• Log InLog In
  • Register
Liquid`
Team Liquid Liquipedia
EDT 02:26
CEST 08:26
KST 15:26
  • Home
  • Forum
  • Calendar
  • Streams
  • Liquipedia
  • Features
  • Store
  • EPT
  • TL+
  • StarCraft 2
  • Brood War
  • Smash
  • Heroes
  • Counter-Strike
  • Overwatch
  • Liquibet
  • Fantasy StarCraft
  • TLPD
  • StarCraft 2
  • Brood War
  • Blogs
Forum Sidebar
Events/Features
News
Featured News
Team TLMC #5 - Finalists & Open Tournaments0[ASL20] Ro16 Preview Pt2: Turbulence10Classic Games #3: Rogue vs Serral at BlizzCon9[ASL20] Ro16 Preview Pt1: Ascent10Maestros of the Game: Week 1/Play-in Preview12
Community News
StarCraft II 5.0.15 PTR Patch Notes75BSL 2025 Warsaw LAN + Legends Showmatch2Weekly Cups (Sept 8-14): herO & MaxPax split cups4WardiTV TL Team Map Contest #5 Tournaments1SC4ALL $6,000 Open LAN in Philadelphia8
StarCraft 2
General
StarCraft II 5.0.15 PTR Patch Notes #1: Maru - Greatest Players of All Time Weekly Cups (Sept 8-14): herO & MaxPax split cups Team Liquid Map Contest #21 - Presented by Monster Energy SpeCial on The Tasteless Podcast
Tourneys
SC2's Safe House 2 - October 18 & 19 RSL: Revival, a new crowdfunded tournament series Maestros of The Game—$20k event w/ live finals in Paris Sparkling Tuna Cup - Weekly Open Tournament SC4ALL $6,000 Open LAN in Philadelphia
Strategy
Custom Maps
External Content
Mutation # 491 Night Drive Mutation # 490 Masters of Midnight Mutation # 489 Bannable Offense Mutation # 488 What Goes Around
Brood War
General
ASL TICKET LIVE help! :D Soulkey on ASL S20 ASL20 General Discussion BW General Discussion NaDa's Body
Tourneys
BSL 2025 Warsaw LAN + Legends Showmatch [ASL20] Ro16 Group D [ASL20] Ro16 Group C Small VOD Thread 2.0
Strategy
Simple Questions, Simple Answers Muta micro map competition Fighting Spirit mining rates [G] Mineral Boosting
Other Games
General Games
Stormgate/Frost Giant Megathread Borderlands 3 Path of Exile Nintendo Switch Thread General RTS Discussion Thread
Dota 2
Official 'what is Dota anymore' discussion LiquidDota to reintegrate into TL.net
League of Legends
Heroes of the Storm
Simple Questions, Simple Answers Heroes of the Storm 2.0
Hearthstone
Heroes of StarCraft mini-set
TL Mafia
TL Mafia Community Thread
Community
General
US Politics Mega-thread UK Politics Mega-thread Things Aren’t Peaceful in Palestine Russo-Ukrainian War Thread Canadian Politics Mega-thread
Fan Clubs
The Happy Fan Club!
Media & Entertainment
Movie Discussion! [Manga] One Piece Anime Discussion Thread
Sports
2024 - 2026 Football Thread Formula 1 Discussion MLB/Baseball 2023
World Cup 2022
Tech Support
Linksys AE2500 USB WIFI keeps disconnecting Computer Build, Upgrade & Buying Resource Thread High temperatures on bridge(s)
TL Community
BarCraft in Tokyo Japan for ASL Season5 Final The Automated Ban List
Blogs
Too Many LANs? Tournament Ov…
TrAiDoS
i'm really bored guys
Peanutsc
I <=> 9
KrillinFromwales
A very expensive lesson on ma…
Garnet
hello world
radishsoup
Lemme tell you a thing o…
JoinTheRain
Customize Sidebar...

Website Feedback

Closed Threads



Active: 2179 users

[ask] I'm a Guitar Teacher

Blogs > ella_guru
Post a Reply
1 2 3 4 5 Next All
ella_guru
Profile Blog Joined August 2009
Canada1741 Posts
Last Edited: 2010-08-21 19:05:12
August 21 2010 15:38 GMT
#1
Guitar is a pretty popular instrument, and I know some on TL play it. Over the months I've recieved PMs on and off about playing the guitar / the lifestyle, so I figure we can just do this publicly and everyone can benefit.

Ask any questions about playing, theory, or what it's like to be in my shoes and maybe I can shine a light.

