more freedom with fingerpicking and playing melodically. Something to consider after you get the basics down perhaps since you said you already have a guitar.
 
Also, if you do ever decide to buy a really good guitar make sure you let a professional level guitar playing friend of yours make the final decision on what guitar to buy for you. This means you'll have to take him around to various guitar shops and have him play and try out different guitars (don't buy one online sight unseen). You can also get good deals locally on Craigslist or Facebook Marketplace. I often get $600 guitars for $200 to $300 dollars this way.

It takes longer to learn what a good guitar is than it does to actually learn to play a guitar good. Eventually, if you stick with it, you'll begin to be able to distinguish a good guitar from an "average" guitar. At this point you will insist on only playing the best guitar you can afford.
 
Iacobus said:
This is just me but I really enjoyed nylon string classical guitar over steel string. The strumming acoustics aren't as nice but you have way more freedom with fingerpicking and playing melodically. Something to consider after you get the basics down perhaps since you said you already have a guitar.
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Nylon strings are fine, but not so fine for beginners. They will not provide satisfactory audio feedback. Nylon strings are best for classical guitar. I would recommend metal strings, lighter, like .9 or .10 at most, put close to the fretboard for a soft grip (which is important for beginners). Then he should play around with the minor pentatonic scale to get familiar with the instrument. After that, open chords + major & minor diatonic scale. When this gets boring (a few weeks at most) he should get some tablature sheets (internet is full of them) and learn some songs or whatever.
 
At its core, all guitar really is, is touching a string or strings to a metal bar (the fret) to shorten or lengthen it and then moving the string or strings with the right hand to start it vibrating and create the sound. One thing beginners struggle with at the beginning is properly pressing the string down to touch the fret. They generally don't use the correct part of the fingertip and press way too hard. You really don't need to press down any harder than is necessary to touch the fret with the string.

A really good exercise is to pick a string and simply touch it with the fingertip of the index finger of the left hand and start striking it with the right hand so you hear a clicky sound. This is the sound of the string being muted, which means it is not vibrating properly. Then, slowly and gradually begin pressing down towards the fret and stop pressing when the clicky sound goes away and you hear the sound of the string. This means that the string is now properly touching the fret. You will probably be surprised at how little pressure you need to apply. The key is to go really slowly and stop the instant the sting begins to ring out properly. Try this with each finger on the left hand. It is a good way to warm up the small muscles of the fingers and hand.

All musical instruments are designed to easily produce sound if the proper technique is used. A good rule of thumb is, if you are straining or hurting yourself in any way, you are doing something wrong and should stop and reassess your approach until you find the correct way to do it.
 
I followed this guy's videos during lockdown (but I did actually have lessons when I was a teenager, so it was more 're-learning'). It's also something I need to get back into.



There's a load of free ones but his actual paid course is decent.
 
God's lonely asperger said:
I have an acoustic guitar since a bit before quarantine. I play it every once in a while, but I'm as experienced as that guy in a party that can only play Wonderwall.
I took a few classes, but those got ruined by the lockdowns, then I was busy with exams for quite a while, then I'm here making this thread.

Anyone have experience with learning this? Good methods? Good practice?
Thanks in advance.
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Honestly, the amount of resources available on the internet, especially youtube are absolutely wonderful, for all skill levels. I learned how to play guitar in the early nineties, mostly from Ramones albums, and magazines. I suggest starting with some old country tunes. They usually only require a few chords. And most importantly, have fun. All the best!
 
tikkasakko said:
I suggest starting with some old country tunes. They usually only require a few chords.
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So do pretty much all the Ramones albums. Lol! But seriously, they're great to learn from because they are also easy enough that once you learn how a power chord works, you can pretty much learn them by ear, which is great training and super important for moving forward. ("Gabba gabba we accept you we accept you one of us!")
 
Iacobus said:
This is just me but I really enjoyed nylon string classical guitar over steel string. The strumming acoustics aren't as nice but you have way more freedom with fingerpicking and playing melodically. Something to consider after you get the basics down perhaps since you said you already have a guitar.
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Maybe there are some decent metal strings, but I'm 100% nylon. I found them FAR easier to play as a beginner. My advice would be go to a big guitar store and try both. I work a stupid white collar gig where my hands are pretty weak and sheltered so maybe that's why, but I absolutely hate trying to play steel strings and nylon is soo easy.
 
