When starting to learn guitar the question is often raised whether you should start on electric guitar or on acoustic guitar. For some, this will be a simple choice as they will be drawn to one or the other based on the musical genre they are attracted to playing.

But the question still stands about which is the better to learn on? Which provides a foundation in technique that will form a basis for improving guitar skills? If you are going to teach yourself guitar then which guitar type does not hide your faults?

There are pros and cons to each at different stages of a guitarist learning so any evaluation needs to take into account the short term and long term benefits of each. I started on acoustic guitar. My brother started on electric. Over the years I have mentored other guitarists who brought along to sessions whatever guitar they had to hand. What I noticed, is that you can almost tell from a guitarist’s technique whether they started on electric or acoustic, just by watching them play.

So here are the pros and cons we saw of each approach.

Starting On Electric Guitar

Pros

* The narrower gauge strings and guitar neck make it easier to play.

* Amplification makes it easier to develop a subtlety of playing as it permits various nuances in your play (e.g. vibrato).

* Practicing using earphones is possible (neighbors will appreciate this).

Cons

* Don’t build up muscle strength in the fingers.

* Using effects hides faults (string buzz, poor left hand placement).

* Strong tendency for incorrect placement of the left thumb on the guitar neck.

Learning On Acoustic Guitar

Pros

* Lower cost starting option.

* An amp is not required, which allows you to play and practice anywhere.

* Finger muscle strength builds up from day one.

Cons

* Strong temptation to strum through all songs. Beginners should take the time to learn subtle finger picking styles.

* Guitar solos can get ‘lost in the mix’ if playing in a group which may put off some beginners.

* Using earphones with an acoustic guitar is not an option.

Guitarists who start out on electric build up speed of playing solos and chord changes which is admirable, but it is often at the cost of proper playing technique. Playing the electric guitar hides faults such as incorrect placement of the thumb and not holding down strings solidly. This results in strings buzzing or being muted during play.

In comparison, the acoustic guitarist builds up the finger strength, learns better hand placement on the frets and fosters clear sounding play.

That said, if you can handle the bill for buying both electric and acoustic guitars then you could split out the beginners training on both instruments and they will benefit from both approaches.

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Learning to play guitar by ear is a skill all guitar players can accomplish. There is no art to being able to play by ear. All it takes is some practice to coach your capacity to differentiate the scales and chords that are being played in a tune.

This article has some ways for training your ear that I have used over the last 25 years of playing and learning guitar.

At beginner level, you want to start out by being able to differentiate between major and minor chords. A simple drill for starting with this is to record yourself playing a progression of major chords (A up to G). Next, record variations of the chord progression, but replacing a major chord with a single minor chord. Once you play back the variations you should be able to say to yourself whether each chord is major or minor as you hear it.

You can refine this by listening to songs on the radio or advertisement jingles on TV and picking out the major or minor chords. You can check if you are correct by playing your guitar along with the tune. Start by just playing the bass note (E string) to find the root note then try playing the major and minor chords and decide which sounds better to your ears. For example, the root note could be ‘g’ so play a G-major followed by a G-minor along with the tune and see which fits better. This is not perfect as complex tunes could have bass to chord variation (for example a ‘g’ bass note played with a C major chord).

Once you’ve mastered this you should focus on learning chord sequences/progressions. This is a fun part as you just listen to songs and aim to figure out the chords being played. Most pop/country/rock tunes have simple chord sequences so this can be quite easy to do. Start off with a simple song and break it down into its sections - verses, chorus and bridge. Take each section and try to understand the chords used. You may realise, for example, that verses use 2 or 4 chords for each line of the song or that the chorus repeats 4 chords. Start trying to work out which chords are being played. Play along with the tune to find the chords. You want to build up a mind map of the chords. You can start by writing these out, but ultimately, move to remembering the chords and their sequence.

After some practice playing along with a variety of songs, you will have memorized a number of sequences and will start to see that most songs follow some fairly standard structures or templates in how they combine verse/chorus/bridge and also in how they group chords (major and minor).

Playing by ear is a skill that you can never stop learning. You can always find a songwriter new to you or a type of music that you can try to analyse the chord progression and chord types. With time you learn to pick out of complex chords (diminished chords, sevenths, etc.) to a level where you can play along with most songs after a one listen.

