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Guitar lessons? - Page 2

Blogs > Toolshed
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Prev 1 2 All
Never.Die
Profile Joined March 2010
Japan189 Posts
September 13 2010 18:58 GMT
#21
I've always wanted to learn to play a guitar, but I don't have one to play with, and I'm broke D:
tofucake
Profile Blog Joined October 2009
Hyrule19193 Posts
September 13 2010 19:01 GMT
#22
What? That's exactly how I learned. I didn't have anyone holding my hand telling me "no, no move your left hand just a little bit this way" or whatever. I picked up a guitar, decided I wanted to play, and looked up the scales. Then I played them. They sounded like shit at first, but I kept playing. I figured out how to hold the guitar, pick, and my fretting hand placements on my own to get the sound out properly, and I'm the better for it.
Liquipediaasante sana squash banana
ella_guru
Profile Blog Joined August 2009
Canada1741 Posts
September 13 2010 19:04 GMT
#23
On September 14 2010 04:01 tofucake wrote:
What? That's exactly how I learned. I didn't have anyone holding my hand telling me "no, no move your left hand just a little bit this way" or whatever. I picked up a guitar, decided I wanted to play, and looked up the scales. Then I played them. They sounded like shit at first, but I kept playing. I figured out how to hold the guitar, pick, and my fretting hand placements on my own to get the sound out properly, and I'm the better for it.


I think that people finding their own way out is really the best, but I think enlightening them to core principles of the instrument gives them a chance to at least accept or refuse them instead of just going on without knowing them.

People have different goals, and not knowing his, I'd give him the most straightforward and general ideas of guitar playing so he at least has something to refer to and strive towards.
Each day gets better : )
tofucake
Profile Blog Joined October 2009
Hyrule19193 Posts
September 13 2010 19:04 GMT
#24
On September 14 2010 03:58 Never.Die wrote:
I've always wanted to learn to play a guitar, but I don't have one to play with, and I'm broke D:

http://www.amazon.co.jp/SX-Mentor-NA-Acoustic-Guitar/dp/B000V2ULWO/ref=sr_1_3?ie=UTF8&s=musical-instruments&qid=1284404594&sr=8-3

Get a cheap one
Liquipediaasante sana squash banana
tofucake
Profile Blog Joined October 2009
Hyrule19193 Posts
September 13 2010 19:06 GMT
#25
On September 14 2010 04:04 ella_guru wrote:
Show nested quote +
On September 14 2010 04:01 tofucake wrote:
What? That's exactly how I learned. I didn't have anyone holding my hand telling me "no, no move your left hand just a little bit this way" or whatever. I picked up a guitar, decided I wanted to play, and looked up the scales. Then I played them. They sounded like shit at first, but I kept playing. I figured out how to hold the guitar, pick, and my fretting hand placements on my own to get the sound out properly, and I'm the better for it.


I think that people finding their own way out is really the best, but I think enlightening them to core principles of the instrument gives them a chance to at least accept or refuse them instead of just going on without knowing them.

People have different goals, and not knowing his, I'd give him the most straightforward and general ideas of guitar playing so he at least has something to refer to and strive towards.
I'm not going to give him tips that are really hard to convey in text form. That's just counter-productive. The way you hold a guitar is so complex it's mind boggling. It's best to get some basics down and adjust later.
Liquipediaasante sana squash banana
ella_guru
Profile Blog Joined August 2009
Canada1741 Posts
September 13 2010 19:09 GMT
#26

It's best to get some basics down and adjust later.


It's what I think too, but I think offering some direction can help loads.

To each his own I guess. Are you a very good player or teacher?
Each day gets better : )
Terranist
Profile Blog Joined March 2009
United States2496 Posts
September 13 2010 19:12 GMT
#27
you can try learning scales if you want, but it'll be tremendously difficult at a truly beginner level and won't really benefit you much yet. start like the rest of us by using ultimageguitar, justinguitar, or youtube to learn a few chords every day and practicing them until you have a fair amount memorized.
The Show of a Lifetime
gds
Profile Blog Joined February 2007
Iceland1391 Posts
September 13 2010 19:14 GMT
#28
My advice would be to buy Guitar hero (any version is ok) and pratice on the plastic guitar first. Then once you're able to play the hardest songs decently you can switch to real guitars easily even if they sound worse imo.
tofucake
Profile Blog Joined October 2009
Hyrule19193 Posts
September 13 2010 19:16 GMT
#29
On September 14 2010 04:09 ella_guru wrote:
Show nested quote +

It's best to get some basics down and adjust later.


It's what I think too, but I think offering some direction can help loads.

To each his own I guess. Are you a very good player or teacher?