Rax Moscow said:
Maybe there are some decent metal strings, but I'm 100% nylon. I found them FAR easier to play as a beginner. My advice would be go to a big guitar store and try both. I work a stupid white collar gig where my hands are pretty weak and sheltered so maybe that's why, but I absolutely hate trying to play steel strings and nylon is soo easy.
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For beginners a nylon strung guitar can be easier to play, especially those with big hands, in that the neck is wider and therefore holding a chord will be less fidgety. All this is assuming one is using a bottom draw guitar. Low cost steel string guitars can be brutal on the fingers, but most of us had to tough it out. I think it winnows out the uncommitted.
If you can afford it get a decent steel sting with a light action and that sounds good. Have a try of some of the entry level Yamaha acoustics, they make good value for money guitars.
 
I'd steer clear of songbooks, as they often contain inaccurate transcriptions and errors. However, the book "Guitar For Dummies" helped me learn to read tabs and play basic open chords.

I'd also highly recommend you buy a guitar tuner when starting out.

Justin Sandercoe's YouTube channel (called Justin Guitar) was also incredibly useful when I was starting out.

After a year or so, once you’ve grasped the basics, the most important skill you can develop IMO, is ear training. Justin Guitar has excellent lessons on this.

Being able to play songs by ear will free you from relying on unreliable internet tabs and chord books.

Best of luck!
 
When I learned the main thing was having something simple and enjoyable to keep the rewards going. Usually people stop learning something if they don't get enough of the buzz from achieving things and making progress.

Like a lot of angsty teens of my generation I was super into Nirvana when I was 16, and all of their stuff is easy to learn. So I had a constant source of material to keep hitting that achievement buzzer.

If you are really only just starting out, I'd pick something super simple like the intro to Redemption song by Bob Marley or the riff to Come As You Are by Nirvana. Its just single notes so its not going to break your mind or wrist with weird hand shapes right away, but its complex enough that you will have a challenge memorizing it and getting the speed right etc. And also start learning simple chords there are loads of G C and D songs out there. I'd just learn the chords as you learn the songs. Your wrist will hurt, and your fingers will ache but eventually you will get used to the shapes and changing between them, just try not to be too frustrated if you struggle with that to begin with.
 
Live lessons are the way to go. I progressed rather quickly by spending 1 hour each week in a private lesson. Also... playing with other people is very helpful. Look for jam sessions in your area. You can follow video instructions and tabs. But that feels like being a parrot. I'm a bass man, so my experience is not 100% guitar player.
 
Get a spanish guitar (they are much easier and softer on hands as a beginner). And an auto tuner (you cant play right without tuning the guitar). There are many apps.

Don´t stop playing when you miss a note. Continue. You catch it again when it comes back.

When you sleep your brain is still practicing. Don´t overtrain. Give time for brain to assimilate.

After pandemic I decided to learn flamenco by myself. I was enrolled in music school when I was young but skipped most classes. Still remember the basics though. It´s important to have at least a class for the teacher to correct your stance holding the guitar etc.

My mum played harp. True story.

This guy has some good videos. Flamenco is harder because both hands have to make specific gestures:



He also plays nice (not flamenco) spanish music songs like this:



I now play the cadence easily. biggest effort was right hand. Not left.



One really song easy to play is pearl jam last kiss. Just search for videos. Song is just an easy 4 simple chords. Without any fucked up chords. My wife enjoys it. Even though you cant pay much attention to the lyrics. Theyre pretty dark. Never realized how dark they were. I mumble most of them.





My oldest kid also have private guitar lessons to help him with the ladies in the future. And he had piano lessons at school. But the truth is. There´s not many guitar songs nowadays. It was strange to notice this.

In Reims in the champagne maison area there was a free piano in a playground. He played Alex Foley crazy frog intro Beverly cops 4. We enjoyed watching the movie. Lool. Money wasted.

Now Im going to learn french and brazil songs. Broke a string playing flamenco. Already bought replacement strings. But didn´t replace them yet.
 
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