Great Tips To Start Learning Guitar Today

Learning to play guitar is exciting and beneficial.  But it can also feel daunting.

I remember what it was like when I first decided I wanted to play guitar and how important it was to get good advice before I even looked through the window at the shop.

So I decided to do some research and find some tips that I think will go a long way for guitarists, whether you're a pro or just starting out.

Let's start off with five tips that will help any beginner get on the right track to playing guitar.  Check out this article at http://www.youguitarist.net/243/5-things-you-must-know-when-learning-how-to-play-guitar/

If you had by now decided to learn how to play a guitar, here are five guitar learning tips for you:

1: Learn to read a guitar music sheet -  Many students neglect this part, with potential consequences later in their careers. Once you have mastered the notes on the fingerboard and how the frets sit on the instrument it will become easier, and you can start using your vision as well as hearing to get you on your way. Learning how to play a guitar is a little similar to learning how to play any instrument and mastering the knowledge of the music sheet will come handy for any instrument you choose later on in life.

2: Try learning guitar online - The web has an interesting array of teaching methods such as DVDs and guitar lesson videos, allowing you to watch guitar masters at play, rewind the lesson and fast  forward, zoom in and out. These are things you cannot do with a teacher and they will provide inspiration and knowledge that is important when starting out.

3: Master the guitar basics and the rest will follow -  Like any other discipline when you learn how to play a guitar you will need to master the basics and not pursue too many short cuts. If you learn where to find the various frets and notes, incorporate music sheets into you routine, work on your hand dexterity, and most of all remember to enjoy yourself, you will be successful.

4: Take guitar lessons -  You will also need the discipline that comes from having a physical teacher to correct your mistakes and provide tips – all important things when you learn how to play a guitar. There are many factors to consider when you learn to play – tempo, rhythm, mastering the chords, all of which are well suited to the individual attention which you can receive with a tutor.

5: Left handed guitarist? Don’t despair! -  It used to be the case that those of us who are left handed found it nearly impossible to learn how to play a guitar. Guitars had to be re-strung or re-adjusted, resulting in a poor quality of sound and a frustrating experience for the learner. Nowadays if you are left handed and want to learn how to play a guitar the choices are much wider, with a large selection of suitable instruments and a wide variety of stockists.

Learning how to play a guitar is a life changing experience, and one which should definitely be pursued. No wonder it features highly on the list of skills that people would like to master. If you follow the steps above, have a little patience and perseverance, you too will learn how to play a guitar.

You've probably heard practice makes perfect, right?  Well here's a great source that will identify that perfect practice makes perfect at http://www.learn2playguitarfast.com/learning-guitar-beginner-guitar-lesson-one-practice-schedule/.

Realistically, to start improving on guitar, you’re going to need to set aside a bit of time to practice. Developing a daily routine is a good idea… planning to spend at least 15 minutes daily practicing all you’ve learned will really help. At first, your fingers will be sore, but by playing daily, they’ll toughen up, and in a short amount of time, they’ll stop hurting.

The following list should give you an idea of how to spend your practice time:

Get your guitar in tune. Make sure you’re sitting, holding the guitar, and using your pick properly. You’ll have to correct your natural bad habits at first, until it becomes second nature. Play the chromatic scale several times. Try playing it backwards. Play each of the three chords you’ve learned. Check to be sure each note is ringing. If not, find out why, and correct the problem. Try moving from one chord to another. Before switching chords, mentally picture exactly where each finger is going to move in order to play the next chord. Only then should you switch chords.

Another tool that is an essential part to learning to play guitar is a metronome.  If you apply this tip from the very beginning when you pick up the guitar for the first time, your timing will be spot on.  Check this out to learn how to effectively use a metronome http://learntheguitarlessons.com/beginners-guitar-lessons/how-to-use-a-metronome/ .

The old saying “you’ve got to walk before you can run” certainly holds true when you want start out with guitar lessons. It’s very easy to see your favorite guitar hero rip off a blistering solo and then excitedly grab your guitar and try to shred a few hundred notes out at mach speed, only to be totally let down when it sounds like complete musical gibberish.

The thing that’s easy to forget when you see these shredders soloing all over the guitar neck is that they all had to start somewhere too! Chances are very good that they started exactly where you started and they could not play much of anything in the early days let alone solo like a mad man.

Whether you want to learn to play fast impressive guitar solos or simply want to be able to play cleanly with no mistakes in a nice, fluid manner, the very best way to make either of these happen is to learn how to use a metronome.