I'm...adept. I'm a natural teacher-y person though. I can play just about any song, but solos still really mess me up still. I'm also out of practice, which probably doesn't help anybody.
Liquipediaasante sana squash banana
tofucake
Profile Blog Joined October 2009
Hyrule19193 Posts
September 13 2010 19:17 GMT
#30
On September 14 2010 04:14 gds wrote:
My advice would be to buy Guitar hero (any version is ok) and pratice on the plastic guitar first. Then once you're able to play the hardest songs decently you can switch to real guitars easily even if they sound worse imo.

That's dumb. Guitar Hero is dumb. You're dumb.

Don't listen to that dumb suggestion.
Liquipediaasante sana squash banana
ella_guru
Profile Blog Joined August 2009
Canada1741 Posts
September 13 2010 19:22 GMT
#31
On September 14 2010 04:17 tofucake wrote:
Show nested quote +
On September 14 2010 04:14 gds wrote:
My advice would be to buy Guitar hero (any version is ok) and pratice on the plastic guitar first. Then once you're able to play the hardest songs decently you can switch to real guitars easily even if they sound worse imo.

That's dumb. Guitar Hero is dumb. You're dumb.

Don't listen to that dumb suggestion.


Well we can agree on that. : )

Obvious troll is obvious type of thing.
Each day gets better : )
ZERG_RUSSIAN
Profile Blog Joined November 2008
10417 Posts
September 13 2010 22:50 GMT
#32
When I was 10 I started playing guitar by looking up the chords to my favorite songs online. I suggest you do the same. Don't worry about scales and all that for now, you'll be much happier if you just learn the chords to a song and practice the hell out of it because the strumming pattern and rhythm is way more important than being able to play a minor pentatonic at your stage. Fuck scales until you get to the point where you're like "okay now I want to be able to improvise a solo" because they'll seriously discourage you and they're not useful for a beginner. Learn all of your natural chords and learn your major/minor barre chords on the E and A strings. Practice the hell out of them by playing songs you like. I suggest stuff like "When I come around" by Green Day or almost anything by Jack Johnson or something similar with 4-6 simple barre chords.

Take it slow, you've got the rest of your life to tweak out on a guitar so just have fun with it .
I'm on GOLD CHAIN
qoiN
Profile Joined March 2010
Sweden576 Posts
September 13 2010 23:28 GMT
#33
If you're into metal and stuff you could play some metallica songs, they aren't really hard (cept some solos) that's what I did when I started. I just wanted to play metallica and practiced Seek & Destroy for like 2 weeks or so and suddenly I could play most of it.

Though, I still know pretty much no theory at all. Bruteforcing your way through sucks in the long run. But if you just want to learn to play a few songs the easiest way is probably just to practice them mindlessly.
tofucake
Profile Blog Joined October 2009
Hyrule19193 Posts
September 14 2010 00:18 GMT
#34
Oh yeah, as for theory some things to note are a complete lack of B#/Cb and E#/Fb (hence the gap between open/3rd and 9/12). Uhh.....? That's probably the most obvious one that has much impact on a newbie.
Liquipediaasante sana squash banana
Tal
Profile Blog Joined May 2004
United Kingdom1017 Posts
September 14 2010 00:55 GMT
#35
A few guitar lessons early on will help you get into good habits - particularly in how to hold the instrument etc.

What you should do after that really depends on what you are aiming for. I think learning basic chords and strumming/picking is the fastest route to being able to make decent music. Learning scales is eventually helpful, but it is quite a long road till you can play anything anyone would want to hear, whereas with a few chords you can get a sing along going, or at least sound ok.

So basically what the wise Zerg_Russian said, except don't play Jack Johnson
It is what you read when you don't have to that determines what you will be when you can't help it.
ZavikZyke
Profile Blog Joined January 2010
United States382 Posts
September 14 2010 04:51 GMT
#36
I've never had a teacher before, and I'm going to assume you won't either in this post.
My advice for you is to learn terminology and some open chords first. Get some basic chords down. Learn what scales, barres, etc Once you've done with that, go on to barre chords/power chords depending on your music preference. Don't focus on lead guitar/showing off too much since it's better to get the fundamentals down first. Once you've gotten good enough, try to work out a personal schedule.

My routine is
1) Warm-ups (5-10 Minutes)
- Just do some finger exercises. Anything to get your fingers loose. Think of it like the first 2 min of a sc game

2) Triads/Scales (10-15 Minutes)
- I highly recommend this step. Trust me. Scales are essential later on in advanced guitar.Highly tedious, yet rewarding.

3) Technique (10-20)
- Sweep picking? Shredding? All here

4) Jam (Varies)
-Play any favorite songs or what you want. Fun stuff :D

Some basic songs for you to learn
Oasis by Wonderwall
An excellent video tutorial

Time of your Life (Good Riddance) by Greenday
Tabs No video sorry.