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The first thing I will say to you is this: Unless you are practicing to be a professional, don’t pick up the guitar unless you actually want to. The most valuable part of a practice session is that you actually enjoy it. If you want to be in a band, or want to play on the jam circuit, then I would recommend picking up your guitar once a day and spending at least an hour with it.

First of all, there are some smaller sites online today through which you might be able to find some individualized attention when it comes to learning the basics of the guitar, including finger picking. In some instances, you can access the guitar lesson opportunities that are available at this smaller venues for a most reasonable fee. Through these sites you many times can garner some one on one attention from an instructor that has an established track record with playing guitar.

Third, there are websites in operation online that really are guitar communities. Through these types of websites, you can learn different guitar playing techniques from peers and from other people who have some more experience than you might have when it comes to guitar playing. Through these types of community website venues you can learn a wide range of things, including techniques that are very important to a person who wants to advance with guitar playing like finger picking.

However, I love my guitar, and nothing could ever separate me from it. My guitar is my best friend, and thats how you should treat yours. Look after it, clean it daily, change the strings regularly, even if they still sound ok to you.

With these you can learn picking patterns that you can apply to any songs you learn. You will also be able to pick up tabs for bluegrass fiddle tunes you can learn to play on the guitar. Try any bluegrass forums you find, as well as tab archives.

In this regard, if you are interested in learning or mastering finger picking techniques, there are some different options that you will want to explore on the Net today. If you are interested in learning guitar and have never participated in guitar lessons, you really might like to turn your attention to finger picking. On some level it is a great way for you to be introduced to guitar.

For flatpicking solos you will have a much greater control over your playing by getting used to using a heavier weight pick. The main advantage to flatpicking over fingerpicking is tone. A steel string acoustic guitar sounds much nicer using a flatpick compared to fingerpicks, and using nails is totally out of the question.

Don’t turn your guitar practice time into extended guitar solos. If you have a track of say, six minutes at your disposal, use it to practice licks and short solo breaks, the age of the twenty minute solo is long gone. Also, make use of your backing tracks to improve the basic aspects of your guitar playing like your timing.

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Lately I have been getting this question from students a lot especially on their first acoustic guitar lesson. “How long should I practice?”

The answer to that is very objective and it all boils down to the following question. Are you learning guitar for fun or to master it? Guitar is the easiest instrument to learn and the most difficult to master or so they say.

So if you want to master the guitar then you would need 10000 hours at least and you can stop reading this column now and go back to your practice.

However if you’re just into guitar for recreation and you’re just about to start playing then you would need 48 hours. 48 hours? Yes that’s it. Let me explain. If you can practice 30 minutes a day for 6 days a week then after 4 months you would have practiced about 48 hours. Not just 48 hours of aimless jamming around but 48 hours of dedicated and focused practicing. Once you have kept that going for the 16 weeks you would arrive at base camp No.1.

You’ll be able to play a load of easy guitar songs, learned loads of chords and rhythms along with some essential theory and a bunch of other good stuff.

The frequency with which you practice guitar is way more important than the time you spend in one practice session. It’s better to keep the 30 minutes a day going as opposed to practicing 2 hours one day a week which is a sure recipe failure. We learn guitar through muscle memory and the only way to get that going is through repetition. That’s why it’s way better to practice regularly in short chunks of time as opposed to long sessions every now and then.

It’s really that simple!

Josh has developed, over the last two decades, a practice routine for his students that really works and the results are outstanding. Check it out for your self Acoustic Guitar Lesson. Learn these Easy Guitar Songs Free Videos.

In this acoustic guitar lesson we are going to look a little closer at how you should organize your practice routine.

Knowing how to break up your practice session is essential if you want to learn guitar fast and see proper results. Playing around aimlessly has never gotten anybody anywhere and you really need to have some focus and discipline if you want to grow as a guitar player.The definition of insanity is doing the same thing over and over expecting different results. So my point is this: “If you want to grow as a guitar player then you need to have a dedicated practice schedule and it should be divided between different subjects.

This is just a suggestion and you need to find what works best for you.

