Play What You Hear - Getting Your Ears and Fingers In Sync

Play What You Hear - Getting Your Ears and Fingers In Sync

Play What You Hear - Getting Your Ears and Fingers In Sync


When you solo your lines should be an extension of what you here in your head. The better you get at guitar, the less you will have to think about what to play and the more you play what you feel. Getting to that level of guitar playing takes some time and practice. But one of the ways you can speed up the process is by training your inner ear to recognize the sounds in your head, and training your fingers to execute those sounds on guitar.

So how do you do that? Well there are many ways. But one very simple thing you can do is to sing the notes you play as you practice. Whenever you are practicing any scale you should always sing or hum the notes as you play them. This will train your fingers to play the sounds that your ears hear.

Can’t sing? Who cares? You don’t need a good voice for this exercise. It isn’t about sounding good; it’s about accurately singing the correct pitch and getting your ears and fingers in sync. So start off slow. Just play one note and try to match your voice to that note. Keep playing it until you can alternate sounding the note and then singing the note. After you get that down pick a melody from a song that you know and then sing or hum along with it while you play it. Then start singing along with the scales you practice.

The next level is to sing along as you improvise over a simple chord change. Try creating simple melodies while you improvise and sing them as you play. (Even better: try singing a melody first and then playing it after). This will really help you break the barriers between what you hear and what you play. If you can’t sing what you play, then what you play isn’t what you hear.

Here is a simple melody to get you started. This is the famous song “Oh When The Saints Go Marching In”. But I just want you to hum or sing the note, but do not say the actual words. I want you to focus your ears on the notes you are playing:

----0--1--3------0--1--3-------0--1--3--0------0------ 0--0---------
-1------------1-------------1----------------------1------3----------3--1--
------------------------------------------------------------------------
------------------------------------------------------------------------
------------------------------------------------------------------------
------------------------------------------------------------------------

0--1--3--3--1---------0--1--3--0-------------------------
--------------------1-------------------1--3--1---------------
------------------------------------------------------------
----------------------------------------------------------
----------------------------------------------------------
-------------------------------------------------------

Credit : http://theguitarresource.com/

String skipping between octaves to revitalize your solos

String skipping between octaves to revitalize your solos

String skipping between octaves to revitalize your solos

There are a lot of simple things you can do to spice up your guitar soloing. One great technique many guitar players use is string skipping. There are many different ways to use string skipping to beef up your chops. But for this post I just wanted to focus on one simple method you can use.

One really cool string skipping technique is to jump back and forth between two different octaves when you play a scale. So lets start by looking at a normal C major scale:

Now we can spice up that scale by skipping octaves from one note to the next. You can play this with your fingers or with alternate picking:

You can apply that same concept to any of your lines. Play around with different melodies. This will inspire even more creativity in your playing. Have fun!

Trilling Terror - Finger strength and speed exercise for guitar

Trilling Terror - Finger strength and speed exercise for guitar

Trilling Terror - Finger strength and speed exercise for guitar


This is a great finger exercise for guitar you can use to build speed and strength. The best part of this exercise is that you really don’t need to focus that much. It can be done with ease while watching TV or reading or even chatting with a friend.

So here is what you do. You are going to “trill” (rapidly hammer on and pull off) on the high E string (you can start at any fret, I normally start around the 5th) as fast as you can using various finger positions. Sound easy? Well guess what, it’s not. You are going to trill for 15 seconds straight in each position pictured below. And you are going to do it was fast as you can. And you can’t rest until you go through all 8 positions below. That’s two minutes of straight of trilling. And this is just to start off. The goal is to work up to a minute straight with each position.

The different positions to use are pictured below. Be sure that you can hear all of the notes clearly when you play, especially for exercises 4,5, and 8. If you need to slow down a bit for those ones, you should. Also, if your hand starts hurting at any point, stop and take a break. You don’t want to hurt yourself.

The numbers after each picture represtent the fingers you are using (1= pointer and 4=pinkey, you can figure out the other two)

(1, 2, 1, ect...)

(2,3,2,etc)

(3,4,3 etc)

(1,2,3,2,1, etc)

(1,2,3,4,3,2,1..)