I'll do my best to answer but answeres will only be so far reaching as I cant physically show you anything and (the big one!) we can't communicate through sound. So, I won't be able to give my best nuggets away, but I'll do my best through text.

I guess I'll start by answering the most obvious...


Will this help me get laid?

[image loading]

If you have even a shred of personality, yes.

*however* over the years I have noticed something, that I can draw up in graph form.

[image loading]

It helps markedly. There comes a level in skill where girls can pick up on the fact that you've dedicated time to this instead of beers. Too much time for their liking. Not only does their perception of your attractiveness diminish, it becomes inverse. I labeled the graph wrong because the pain was all too real.

You can never go back.


*****
Each day gets better : )
Bair
Profile Joined May 2010
United States698 Posts
August 21 2010 15:45 GMT
#2
Broad question I know, but what is the best place to start for someone just learning?
In Roaches I Rust.
green.at
Profile Blog Joined January 2010
Austria1459 Posts
August 21 2010 15:50 GMT
#3
On August 22 2010 00:45 Bair wrote:
Broad question I know, but what is the best place to start for someone just learning?


bathtub!
what do you mean "the best place"? its always easier to lern from a teacher (when you are an absolute beginner) than starting yourself.


Inputting special characters into chat should no longer cause the game to crash.
Redunzl
Profile Blog Joined January 2010
862 Posts
August 21 2010 15:51 GMT
#4
do you have any practice exercises for legato techniques?
Holgerius
Profile Blog Joined January 2009
Sweden16951 Posts
August 21 2010 15:51 GMT
#5
Hehe, I recently played live for the first time in quite a while, and the result was me getting laid by a foxy chick for the first time in quite a while. :D Being a kick-ass guitaritst is great. ^__^
I believe in the almighty Grötslev! -- I am never serious and you should never believe a thing I say. Including the previous sentence.
Torenhire
Profile Blog Joined April 2009
United States11681 Posts
August 21 2010 15:56 GMT
#6
On August 22 2010 00:51 Holgerius wrote:
Hehe, I recently played live for the first time in quite a while, and the result was me getting laid by a foxy chick for the first time in quite a while. :D Being a kick-ass guitaritst is great. ^__^


Hahaha! Awesome!

+ Show Spoiler +
[image loading]



Sorta related/unrelated, my friend is going to teach me to play bass guitar! Pretty stoked :D
SirJolt: Well maybe if you weren't so big and stupid, it wouldn't have hit you.
Archaic
Profile Blog Joined March 2008
United States4024 Posts
Last Edited: 2010-08-21 16:11:34
August 21 2010 16:04 GMT
#7
That graph is surprisingly true... If I strum, girls are all happy. If I play an intricate fingerpicking piece, guys who play guitar are happy...

(However, electric is a bit different, since simply songs on electric are BORING, and no one likes them. It's like spamming power chords. No one in their right mind likes that.)

EDIT: I actually have a question. For electric guitars, how do you keep the intonation stable? A lot of times, I find that I physically can't get some strings intonated because the bridge won't move far enough in a direction.
Galois
Profile Blog Joined August 2010
United States124 Posts
August 21 2010 16:07 GMT
#8
Can you please explain in detail the fingerpicking position that I first read about? I got the impression that I'm only allowed to use my first, second, and third fingers to pick the strings and my thumb for the 6th string. I didn't really understand this and the tutorial I found on it didn't really get through to me unfortunately.

Here's a link for your pleasure to the lesson I'm talking about:

http://guitar.about.com/library/weekly/aa020601c.htm
It's gonna take a lot to drag me away from you / There's nothing that a hundred men or more could ever do
Chromyne
Profile Joined January 2008
Canada561 Posts
August 21 2010 16:09 GMT
#9
I have been playing guitar casually for about 2 1/2 years. I am wondering what the best way to learn to sort of decorate as a secondary acoustic. Say the main guitarist is playing chords, is there a preferred way to learning how to play fills or licks to complement the main guitarist? My first guess would be to learn scales (like where more improvising starts?), what do you think?
Soli Deo gloria.
koreasilver
Profile Blog Joined June 2008
9109 Posts
August 21 2010 16:11 GMT
#10
The next girl that asks me to play "Wonderwall" when I have my guitar is going to get a solid slab of ash smashed into their solar plexus.
SirGlinG
Profile Blog Joined January 2008
Sweden933 Posts
August 21 2010 16:12 GMT
#11
I'm playing in a band and it's getting more and more serious.
I'm wondering if it ever gets really important to know the theory behind it all?