1. Chords will be you first focus and you’ll spend 5 minutes learning and practicing 2 or 3 chords until you have the down and can change between them effortlessly.

2. Spend 5 minutes working on rhythm playing. Once again start with 1 or 2 rhythms and get them as tight as possible. Use a metronome all the time.

3. Songs are a great way to solidify the chords and rhythms you’ve been practicing and you’ll also get a taste of your new skills in action.

4. Scales and Chromatic exercises are extremely help to facilitate your left and right hand coordination. Remember to slow down the parts and master the movements.

5. The next 3 minutes is devoted to ear training. Developing your aural skills is super important and it could start as simple as telling the difference between Major and Minor chords.

6. The last few minutes has been reserved for you to play anything you like. Make sure it’s something you enjoy and never put the guitar down in a frustrated state.

That’s it for this acoustic guitar lesson! You’re done and ready to do it all again tomorrow. Just remember that Rome wasn’t built in one day and rest assured that if you keep practicing you will become a truly fantastic guitarist.

In the last two decades Josh has taught many of students how to play the guitar. He has developed a guitar course that really works check it out for acoustic guitar lesson. He has also a series of easy guitar songs tutorials to make you learn in no time at all.

If you are just beginning acoustic guitar, then you have taken the first step towards a very rewarding and interesting hobby. I have been playing acoustic guitar for nearly 20 years, and I can honestly tell you, looking back, I have never regretted the hours of sweat and toil I have put into it. “Sweat and toil?”, you ask. Well yes, I’m afraid so.

All the great guitarist have struggled at some point in learning to play the guitar. As far as guitar lessons for beginners there are different ways to go, such as a private instructor, signing up for classes at your local community center, self-teaching method with books and online lessons which I recommend because they’re cheaper and flexible to a persons schedule. Whichever way you choose be sure to keep in mind there are no “play guitar like a pro in one hour” course. It takes lots of practice and dedication to become a good guitarist.

The first thing I will say to you is this: Unless you are practicing to be a professional, don’t pick up the guitar unless you actually want to. The most valuable part of a practice session is that you actually enjoy it. If you want to be in a band, or want to play on the jam circuit, then I would recommend picking up your guitar once a day and spending at least an hour with it.

Flatpicking has become quite common in bluegrass music but that does not mean that playing bluegrass guitar has become easier. It just means you have to work as hard on your flatpicking technique as you would have had to work on your fingerpicking in the early days. A great flatpicker does not need the extra notes provided by fingerpicking to sustain interest.

Now to get onto more technical stuff, let us look at what a flatpick is and how to use it. A flatpick is made of tortoiseshell, plastic or nylon. If you want to learn to be a flatpicking guitar soloist, you will need to learn to use a thick pick. If you are like most guitar players you will be using a light to medium weight pick.

Through this overview you will be able to closely consider whether learning the funk-skunk technique might be a good course for you to pursue when it comes to learning guitar. Before you are provided with some direction on where you might be able to access funk-skunk lessons, you really should have at least a bit of a basic understanding of what this technique is all about. In this regard, the reality is that people who are proficient in playing guitar generally agree that they really do not know how the term funk-skunk itself developed.

When you are choosing your repertoire, you can spread your net wide. No need to stick to the Top Forty, go for the Top One Hundred of whatever decade you feel comfortable with. An easy way out that does not need too much research is to just jot down a bunch of Beatles titles.

Lots of people can play guitar but what music do you play on your guitar when somebody says, “go on, play something”? Do you play a song, an instrumental, a simple classical piece? Songs are probably best as a general rule because even if you can’t sing, somebody in the crowd will be able to help you out. Just in case you get the party started with your guitar, a repertoire of around twenty songs probably should get you into, and out of trouble.

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Every person who plays the guitar knows what it is like to have coordination problems between the left and right hands. Anytime something like this goes wrong, you need to be sure to place blame in the right place.

Often times, one hand is inferior to the other in terms of strength, endurance, and flexibility. In order to determine which hand falls short, it is important to slow down so that an accurate assessment can be made.

One element for beginning guitar players to consider is that it may be hard to make marked improvement if the wrist is weak or there are coordination problems with the left hand fingers, as these are typically the most common hurdles.