(1,3,1 etc)

(1,4,1 etc)

(2,3,4,3,2 etc)

Try some other combinations as well. For example: 2,4,2,4 etc. Or 1,3,4,3,1, etc. Or, 1,2,4,2,1 etc. You can even make up some more complicated ones. if you want.

After a week of doing these for 15 seconds each every day, move up to 30 seconds each for a week, then 45 seconds, for a week, then a minute. You will really notice an improvement in your finger speed, strength and stamina. It will also greatly help your legato playing. You can also use this as a warm-up exercise for guitar before you play a gig.

Getting to know your guitar’s hardware

Getting to know your guitar’s hardware

Getting to know your guitar’s hardware

If you are not already familiar with your guitar’s hardware then you should read this post. Knowing your guitars hardware is important because the more familiar you are with your instrument, the more control you will have over it. You should know all the main hardware for your guitar. (Especially if you ever consider making any modifications to your guitar).

We are going to be looking at my guitar’s hardware as an example. It is important to note that not all guitar hardware is the same. For instance Les Pauls, Fenders and Ibanezs all tend to have slightly different hardware. But most all electric guitars have mostly the same parts.

Let's take a look at my guitar, which is a Hofner Verythin semi hollow body from 2005:

The guitar is divided into 3 major parts: the headstock, the neck, and the body.

A. The headstock. On the headstock there are two main components:
1. The tuning pegs (or tuning machines), which allow you to tune the guitar by twisting the knobs.

2.The nut, which holds the strings in place and keeps them the proper distance from one another

B. The neck. On the neck there are 3 main components:

1. The fretboard. The fretboard is the wood that the frets are placed into. The fretboard can me made of various types of wood, but the most popular are rosewood, maple, and ebony. Different woods produce slightly different results.

2. The frets. These are the steel lines that are put into the fretboard that allow you to play different notes by pressing in between any two frets.
3. The inlays. Thsese assist you in knowing what fret you are playing. They are commonly found on the 3rd, 5th, 7th, 9th, 12th, 15th, 17th, 19th, and 22nd frets of the guitar.

Body
C. This is the area on the body there the tone knobs, volume knobs, and generally the pickup selector switch are located (on Les Paul model guitars the pickups selector is usually to the left of the D section of the guitar).

1. These are “f” holes. These are only found on hollow body and semi hollow body guitars. They allow for the sound to resonate out of the guitars body, functioning similarly to the sound hole on an acoustic guitar.

2. Tone and Volume knobs. These allow you to control the sound of your guitar. Some guitars have tone and volume knobs for both the neck and bridge pickups, some just have one volume and one tone knob that control everything.

3. Pickups selector switch. This allows you to select which pickup your guitar’s output is using. There are two types of pickup selectors: 3 way switches and 5 way switches. Here is a diagram on how 3way and 5way switches work:

D. In this section of the body are the pickups, the bridge, and the tailpiece.
Pickups are what capture the vibration of your guitars strings and send that sound to your amp.

1a. This is the neck pickup, it has a thicker sound with more bass.

1b. This is the bridge pickup. It has a thinner, sound with more treble.

NOTE: Some guitars have a middle pickup that is in between the Neck and Bridge pickup

2. This is the bridge. This is where the bottom of your strings rest. This is also what determines how high or low your guitar’s “action” is. (The action on your guitar refers to how far away from the fretboard your strings are. Some player prefer higher action on their guitar, some prefer it lower. It’s a matter of tatse.)

3. This is the tailpiece. It is where your guitar strings are anchored in.That is a basic outline of the important hardware on your guitar. If you have any questions about your guitar’s hardware please post them to the comments section below.

The Importance of a Great “Set-Up”

The Importance of a Great “Set-Up”

The Importance of a Great “Set-Up”



Here is a great article on getting your guitar set-up I received from one of my readers, Giles Dickerson. Thanks Giles for the great article! If you would like to submit content to be posted on this site please contact me.

Following the purchase of my used PRS electric guitar my friend told me he'd refer me to someone to get it "set up". Just beginning on guitar back then I wasn't really clear on what this meant. Let me tell you, it means the world. I suggested I save some time and get it set up at the local music shop (which incidentally is out of business now), his immediate reaction was "No way dude, I have a guy for you". So began the amazing experience I had with Richie's Guitar Shop in the East Village, only a stones throw over the Manhattan bridge.

