Guitar Learning Made Easy!
The knowledge in playing the guitar is one attribute many consider as a bragging right. It has served its multifarious functions over time and has been carried over from generations to the other. The innovations of how it is played kept emerging, thanks to the advancements in technology and the flourishing capacity of the human creative aptitude.
The world was left in awe the first time Elvis Presley exhibited his versatility in singing and playing the guitar. He was then followed by many prominent guitar players around the world, and the guitar gradually became a household instrument in the contemporary music scene. Since then, the guitar has become one instrument that the world, most especially the youth, crave to get the hang of.
The easiest ways to learn the guitar still require the tedious learning process.
To begin with, one should have:
- his own guitar
- a mind equipped for the task
- agile fingers ready for the temporary sore
- and the persistence to elicit the proper tune
If all of these are set, it is time to learn the basics. The easiest way to learn guitar is for one to first familiarize himself with the parts. Usually, one begins with an acoustic guitar, the basic type of guitar for beginners. This is perhaps the easiest way to learn guitar. Acoustic guitars are manufactured either by machine or by hand and are usually made of wood or metal. Six copper strings are attached to the bridge all the way to the tuning pegs located at the headstock which create the sound.
Some guitars come with nylon strings to create a softer, acoustic euphony. The strings go all the way from the bridge to the headstock, and the platform in between which creates the melody, is called the fret board. As the name implies, frets are attached on the neck and produce the different notes. On the body of an acoustic guitar, there is a sound hole where the sound resonates. It is located between the bottom of the fret board or neck and the bridge.
Next, an aspiring guitar player must know how to correctly hold the instrument and project himself with it. Acoustic guitars are usually played in the right-handed position. The plucking and strumming is done with the right hand between the sound hole and the bridge while pressing the strings on the fret with the left hand. When playing in the sitting position, the back of the guitar’s body should be pressed against the stomach, with the legs supporting it.
Guitar players in the upright position usually have guitar straps, which are attached to the bottom and upper part of the guitar’s body going across the player’s back, left shoulder, and chest all the way to the right rib section. These guitar straps prevent the guitar from falling or straining the arms of the holder. Prominent guitarists such as Paul McCartney, Jimi Hendrix and Kurt Cobain played the guitar strumming with their left-hand and fretting with their right hand. Left-handed players pick with their left hand, while the strings are in the conventional order for a left-handed player. They have either true left-handed or right-handed guitars altered so the strings will suit a left-handed player.
Now that the parts of the guitar are identified and the proper positions are explained, it is time for the easiest way to learn guitar fretting. The thumb is pushed against the back of the fret board to support the weight of the neck, while the remaining fingers create the formation of the chords. The chords are the harmonic group of at least three or more notes and must sound simultaneously. Common major chords are the A Major, C Major, D Major, E Major and the G Major. To create the sound of these chords, certain formation of the four fingers should be perfected.
If the shapes of the chords are incorrectly formed, some unnecessary sound may be produced when the right keys are not pressed or pressed the wrong way. Often, beginners accidentally press an unnecessary string which may produce either a broken or a wrong sound. In A Major, for example, the low E string is not to be strummed. It could be difficult at first, but the fingers will surely get the hang of it. When you get the drift of forming the chords, it is time to practice switching between them as quickly as you can. This will make the desired sound more audible and clear.
After perfecting the fretting process, it is essential that an aspiring guitar player also learns the easiest way to learn guitar strumming. Strumming requires stroking either downward or upward and striking all the notes of the chord based on the combination to match the rhythm. A proper strumming should have the wrist and the arm in action. The elbow then should lay flat on the body of the guitar and should not be in the locomotive in order to prevent the arm from straining or creating unnecessary sounds.
It is only when one perfects the strumming pattern when he is ready for the chord plucking. In guitar plucking, one finger strikes a string to create a series of sound. A pick can be used to make plucking easier and is held with the index finger and the thumb leaving the other three fingers in a claw-like position. Properly mastering the art of strumming and plucking will eventually produce results in the long run.
Now, another question surfaces: how to learn electric guitar? Learning the acoustic guitar will make the electric guitar lesson completely easy. Almost all the steps in playing an acoustic may apply to playing an electric guitar. The differences come only in so far as electric guitars require amplifiers to produce reverberating sound and do not contain a sound hole. While acoustic guitars produce softer and mellow sounds, electric guitars produce louder and raspier sounds.
With these mastered, you can be jamming with friends as you play your group song or use it to serenade your favorite girl in no time! Endurance is the key. Playing the guitar will inevitably hurt your fingers, especially the fretting fingers. At this point, it will be almost impossible to form the chords and properly produce the desired sound. Your fingers will literally “hurt like hell” at this stage, but fear not; it is part of the guitar learning process!
Over time, calluses will form that will harden the tip of the fingers. These will make guitar lessons less painful, making the pain tolerable until it is completely gone. But always remember, in order to achieve success in something, one must sometimes undergo hardship and pain. So do not give up when the fingers start hurting; it is the time when the process is already starting to take its toll.
For starters, the easiest way to learn the guitar may come from lessons from family members, friends, and whoever is willing to spend their precious time to share to you their know-how. It will be an interactive experience as well as fun-filled. For advanced guitar lessons, the internet has so many sites to help you. There are websites that can provide comprehensive and easy to understand basics for the easiest way to learn guitar.
In the end, no one is given the innate talent of properly playing the guitar; it is a skill that takes a tremendous amount of time to master. The easiest way to learn guitar depends on the determination and creativity of the one who wishes to learn. How to learn electric guitar or the acoustic one takes hard work, but if one is passionate enough, the task will get easier over time. Guitar lessons are going to take a lot out of you, but it is the passion for music that will always keep you going.