Perhaps you have been wishing there was a quick way to tone up your left hand and work on the coordination of your fingers. Today is your lucky day, there is indeed some quick and easy things you can do to achieve this goal. Read on for great tips.

- Guitar Lessons For Beginners - 5 steps to strengthening your left hand fingers.

Step 1 - Assume a starting position of your first finger behind the first fret on the the first string and your third finger behind the third fret on the second string. It is important to make sure both fingers come down on the strings at the exact same time. Next swap your fingers so that your first finger is on the second string behind the first fret and your third finger is behind the third fret on the first string.

Second step, put your 1st finger behind the 1st fret, 1st string and 3rd finger behind the 3rd fret, 3rd string. Now you must flick your fingers so your 1st finger is positioned on the 3rd string, 1st fret and your 3rd finger is found behind the 3rd fret, 1st string.

Step 3 - Back to finger one, fret one, string one. Finger three, fret three, string four. Then, you guessed it; switch! Finger one, fret one, string four and finger three, fret three, string one.

Step 4 -For this step place your left hand so your first finger is behind the first fret on the first string and your third finger is behind the third fret on the fifth string. Then, as before, swap your fingers so your first finger is behind the first fret on the fifth string and your third finger is behind the third fret on the first string.

Step 5 - Final stretch! Finger one, fret one, string one and finger three, fret three, string six. Last switch. Finger one, fret one, string six. Finger three, fret three, string one.

For best results, go very s-l-o-w-l-y using your right hand fingers, not a pick, and concentrate on coordinating both hands.

You should partake in these exercises regularly, a few times a week and you shall soon see some improvements in your strength and control.

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If you are just beginning acoustic guitar, then you have taken the first step towards a very rewarding and interesting hobby. I have been playing acoustic guitar for nearly 20 years, and I can honestly tell you, looking back, I have never regretted the hours of sweat and toil I have put into it. “Sweat and toil?”, you ask. Well yes, I’m afraid so.

If you are going to invest in one on one lessons in the real world you are going to want to make sure that you set aside to practice on a regular basis. You are investing money in the lessons. Therefore, you are going to want to make sure that you follow up these lessons with solid practice. As part of your practice sessions, you will want to utilize finger picking techniques.

Once you have got an idea of the guitar players you should be listening to and watching, you will be able to go looking for bluegrass guitar tabs. With these you can learn picking patterns that you can apply to any songs you learn. You will also be able to pick up tabs for bluegrass fiddle tunes you can learn to play on the guitar, try any bluegrass forums you find, as well as tab archives.

Chances are though, you already have a guitar. It’s the weapon of choice of the heart broken isn’t it? You probably GOT a guitar because you were sad about something. Nothing like a six string box to pour your heart through. Something about the twang of the strings just tells you, yeah, I feel your pain.

Now to get onto more technical stuff, let us look at what a flatpick is and how to use it. A flatpick is made of tortoiseshell, plastic or nylon. If you want to learn to be a flatpicking guitar soloist, you will need to learn to use a thick pick. If you are like most guitar players you will be using a light to medium weight pick.

Through this overview you will be able to closely consider whether learning the funk-skunk technique might be a good course for you to pursue when it comes to learning guitar. Before you are provided with some direction on where you might be able to access funk-skunk lessons, you really should have at least a bit of a basic understanding of what this technique is all about. In this regard, the reality is that people who are proficient in playing guitar generally agree that they really do not know how the term funk-skunk itself developed.

When you are choosing your repertoire, you can spread your net wide. No need to stick to the Top Forty, go for the Top One Hundred of whatever decade you feel comfortable with. An easy way out that does not need too much research is to just jot down a bunch of Beatles titles.

Using backing tracks you will be always playing in time and you will find that you are looking forward to your guitar practice because you enjoy playing with a band in your bedroom. When you have obtained some backing tracks to help you with your guitar practice, start using them right away. And if you find after a week or so that you are beginning to practice without using your backing tracks, make an effort to go back to using them.

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If you are just beginning guitar, then you have taken the first step towards a very rewarding and interesting hobby. I have been playing acoustic guitar for nearly 20 years, and I can honestly tell you, looking back, I have never regretted the hours of sweat and toil I have put into it. “Sweat and toil?”, you ask. Well yes, I’m afraid so.