My friend set me up with a referral with Richie (he's by referral only) and I headed over to the shop. We got there a little early so we ended up testing the deep fried hot dogs and beer up the street from him at Griff Dogs. Entering Richie's shop is amazing. Guitars everywhere! It's an apartment but it is clearly his workshop/labor of love. His custom 12 string electrics are on the wall, his custom Strats lined up on stands on the floors, custom Tele's on the other wall, and a wealth of pickups and tuners and any other possible mechanical item a guitar could require in fantastically organized rows only a space challenged New Yorker could dream up an organizational strategy for.

Richie gave me his printed "treatise" on relationship requirements (read "hilarious") which is clearly described in this great article about Richie's Guitar Shop. He asked what I have so I humbly pulled out my new purchase. He held the guitar like he was born with it in his lap, pulled some things, used some spark plug measurement tools to check the action, did something weird with a pick I'm still not sure what it was and said "I'll have it ready tomorrow". In a daze of guitar greatness I left with a smile on my face. Wow, there's a whole world I'm just tapping the surface of!

I came back to pick up the guitar the next day and Richie hands it to me plugged into an amp, I played a few chords. Amazing. The action was so perfect the guitar felt like a different instrument. He readjusted the bridge, my guitar has a tremolo system and that was all corrected, the tuners were adjusted, new strings on, and some other wiring stuff checked out. I brought the guitar home and it was simply an amazing difference.

When I bought my acoustic it went straight to Richie. He went through a similar process. Took some mysterious measurements with some tools I've never seen before, threw on a capo, popped off the strings, adjusted the truss rod on the neck, pulled saddle out of the bridge, leaned over to a belt sander and filed it down with effortless precision. Popped the saddle in, popped the strings back on and took off the capo handing it back to me. "Ten dollars", he said. Amazing, simply amazing.

The moral of the story from my perspective is this, the guitar as I see it is much like a car. Sure you can work on it yourself, but if you really want it done right, and you want to connect with some people who truly understand your instrument, and go get it set up professionally by someone who clearly knows what they're doing, you will love it more when you get it back. In addition, you're likely to meet someone as I have that makes a lasting impression on your feeling for your instrument.

Credit : http://theguitarresource.com

Learning your guitar’s fretboard

Learning your guitar’s fretboard

Learning your guitar’s fretboard

Now that you know what notes are and how they work (Click here to see the last lesson if you don’t), we can apply it to you guitar’s fretboard.

Now that we know the order of the notes, we can figure out what all the notes are on your guitar. Let’s start with the open strings (an open string is a string played open, without your hand fretting it at all. If you pick any one of your guitar strings without touching it, that an open string)

The thickest string on your guitar, the one closest to you, is called the Low E string. Playing that string makes an E note. This string is also referred to as the 6th string. The next string down, the 5th string, is called the A string. Playing this string alone will give you an A note. The 4th string is called the D string. The 3rd string is called the G string. The 2nd string is the B string. And the 1ast string is called the High E string. The low E and the High E make the same note, but the high E string makes and E note one Octave higher than the low E string. So they have the same sound quality, but the high E is at a higher frequency.

Play the low E and high E strings at the same time. If your guitar is in tune, you should notice they sound the same, but one is a higher pitch.

Now that we know the names of all of your guitar strings, lets look at the fretboard and see what all the notes are. Since we know the order of the notes, and we know what not each string is, we can name all the notes on your guitar. Take a look at this diagram. Also, refer to the last lesson on notes if you are confused (click here for the lesson on notes):

Remember that there are only 12 notes, so once the notes reach the 12th fret, they start over as if you are starting from the beginning of that string. I.E. the 13th fret on the 6th strong (or low E string) is an F note, just like the first fret.

Also, remember, the distance between each note is called a half-step. So the distance between each fret also is a half-step (because each fret goes up or down by one note).

It may take a few minutes to get this all down. But once you get it will help you understand more advanced music theory. Please ask me any questions you have. You can post them to the “comments” section of this post.