Anyways, just have FUN. That's the most important. Hope I could be some hope.

Hoejja is Bonjwa
Toolshed
Profile Blog Joined July 2009
337 Posts
Last Edited: 2010-09-14 09:22:46
September 14 2010 09:17 GMT
#37
Woosh, thanks for the input guys. I even received a PM from a guitar teacher who offerd me a lesson via skype and webcam. TL never disappoints

I found Justinguitar.com to be the most appealing website so far and I try to do the beginners course.

I've got a few questions though:

a) My fingers hurt so much. Woah, I may sound like an idiot but I get grooves and it's basicly impossible to play any longer than like 10 minutes. I can't even imagine how you can play a guitar for more than 30 minutes. Is this because the guitar has not been used for 2 years or is this because the strings are too thick (are there even thin strings?) or is it just because I'm not used to it?

b) Chords: Okay, following the guide mentioned before I have to learn D, E an A Chord. What I don't get is why it is so important that my fingers are placed exactly like described in the chord charts. What happens if it's easier for me to place my fingers slightly different? Is there really only one way to play a chord correctly? Will this be an issue later because you have to jump between chords?

c) Do you guys know a song that can be played by using only these 3 Chords (D, E and A)?


In case you don't already know:



This kid is so insane. What does he have on his right thumb?
mykyoyo
Profile Joined July 2009
United States33 Posts
Last Edited: 2010-09-14 09:55:50
September 14 2010 09:48 GMT
#38
On September 14 2010 18:17 Toolshed wrote:
a) My fingers hurt so much. Woah, I may sound like an idiot but I get grooves and it's basicly impossible to play any longer than like 10 minutes. I can't even imagine how you can play a guitar for more than 30 minutes. Is this because the guitar has not been used for 2 years or is this because the strings are too thick (are there even thin strings?) or is it just because I'm not used to it?

b) Chords: Okay, following the guide mentioned before I have to learn D, E an A Chord. What I don't get is why it is so important that my fingers are placed exactly like described in the chord charts. What happens if it's easier for me to place my fingers slightly different? Is there really only one way to play a chord correctly? Will this be an issue later because you have to jump between chords?

c) Do you guys know a song that can be played by using only these 3 Chords (D, E and A)?


A: You're not used to pressing down tensioned strings with your fingertips. After playing enough, you will develop calluses and you'll also just get used to doing it, using your fingers to press down just enough and not more and so on...

B: Play chords however is easiest for you. Learn the chords and then practice changing between them smoothly.
It makes really good practice just to switch between the chords you know, playing each one as clear as you can and then moving on to the next.

C: I'd look up some of your favorite songs and the chords that go with them.


Video: A lot of young guitar players like that are popular for a while and then drop off of the map, never to be seen again. I haven't found too many that do much more than rehash some Van Halen on YouTube.
He's got a thumb pick. They're handy if you can't be bothered to grow your thumb nail out long enough to play the guitar.
tofucake
Profile Blog Joined October 2009
Hyrule19193 Posts
Last Edited: 2010-09-14 12:18:17
September 14 2010 12:17 GMT
#39
On September 14 2010 18:17 Toolshed wrote:
Woosh, thanks for the input guys. I even received a PM from a guitar teacher who offerd me a lesson via skype and webcam. TL never disappoints

I found Justinguitar.com to be the most appealing website so far and I try to do the beginners course.

I've got a few questions though:

a) My fingers hurt so much. Woah, I may sound like an idiot but I get grooves and it's basicly impossible to play any longer than like 10 minutes. I can't even imagine how you can play a guitar for more than 30 minutes. Is this because the guitar has not been used for 2 years or is this because the strings are too thick (are there even thin strings?) or is it just because I'm not used to it?

b) Chords: Okay, following the guide mentioned before I have to learn D, E an A Chord. What I don't get is why it is so important that my fingers are placed exactly like described in the chord charts. What happens if it's easier for me to place my fingers slightly different? Is there really only one way to play a chord correctly? Will this be an issue later because you have to jump between chords?

c) Do you guys know a song that can be played by using only these 3 Chords (D, E and A)?


In case you don't already know:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CgVqX0a49HM&feature=channel

This kid is so insane. What does he have on his right thumb?

A) Calluses (as said above)
B) Wonderwall by Oasis only uses a few chords, but I don't remember which off the top of my head. Anyway, the recommended finger positions is the easiest way to quickly switch between chords. Also, they are sort of important later for bar chords, as your index finger will be barring multiple strings.
C) Finger picks. They are most common among banjo players, but definitely not unseen in other types of guitaring (eh?). Using them is tricky, as you'll be independently picking with multiple fingers.



Sungha Jung is what some people would call "a fucking baller little kid". He's amazing.

[edit]
Something I can never do...
Liquipediaasante sana squash banana
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