Before you get a teacher, remember that you are going to give this person your time and more importantly, your money. So make sure the teacher is a good one before you invest. Go online, see if you can find any write-ups on them, check the papers, ask around, talk to friends. But make sure the teacher is a good one and has a good reputation. Your teacher should be patient, understanding and above all else, professional!

Don’t get frustrated at this point. Take a deep breath and take comfort in that you have made the first step in learning how to practice the guitar seriously. What is that first step? The first step is to…

Don’t turn your guitar practice time into extended guitar solos. If you have a track of say, six minutes at your disposal, use it to practice licks and short solo breaks, the age of the twenty minute solo is long gone. Also, make use of your backing tracks to improve the basic aspects of your guitar playing like your timing.

These tips should help you get started, and if you’re serious about taking some guitar lessons for beginners don’t waste another second and check out this review for an award winning guitar course that I recommend. Another characteristic of Metal guitar is the use of drop tunings. If you play Metal your guitar should be tuned low. It gives you a totally different kind of control over your strings, your sound is more aggressive and you can do more with hammer-ons and tapping.

A growing trend at this juncture in time involves the number of men, women and young people who are taking guitar lessons on line. When all is said and done, the opportunities that are available to a person today when it comes to guitar lessons online really abound. This includes such guitar basics of finger picking.

These communities bring together a wide array of different types of guitar players, including people with different experience and ability levels. These environments often prove great grounds through which novices can learn more about guitar playing and more advanced players can improve their skills by assisting others. These sites can prove to be win-win venues all around.

To wrap up I would just like to say thanks for reading, and I hope this article helped you understand what it takes to get there. Hard work, patience, and most importantly, a teacher. It’s all very well learning from the internet, but the internet can’t stop you and say “Hey, that’s great, but you might want to look at changing the way you do A, B or C…”, neither can it tell you when you are doing something exceptionally well.

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If you are just beginning acoustic guitar, then you have taken the first step towards a very rewarding and interesting hobby. I have been playing acoustic guitar for nearly 20 years, and I can honestly tell you, looking back, I have never regretted the hours of sweat and toil I have put into it. “Sweat and toil?”, you ask. Well yes, I’m afraid so.

If you are going to invest in one on one lessons in the real world you are going to want to make sure that you set aside to practice on a regular basis. You are investing money in the lessons. Therefore, you are going to want to make sure that you follow up these lessons with solid practice. As part of your practice sessions, you will want to utilize finger picking techniques.

Once you have got an idea of the guitar players you should be listening to and watching, you will be able to go looking for bluegrass guitar tabs. With these you can learn picking patterns that you can apply to any songs you learn. You will also be able to pick up tabs for bluegrass fiddle tunes you can learn to play on the guitar, try any bluegrass forums you find, as well as tab archives.

Chances are though, you already have a guitar. It’s the weapon of choice of the heart broken isn’t it? You probably GOT a guitar because you were sad about something. Nothing like a six string box to pour your heart through. Something about the twang of the strings just tells you, yeah, I feel your pain.

In this regard, these interactive sites can be well suited to novices and more experienced players alike. Once again, as with other types of sites online, you can learn techniques like the funk-skunk on interactive sites that are running online today. Finally, there are online guitar playing communities through which people like you can learn a vast array of guitar techniques including such things as funk-skunk.

You could just begin by tuning your guitar half a step down. Not a drastic change but it makes your guitar sound more growly without losing all the high range. Or you could take your strings down a whole step so that your guitar is tuned D G C F A D.

The thing you need to do if you are thinking about learning flatpicking is to widen your knowledge of the genre by listening to a range of guitar players. Jesse McReynolds, Clarence White and Tony Rice are a few flatpicker guitarists to look out for but I am sure you will find many more as you explore this wonderful musical genre yourself.

For flatpicking solos you will have a much greater control over your playing by getting used to using a heavier weight pick. The main advantage to flatpicking over fingerpicking is tone. A steel string acoustic guitar sounds much nicer using a flatpick compared to fingerpicks, and using nails is totally out of the question.

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