Credit : http://theguitarresource.com

Play What You Hear - Getting Your Ears and Fingers In Sync

Play What You Hear - Getting Your Ears and Fingers In Sync

Play What You Hear - Getting Your Ears and Fingers In Sync

When you solo your lines should be an extension of what you here in your head. The better you get at guitar, the less you will have to think about what to play and the more you play what you feel. Getting to that level of guitar playing takes some time and practice. But one of the ways you can speed up the process is by training your inner ear to recognize the sounds in your head, and training your fingers to execute those sounds on guitar.

So how do you do that? Well there are many ways. But one very simple thing you can do is to sing the notes you play as you practice. Whenever you are practicing any scale you should always sing or hum the notes as you play them. This will train your fingers to play the sounds that your ears hear.

Can’t sing? Who cares? You don’t need a good voice for this exercise. It isn’t about sounding good; it’s about accurately singing the correct pitch and getting your ears and fingers in sync. So start off slow. Just play one note and try to match your voice to that note. Keep playing it until you can alternate sounding the note and then singing the note. After you get that down pick a melody from a song that you know and then sing or hum along with it while you play it. Then start singing along with the scales you practice.

The next level is to sing along as you improvise over a simple chord change. Try creating simple melodies while you improvise and sing them as you play. (Even better: try singing a melody first and then playing it after). This will really help you break the barriers between what you hear and what you play. If you can’t sing what you play, then what you play isn’t what you hear.

Here is a simple melody to get you started. This is the famous song “Oh When The Saints Go Marching In”. But I just want you to hum or sing the note, but do not say the actual words. I want you to focus your ears on the notes you are playing:

----0--1--3------0--1--3-------0--1--3--0------0------ 0--0---------
-1------------1-------------1----------------------1------3----------3--1--
------------------------------------------------------------------------
------------------------------------------------------------------------
------------------------------------------------------------------------
------------------------------------------------------------------------

0--1--3--3--1---------0--1--3--0-------------------------
--------------------1-------------------1--3--1---------------
------------------------------------------------------------
----------------------------------------------------------
----------------------------------------------------------
-------------------------------------------------------

Credit : http://theguitarresource.com

How To Tune Your Guitar By Ear

How To Tune Your Guitar By Ear

How To Tune Your Guitar By Ear

by: Mike Hayes1. The very first thing you need to know is that learning to tune your guitar takes time.

Some things on guitar can be learned in minutes, some in days, and others in weeks, but tuning will sometimes take even longer, because you have to train your ears. If results come slowly or don't seem to be making any progress, don't be discouraged, just keep working at it.

2. It will help you to know that the ear is a very skilled instrument for taking in sound. Your ear hears four things in each sound: Pitch, Duration, Volume and Tone Quality. Pitch is how high or low the sound is. Duration is how long it lasts. Volume is how loud it is. Tone quality is the "character" of the sound. If we were to play the same pitch, at the same volume, for the same length of time on piano, clarinet, flute, violin, guitar, doorbell, or car horn, your ear could tell one instrument (or car horn) from another because of the tone quality. That's because each instrument has a different "character" or "personality" of sound. You can prove you have this ability to tell one sound from another by listening to sounds without looking where they come from. The point I want to emphasize is that you already hear very well. Learning to tune your guitar is learning a new way of using your hearing.

3.The next thing to know is that when you are tuning your guitar you want to listen only to the pitch of the strings. The quality of the pitch will differ between two strings, and this may at first confuse your ear. You'll mistake the difference in quality as a difference in pitch. For example when playing the first string open and the second string at the fifth fret, you may notice that the first string may sound 'crisper', while the second string will sound a little "darker" in quality. The darker quality of the string at first can be misunderstood to sound lower in pitch. (You may use different words to explain how the strings sound to you, but the idea is that the tone quality of each string will sound different). If you understand that the ear hears a combination of pitch, volume, duration and quality all at the same time, it will help you to filter out the quality from the pitch and overcome the basic problem of tuning.

4. The steps involved in tuning your guitar: The first step is to tune one string to a note from another source. You could use another guitar (one that has already been tuned), a piano, or somebody that know how to tune could guide you along.(click here to use my free online guitar tuner)

A better source is a tuning fork. (It's better because you don't need anybody else around or any other instrument. If, for example you learn to tune to a piano, you're going to have a problem if ever you need to tune and there's no piano handy).