Metronomes come in a variety of shapes and styles but they all serve the same basic service which is to keep time. They’ll usually have a dial that allows you to select how many beats you want to it to tick at, as well as a speaker to hear the ticks and sometimes a light so you can see the beat ticking away.

In addition to handheld metronomes there are also software versions that you can install on your Mac, PC, iPhone, iPad etc or if you’re really old school like me, you can use a drum machine.

To use the metronome effectively, you’ve got to have a piece of music or a scale or run that you’re working on and play through it a few times with no metronome to get the notes under your fingers and try them out a few times. Next you’ll start the metronome at a moderately slow pace that allows you to comfortably play the exercise or scale with no mistakes.

When you’ve got the piece mastered at the starting tempo and you can play it backward and frontward with no mistakes, you can speed the metronome up a few BPM (beats per minute). Don’t be too anxious to move the speed up too soon. This is the building blocks of your lead guitar playing and the more seriously you take learning to play clean in the early days, the better guitarist you’ll become.

You may be in a position where what you need to start playing guitar is motivation.  Good healthy motivation is a key factor to start doing anything that may be uncomfortable to you.  Here are some great tips at http://www.abclearnguitar.com/guitarplayingtips.html.

Here are the 5 greatest tips of all times made by famous people and how they can apply to guitar playing. I've heard and read these tips over the several years and all of them have earned their weight in gold:

1) “What You Think, You Become.” –Ghandi

I came across this quote in the book entitled “Fearless Creating”, which is written by Eric Maisel . It emphasized the possibleness that the things we try to make all begin in our ideas, and imagination. I cast this quote on my wall, my notepad, my hand, everywhere for a number of years to remind myself to keep my purpose present in my mind, and it always assisted me to not give a whole lot of attention to uninvited negative thoughts and my automatic ones, such as..SEX!

2) “There is Always a Way” -Vinnie Colaiuta

I've read this in an interview with Vinnie in a friend’s magazine some years back relating to drums. The entire gist of the article was that when he was faced with a abstract problem, or when he was trying to pick up something especially challenging, or new, he was of the mind that there was “always a way” to get it, be it an adjustment of posture, a new way of looking at the execution of it, a new way of playing the blues guitar instrument, something to change to accomplish what was previously believed to be “impossible”. I always try to use this when moving up the food chain, trying to get to the succeeding level. It has resulted in some great results, if not necessarily technical prowess, certainly something creative and unique.

3) “Poor Artists Borrow, Great Artists Steal” -Picasso or Stravinsky

I have overheard that it was either one of these extraordinary artists who said this. Also a corrolary…”To be a really good guitarist, you must copy the styles of other blues guitarists.”-Frank Gambale.

Well, first what can we steal? Chord progressions, tempo, groove, melodic phrase, (backwards melody!) Expressive style, mental attitude. What is the difference between that and “borrowing”? I think the great artist turns his thievery into something entirely his own, perhaps by unabashedly admitting the theft and developing it into a whole new foundation. Think –The Beatles, Prince, Stevie Ray Vaughan, Jimmie Page, Clapton, Ornette Coleman, Elvis. Whereas the “borrower” is feigning to us that his original work has never before been heard and they have a contrived quality. This can be a very fine line.

Prior to ever reading the interview with Frank Gambale, saying that imitating styles was a invaluable tool, I was intrusted to some obscure concept of “being original”. When I acquired the accuracy of that affirmation, I set about to work, and it has changed my life. I embraced the point of view that I was a student, and had a great deal to learn from those who preceded me, that music and its history was outside of myself, and was greater than I was. I am now a firm believer that both of these aspects expand one’s growth to an immense degree. They give the player completely fresh languages to speak, and once you speak new languages, you will be able to create your personal great stories. Stories with depth and richness.

4) “The Impossible Can Be Accomplished Through Meditation and Concentration” -The Cup and Saucer Guy

I recall being kind of trapped on a plateau with my blues guitar playing at one point. I had achieved a good deal, but I didn’t know how to really move ahead. I was watching a variety tv show on television one night. A man came on balancing one hundred cups and saucers. He did this for what appeared to be a very long time and then he allow them to all crash around him. As the audience applauded his effort, the host asked him how he had learned to do this. His answer was that through meditation, he was able to achieve the necessary concentration. I began my own meditation methods, first applying a easy technique of being still, which I had discovered in the pieces of writing of people like J. Krishnamurti, and Tara Singh. Nothing which requires years to master, but a simple way of continuing to quiet the mind, increasing concentration, focus, and listening, just being in a very calm and relaxed state, paying attention. I now carry this stillness and relaxation to all my guitar performances.