I've just learnt from playing tabs on the internet and youtube guides the last 9 years, which have given me quite a good understanding and music ear but whenever my band mate on the piano asks for a certain chord I don't understand what he talks about...
So far it's been working out anyway through me experimenting til it works but is that gonna last forever? And how helpful is it to know music theory for playing the guitar and playing in a band?
Not my chair. Not my problem. That's what I say
SubtleArt
Profile Blog Joined January 2010
2710 Posts
Last Edited: 2010-08-21 16:30:52
August 21 2010 16:13 GMT
#12
I absolutely love listening to rock (classic, hard rock, and progressive rock) and some metal (like black sabbath and deep purple), so I'm really interested in starting to learn electric guitar. Is it too late to start tho? I wanna actually be good and play well. Right now I'm 18 and the only musical experience I have is being grade 8 in piano and 2 years of music theory.
Morrow on ZvP: "I'm not very confident in general vs Protoss because of the imbalance (Yes its imbalanced, get over it)."
Lexpar
Profile Blog Joined March 2009
1813 Posts
August 21 2010 16:15 GMT
#13
Noob question: How do I transfer from D to C without wanting to cut off my stupid sausage fingers for being to slow?
koreasilver
Profile Blog Joined June 2008
9109 Posts
August 21 2010 16:15 GMT
#14
It's always good to know theory. As for the thing Chromyne asked, you should learn theory relating to chords, particularly how Jazz musicians approach chords. You should always know the basic major and natural minor scales. If you play an instrument it should be implied that you at least know your scales.
madnessman
Profile Blog Joined May 2009
United States1581 Posts
August 21 2010 16:19 GMT
#15
Is there a best way to fix the intonation of a floyd rose guitar (which doesn't take like 2 hours)? I realized that the top few frets of my high e string are a little sharp.
Archaic
Profile Blog Joined March 2008
United States4024 Posts
Last Edited: 2010-08-21 16:22:17
August 21 2010 16:19 GMT
#16
On August 22 2010 01:15 Lexpar wrote:
Noob question: How do I transfer from D to C without wanting to cut off my stupid sausage fingers for being to slow?

A key to chord changing is looking at your fingers and considering efficiency. (Assuming you're going xx0232 to x32010), look at your D. Your ring finger + middle finger pressing the high B + E are in the exact same position as they should be for the C, pressing the A + D. Just keep that exact same position, move upwards, while your index finger slides back one fret (on the same string). Eventually you'll get it. Practice!

I know I'm not actually the starter of this thread, but I found chord theory and scale theory has been extremely useful. I generally don't use many scales past major/minor/pentatonic (with the blues note). But honestly, an understanding of what it is (not how to play it) is very useful when experimenting. I.e. you don't have to know how to play a A Lydian scale, but you should be able to figure it out after looking at the scales a bit, and eventually play one.

As for chord theory, I think the whole diminished, suspended, dominant 7th stuff is all very useful when you are trying to figure out chords, or what they mean. Even in scales + soloing + melody. I'd suggest getting a book knowledge first. You can figure out the rest later. It's all really quite simple once you get the hang of it.
Bibbit
Profile Blog Joined December 2009
Canada5377 Posts
August 21 2010 16:22 GMT
#17
Did your graph factor in vocals?
Azerbaijan
Profile Blog Joined January 2010
United States660 Posts
August 21 2010 16:23 GMT
#18
I have been playing guitar for 6 years and I feel like I hit a wall a while back and have been unable able to get over it despite 3 years of music theory class and, for the most part, consistent practice since I started playing. My wall is applying modes in composing and improvising. I understand how modes are constructed out of major scales and how they different patterns of whole and half steps create different sounds out of the modes but I feel like there is some key element that has just never "clicked" in my head when it comes to this stuff.

So if you can explain anything about modes that might help or even just suggest a book/website or anything that might help I would be grateful.
Emon_
Profile Blog Joined November 2009
3925 Posts
Last Edited: 2010-08-21 16:32:18
August 21 2010 16:26 GMT
#19
I feel like I've plateaued and I don't know where to turn to improve. I can play a lot of songs by seeing the chords and I've tried to learn about scales and how it all fits together. My main interest is in rhythm guitar, but I only have a rough idea of what to train. Is there some direction you can point me to, maybe some good acoustic songs with great rhythms? I've been playing as a hobby for 3 years
"I know that human beings and fish can coexist peacefully" -GWB ||
ella_guru
Profile Blog Joined August 2009
Canada1741 Posts
August 21 2010 16:30 GMT
#20
On August 22 2010 00:45 Bair wrote:
Broad question I know, but what is the best place to start for someone just learning?