A tuning fork is a U shaped piece of metal with a stem on it. The fork is designed to vibrate at a particular pitch. You can get one that gives you the pitch of the first string on the guitar. (Look for one that has the letter E and the number 329.6 stamped on the stem).

To use the tuning fork you hold it by the stem, tap the U shaped fork against something solid, and place the stem (not the tip of the fork) on either the body, or the bridge of your guitar. (For electric guitars can place it on the pickup). You should hear the note which the vibrating fork produced. The note is the correct "source".

You now adjust the first string to match the pitch of the tuning fork. You do this by finding the correct tuning gear for this string and then turning the gear slowly in one direction or the other. After about half a turn you should hear the string change pitch either up or down. This will tell you which way you have to turn the gear to tighten the string (to raise the pitch) and which way to loosen the string (to lower the pitch).

Now compare the sound of the string with the sound of the tuning fork. If the string is lower than the tuning fork, tighten the string to raise the pitch. If the string is higher than the tuning fork, loosen the string to lower the pitch.

Go slowly. Do not turn the gear rapidly. Turn about a quarter of a turn and then compare the string to the tuning fork again. (You'll have to strike them both again). You'll probably have to repeat this process several times. When the string sounds close to the fork make smaller turns.

When you think the first string is in tune, use the following steps (one to five) to tune the rest of the strings. (Remember, you can only tune as well as your ears hear now. With practice, you can become a better tuner). The following steps repeat the process of matching one pitch with another. The difference is that instead of using a tuning fork you will listen to the string you have just tuned, and try to match the next string to this one.

1. Place the finger behind the fifth fret of the 6th string. This will give you the tone of the 5th sting. (A)

2. Place the finger behind the 5th fret of the 5th string to get the pitch of the 4th string. (D)

3. Place the finger behind the 5th fret of the 4th string to get the pitch of the 3rd string. (G)

4. Place the finger behind the FOURTH FRET of the 3rd string to get the pitch of the 2nd string. (B)

5. Place the finger behind the 5th fret of the 2nd string to get the pitch of the 1st string. (E)

About The Author

Mike Hayes is a guitar teacher, author, performing musician and session guitarist with over 30 years of professional experience. Mike's methods are legendary and have earned the praise of top authorities in guitar instruction. He reveals his guitar secrets at http://www.GuitarCoaching.com

Intervals

Intervals

Intervals

An interval is the distance between two notes and it is calculated from the lower note. Different intervals have different sound qualities. Learning intervals will help you develop your ear and it is a great ear training exercise. For instance, if you can recognize the sound of a Minor 3rd interval then you will be able to hear when a melody you like uses it, thus you will be able to play it back.

There are two types of Intervals: harmonic intervals and melodic intervals. A harmonic interval is the distance between two notes played in unison. A melodic interval is the distance between two notes played in succession. Here are some tabbed examples:
Harmonic Interval Melodic Interval
-------------------- ----------------------
-------------------- -----------------------
-------------------- ----------------------
-----------2-------- ----------------2------
-----------3--------- -------3----------------
---------------------- -----------------------

There are two characters for every interval: size and quality. Size refers to the distance between the two notes and quality describes the type of sound that interval has.

There are 13 common interval distances (numbers), intervals higher than 13 are rarely used. The first 8 intervals are called “simple intervals” because they are within an octave. Intervals 9-13 are called “compound intervals”. Interval distance is always counted from the 1st note of the scale:

(since that is hard to read, here are the numbers for each interval. the first number is the lower number, the 2nd is the one above it: Unison: 8, 3. 2nd: 3, 0. 3rd: 3, 2. 4th: 3, 3. 5th: 3, 5. 6th: 3, 2. 7th: 3, 4. 8th: 3, 5. 9th: 3, 3. 10th: 3, 5. 11th: 3, 1. 12th: 3, 3. 13th: 3, 5.)
There are 5 terms that describe the quality of intervals: perfect, major, minor, diminished, and augmented. These are the same types of sounds that are used to describe chords. To figure out the quality of intervals we need to look at the interval numbers and qualities in the major scale.

The major scale has two qualities of intervals: perfect and major. The perfect intervals occur on the unison (1st), 4th, 5th, and octave. The major intervals are the 2nd, 3rd, 6th, and 7th. The compound intervals are the same as the simple intervals.