5) “The Three Month Rule” -Roger Mckinley

Roger Mckinley was a associate student at Berklee. Roger was also a very gifted rock and blues guitarist, who, when I first came across him, was imitating Pat Martino. Just 2 years later, had created his own explosive unique style. ( see tip#3!) He left the jaws of many around him agape (and he never seemed to be committing any effort into it!) I was surprised that he befriended lil’ ol’ me and was willing to jam with me. I understood and leanr so much from him on just a single jam session. One of the things he told me is that it takes a good 8 weeks to bring an element of originality into your playing. This has saved me a good deal of frustration, and tempered my natural impatience. I have come to a conclusion that no matter how much I practise something, it is usually the better part of 8 weeks before I actually can master it.

I hope you can use these practical and inspirational quotes to bring your music and guitar playing to greater heights.

Lastly, you may feel that times are tough right now.  Undoubtedly, listening to your favorite music will always help, but you may also be surprised how learning to play music will help too.  Here's something that may help wherever you are in life right now http://emediaguitarmethod.net/guitar/even-a-bad-economy-can-still-result-in-some-good-music/164/.

Although a bad economy may have some negative effects, a lot of people realize that there may be a lot to learn from a positive outlook in life. Throughout the years, there have been some interesting findings in terms of the music industry and music equipment. There are many factors including financial, emotional and economic influences which determine how we feel on a daily basis. Musicians have known for years that playing music plays an important role in living a higher quality of life.

Guitars have been around for decades and guitar playing has been a favorite pastime among many. While some people make a living by playing the guitar, the vast majority of guitar players are hobby musicians who play for recreation, enjoyment and to entertain others. Regardless of economic times, people have a strong desire to connect with one another and guitar playing provides a means of personal connection and memories . If you think back to some of the songs you are familiar with, I am sure you can pick out some songs that make you feel better when you are sad or other songs that bring back a memory from your past.

If you look back, you may notice that the blues has played a larger role in the history of pop music than any other genre across a wide spectrum. Blues was originated from tough times experienced by poor African-American slaves and has become the framework for most of the music we hear today. Without the blues, many of the music today would simply not exist. These blues pioneers were hard working individuals who used music as an expression, an escape to temporarily forget their hardships and struggles. Their music brought people together to form strong connections both emotionally and mentally.

Although the blues originated from mostly desperate times, there have been recent years where pop music has been dominated by loud guitars and heavy tones. Take the 1980′s for instance. There was an abundance of excess from the guitar players and musicians during that time. Rock music often consisted of extravagant, live stage performances with crazy charismatic characters and wild wardrobes. No expense was spared in putting on a performance involving pyrotechnics and bizarre costumes. The tone of the music was different, too. Songs were written by guitar players involving fast cars, living on the edge, drugs and alcohol, not to mention an extreme lifestyle.

All of the fame, fortune and freedom of musical expression is possible because of the hard work and determination of millions of musicians worldwide. The world now has greater choices in music equipment such as acoustic and electric guitars, and for someone looking to take up playing the guitar, the choices are limitless. When times are good, people tend to buy things they want or have always wanted. An example would be a hobby musician who has grown up with an electric guitar wanting to venture out in the the world of acoustic guitars.

Same is true for tough economic times, although the thought process may be a little different. For someone looking to take up guitar playing during hard times, a guitar may be an excellent investment. When considering how inexpensive, entry level guitars have become, guitar as a hobby can be quite affordable. When you consider that for a small investment, you can have a hobby that can provide a lifetime of enjoyment and personal growth, buying a guitar makes a lot of sense. Additionally, when times are tough, one may consider to strip down to the bare necessities which could lead to an opportunity to buy a new guitar at a fraction of the original price.

When all things are considered, it is clear to envision why guitar playing and interest in music equipment is growing. For those wanting to play the guitar, there are opportunities for emotional, physical and psychological growth, not to mention there are a number of musicians who have struggled through tough times crafting their skills on their guitar only to be rewarded financially. There are countless musicians who started out struggling and have learned to make a career playing music, especially the guitar. In the end, the key is hard wok, determination and lots of practice. After all, some of the greatest music we have originated from tougher times.

Don't wait!  Learn to play the guitar today.  Use this advice as a positive tool to start off on the right track to reach your guitar playing goal.

Stay tuned.

Mike