Well, depending on what sorts of music you're interested in, the E minor, G Major, and D Major chords are good starts for a foundation. Soon after, pick one scale (C major being the most likely candidate) , follow the fingerings and alternate pick that.


On August 22 2010 00:51 chrisSquire wrote:
do you have any practice exercises for legato techniques?


OWNER OF A LONELLLLLLLLY HEART! (Fragile is their best album)

When doing these techniques, make your real goal to minimize movement and maximize effectiveness. Aim to be very accurate in the early stages, and don't lift your fingers up high for the hammers, or pull out far for the pulls. Be efficient. A real pull off pulls at about 30 degrees. Many guitarists pull up and that makes for a dull and un-articulated sound hidden by the volume of an amp. Don't do this.

In terms of what to play, for now just go through a scale you like, and be meditative about it. Slowly, and try and minimize movement while maximizing sound.

NO TENSION ALLOWED. Before the hammer, the finger is completely relaxed, and only at the precise moment you choose to send it is it energized. Same for the pull off. Relax, relax......then everything all at once for a split second.


Each day gets better : )
1 2 3 4 5 Next All
Please log in or register to reply.
Live Events Refresh
Next event in 3h 34m
[ Submit Event ]
Live Streams
Refresh
StarCraft 2
Nina 150
ProTech66
StarCraft: Brood War
PianO 954
soO 48
Noble 29
Sacsri 20
HiyA 16
ajuk12(nOOB) 9
SilentControl 6
League of Legends
JimRising 671
Counter-Strike
Stewie2K670
Coldzera 184
Super Smash Bros
Mew2King56
Westballz17
Other Games
summit1g9141
C9.Mang0407
Hui .189
byalli127
NeuroSwarm66
Trikslyr25
Organizations
StarCraft 2
Blizzard YouTube
StarCraft: Brood War
BSLTrovo
sctven
[ Show 13 non-featured ]
StarCraft 2
• Berry_CruncH297
• Sammyuel 19
• Light_VIP 5
• AfreecaTV YouTube
• intothetv
• Kozan
• IndyKCrew
• LaughNgamezSOOP
• Migwel
• sooper7s
StarCraft: Brood War
• BSLYoutube
• STPLYoutube
• ZZZeroYoutube
Upcoming Events
RSL Revival
3h 34m
Zoun vs Classic
Map Test Tournament
4h 34m
Korean StarCraft League
20h 34m
BSL Open LAN 2025 - War…
1d 1h
RSL Revival
1d 3h
Reynor vs Cure
BSL Open LAN 2025 - War…
2 days
RSL Revival
2 days
Online Event
2 days
Wardi Open
3 days
Monday Night Weeklies
3 days
[ Show More ]
Sparkling Tuna Cup
4 days
LiuLi Cup
5 days
The PondCast
6 days
Liquipedia Results

Completed

Proleague 2025-09-10
Chzzk MurlocKing SC1 vs SC2 Cup #2
HCC Europe

Ongoing

BSL 20 Team Wars
KCM Race Survival 2025 Season 3
BSL 21 Points
ASL Season 20
CSL 2025 AUTUMN (S18)
LASL Season 20
RSL Revival: Season 2
Maestros of the Game
StarSeries Fall 2025
FISSURE Playground #2
BLAST Open Fall 2025
BLAST Open Fall Qual
Esports World Cup 2025
BLAST Bounty Fall 2025
BLAST Bounty Fall Qual
IEM Cologne 2025
FISSURE Playground #1

Upcoming

2025 Chongqing Offline CUP
BSL World Championship of Poland 2025
IPSL Winter 2025-26
BSL Season 21
SC4ALL: Brood War
BSL 21 Team A
Stellar Fest
SC4ALL: StarCraft II
EC S1
ESL Impact League Season 8
SL Budapest Major 2025
BLAST Rivals Fall 2025
IEM Chengdu 2025
PGL Masters Bucharest 2025
Thunderpick World Champ.
CS Asia Championships 2025
ESL Pro League S22
TLPD

1. ByuN
2. TY
3. Dark
4. Solar
5. Stats
6. Nerchio
7. sOs
8. soO
9. INnoVation
10. Elazer
1. Rain
2. Flash
3. EffOrt
4. Last
5. Bisu
6. Soulkey
7. Mini
8. Sharp
Sidebar Settings...

Advertising | Privacy Policy | Terms Of Use | Contact Us

Original banner artwork: Jim Warren
The contents of this webpage are copyright © 2025 TLnet. All Rights Reserved.