(since that is hard to read, here are the numbers for each interval. the first number is the lower number, the 2nd is the one above it: Unison: 8, 3. 2nd: 3, 0. 3rd: 3, 2. 4th: 3, 3. 5th: 3, 5. 6th: 3, 2. 7th: 3, 4. 8th: 3, 5. 9th: 3, 3. 10th: 3, 5. 11th: 3, 1. 12th: 3, 3. 13th: 3, 5.)

Minor, Diminished, and Augmented intervals are made by altering a perfect or major interval either by moving the second note a half step sharp or a half step flat (if you do not know what this means see my post on notes). By altering an interval you do not change the number, just the quality.

Whenever a perfect interval is raised a half-step it becomes augmented. So if we raise a P1st (perfect first) one half-step it becomes an A1st (augmented 1st).

Whenever a perfect interval is lowered by one half-step it becomes diminished. So a P5th lowered by a half-step becomes a d5th (diminished 5th).

When a major interval is raised a half-step it becomes augmented (just like a perfect interval). So a M2nd (major 2nd) raised by a half step becomes a P2nd.

When a Major interval is lowered by a half-step it becomes minor. So a M3rd lowered by a half-step becomes a m3rd (minor 3rd. Major gets a capital M miner gets a lower case m).

When a minor interval is lowered a half-step it becomes diminished. So a m3rd lowered a half-step it becomes a d3rd.

I know this is a lot to digest. I would say start with the intervals of the major scale and play those. Get your ear familiar with them. Once you are comfortable, have a friend play and interval from the major scale and try to guess what it is (no peeking). This is a good ear training exercise.

If you have questions please post them to the comments.

Credit : http://theguitarresource.com

Captain Beefheart’s 10 rules for guitarists

Captain Beefheart’s 10 rules for guitarists

Captain Beefheart’s 10 rules for guitarists

This is a really interesting post I saw on Music Thing quoting Captain Beefheart. It is humorous and poetic and it is worth reading. I don’t think all of the advice is right, but there really is no “right” or “wrong” when it comes to music anyways. I just have a different approach to some of what he says. Check it out and let me know what you think: Captain Beefheart's rules for guitarists.

Credit : http://theguitarresource.com

Measuring your progress on guitar

Measuring your progress on guitar

Measuring your progress on guitar

Many guitar players get in a rut after they have been playing for some time. It usually happens at around 1-2 years. It happened to me. I’m sure it happened to you. For one reason or another we just get discouraged. Mostly because we feel we stopped making real progress. So what should we do to motivate ourselves to keep playing guitar?

First let’s try and find out why we lost our flare.

Throughout the first year or two of your playing you are learning so many new things on guitar. You’re like a newborn baby learning all about your new environment. Every day you find out fantastic new things. You learn what the string names are. You learn what a major chord is. You learn minor chords. You learn basic scales and their applications. But then you hit a wall. Where to go now?

Here’s what I think: Throughout the first few years of your playing your progress is very trackable. Last week you didn’t know a 7th chord. This week you do. Last week you couldn’t play a major scale. This week you can. Last wee you couldn’t to a hammer-on. This week you’re trilling. But then you get to a point where you know most of the basic guitar techniques. It’s much harder to notice results in your playing.

It’s gonna be hard for you to notice a lot of the improvements on your own. That’s why you have to show yourself that you are indeed improving. How do you do that? Well here are three steps to help you track your improvement on guitar:

1. Asses your current skills
The first step to getting better is knowing where you stand now. Asses your overall guitar playing skills. Write down chord groups that you know (Major, Minor, 7th, Minor 7th, Major 7th, diminished, augmented, etc…). What scales do you know? (major, minor, blues, harmonic minor, melodic minor, etc…)How fast can you cleanly play a scale with the metronome? (How many BPM on your metronome?). What techniques do you know? (bending, sliding, hammer-on, tapping, sweep picking, etc…). Think hard about all the skills you possess right now. Think about everything guitar related: music theory, technique, tone, listening skills, ear training. Everything. Then write it all down in a notebook.

2. Define your goals
After you asses all your skills, look for areas where you want to improve. Maybe you want to lean 13th chords. Maybe you want to play 5bpm faster. The key is starting small. Don’t reach too far or you will be discouraged. Set weekly goals for yourself of a few things you want to improve on over the week. Don’t have more than 3 goals a week. The key is really focusing on a few things to improve on. If you take on too much then you will keep being mediocre at everything. And make sure you have set aside regular time to practice (even if its only 30 minutes a day). Write everything down.

3. Track your progress
At the end of each week open your notebook and check off the goals you have completed. If you didn’t accomplish everything you wanted to you can leave the outstanding goals for next week and replace the completed goals with new ones for next week.

This cycle will really allow you to track your progress and will help you see that all your efforts are not going to waste. Once you go back through the notebook and see everything you learned it will motivate you to continue to play and practice. The key is understanding that any progress, not matter how small, is still good progress. So if you improving from 90 bpm to 95 bmp that is just as good of an accomplishment as learning all the major chords.

Credit : http://theguitarresource.com

A great post on thumb placement for guitarists

A great post on thumb placement for guitarists

A great post on thumb placement for guitarists

I just read a great post on a new blog I found today. The blog is called “A Guitar Teacher’s Lesson Notebook” and the post was titled “A Memo From the Department of Thumb Placement Correction”

Many guitar players have a hard time figuring out where to put their thumb when they play. This post covers a few grip options and lets you know when to use each one for different playing situations. I actually use both of the main grips that the author refers to in his post. As he points out, they each have their practical applications.

While you’re there check out some of the other posts. They are very informative, interesting and well-written.

Credit : http://theguitarresource.com

Bluesing your Bends -video

Bluesing your Bends -video

Bluesing your Bends -video

Many guitarists know how to bend strings. But not all guitar players put a lot of thought into their string bending. This guitar lesson will show you how to add a bluesy, soulful sound to your string bends. Try incorporating this banding technique into your playing. It will add another dynamic to your string bending. Watch this quick video lesson on how to bend like a blues player. (If you need an intro to basic guitar techniques please see my post on Essential Lead Guitar Techniques before watching this video):



Credit : http://theguitarresource.com/technique/bluesing-bends/

Change Your Rhythms to Spice Up Your Guitar Solo - Video lesson

Change Your Rhythms to Spice Up Your Guitar Solo - Video lesson

Change Your Rhythms to Spice Up Your Guitar Solo - Video lesson

Guitar solos can get boring when they only use one rhythm. One way to spice up your solos is to play different rhythms while in your guitar solo and improvisation. This is a great exercise to help you learn to switch rhythms while playing lead guitar.

So grab your metronome and watch this video and soon you will be able to switch your rhythm with ease. This lesson uses the A major scale. Also note that i am using alternate picking while I play. If you have any questions please post them to the comments and I will do my best to answer them!

Hybrid picking on guitar

Hybrid picking on guitar

Hybrid picking on guitar

Hybrid picking is a great way of adding another dimension to your sound. Players in many different styles such as blues, bluegrass, country, rock and jazz use hybrid picking when they play guitar. One of my favorite guitar players, Stevie Ray Vaughan, uses hybrid picking for his solo in the song “Lenny.”

What is hybrid picking?
As the name suggests, hybrid picking is a technique that is a cross between regular picking and finger picking (AKA fingerstyle). Hybrid picking allows for the guitar player to sound notes on separate strings without sounding the string in the middle.

For example, lets say you wanted to play something like this:

hybrid picking tabs example 1

What would you do when you got to the red notes? Well a good option would be hybrid picking.

How to hybrid pick
Here is how I approach hybrid picking. I hold my pick like I would normally hold it, between my thumb and index finger, like so:

(I use a small pick, so it’s hard to see my pick, but it’s there)

But for hybrid picking I use my middle finger to pluck the lower string like so:

So in the tabs above I would pick the note on the G string and pluck the note on the high E string with my middle finger. To get the notes to sound at the same time I “pinch” them so my pick and middle finger both squeeze towards each other. Once you pinch let the strings slide off your pick and finger at the same time by moving your hand slightly away from the string. This will cause both strings to slide off at the same time. Presto! Hybrid picking!

Another great way to use hybrid picking is to alternate between using your pick and your middle finger. What is the advantage to this? Well it sure makes string skipping a lot easier, especially when you are skipping two or more strings. Try playing this A minor lick with hybrid picking. The red notes use a pick and the blue use your middle finger:

Experiment with hybrid picking and see how you can incorporate it into your playing. It is quite a cool technique

BYOG - Bring Your Own Guitar, Rock Revolution Says

BYOG - Bring Your Own Guitar, Rock Revolution Says

BYOG - Bring Your Own Guitar, Rock Revolution Says

Guitar lovers everywhere LOVE to rock out - at least that's what the sales figures of the Rock Band 2 and Guitar Hero World Tour games. So when Konami announced their latest creation, Rock Revolution, won't come with guitar peripheral made specifically for the game - fans might be disappointed.

We say "might" because, while the new game is apparently designed mostly to work the drums... it'll also work with the competitors guitars. Yep, that's right... they won't give you a guitar and they expect you to have one from another game if you want to use it. Man, that blows. What's the deal?

Now I'm not a marketing genious, but when I think of rocking out (and most people I assume) it's with a guitar in my hand... how many people play air drums? Lol. You know what I do think though? Konami expects the game to flop and doesn't want to take the chance manufacturing a bunch of cheap plastic guitars they couldn't give away if they wanted to. Bravo. Bean counters - 1, common sense - 0.

credit:http://theguitarresource.com/guitar-news/byog-bring-your-own-guitar-rock-revolution-says/

Mark Goffeney - The Armless Guitar Player

Mark Goffeney - The Armless Guitar Player

Mark Goffeney - The Armless Guitar Player


Who says you need good hands to play the guitar? Not Mark Goffeney, a guitarist who was born without any arms. He serves as an inspiration to all those people who were told they couldn't do it, that with determination and a strong heart you can do anything. In Mark's case, it's the love of music.



This post was inspired by an article I read in Ability Magazine. It's pretty in depth about Mark's struggles growing up, finding jobs and working through his disability. It's a great story.

How To Play The Guitar

How To Play The Guitar

How To Play The Guitar


Friends often ask me how to play the guitar or what guitar instruction to use". My answer is always "it's not so much how to play the guitar or what guitar instruction but rather, what guitar to play.

They're In For Some Sore Fingers

If they've never played the guitar before I always explain to them that they're in for some discomfort.

In the early stages of practice, when you're learning how to play the guitar, pressing your fingers down hard on metal or nylon strings tends to cause soreness. It does become less painful the more you practice but choosing the right guitar in the first place is just as important.

If you want to become good at playing the guitar and guitar licks you're going to have to practice a lot so the more comfortable you are the better.

Do Not Stick Your Neck Out

If you're looking for a new or second hand Acoustic make sure you check the gap between the strings and the last fret (nearest the body of the guitar). The strings should be as close as possible to the fret without actually touching it or causing the strings to "buzz" when strummed. The higher the strings from the fret the more strength is needed by the fingers causing pain and soreness.

Hold the guitar like a rifle, look along it's neck to see that the neck is straight and true. If the tension of the strings is causing the neck to pull inwards this will increase the gap between string and fret. The further along the string you go the greater the gap. Expensive or inexpensive, do not by a guitar with this problem. I've known aquaintances who have been put of learning how to play the guitar for life due to this problem.

Muddle Free

It's a great idea to own a good quality Acoustic Guitar even if you already have and play an Electric Guitar. The extra strength needed on the fingers to play your Acoustic will make it much easier to play your Electric Guitar, a bit like sports people strapping weights to their body when they train and of course, sometimes, it's much easier to grab your Acoustic for some practice than set up your Electric Guitar.

You may be lucky enough to have your Electric Guitar and or Guitar Software set up to play at any given time but for most guitarists it's a case of having to set up amplifiers and leads, speakers and have access to electricity and to a computer in the case of guitar software.

No Need For Electricity

Here is another good reason for owning an Acoustic. It might be that you have been asked to a picnic or a camping trip or any invite where access to power would be difficult if not impossible. All you have to do with your Acoustic it grab it up and take it with you.

Instant Jam Session

Often you hear a piece of music on the Radio or TV and you've just got to try and play along with it. Just reach out and grab your trusty Acoustic and get the chords down before the moment has gone.
About the Author

Hi. I'm Ian D. Major and I am the Web Editor for at www.Easy-Learn-Guitar.com

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By : Ian D. Major