Learning the guitar
Discussion
I’m looking for a new hobby and a way to clear my head at the end of the day.
Are there any recommended courses to sign up to?
I quite like the idea of country and/or blues.
Will also obviously need a guitar, but where to start? Acoustic? Electric with an amp? Total beginner but quite good at sticking stuff out when I set my mind to it.
Cheers
Are there any recommended courses to sign up to?
I quite like the idea of country and/or blues.
Will also obviously need a guitar, but where to start? Acoustic? Electric with an amp? Total beginner but quite good at sticking stuff out when I set my mind to it.
Cheers
First decision I’d say is do you want to play electric or acoustic? Better to learn to play on the type you want to play. Get yourself along to a local guitar shop and talk to them.
Lots of great content on you tube. Justinguitar was who I used.
Practice. 15 mins a day is better than 2 hours once a week.
Once you’ve got basics like tuning, a handful of chords, a couple of scales and strumming patterns sorted it might be an idea to find a local teacher, try to find one who can teach the type of music you like and understands what you want to achieve.
I ended up with a young lad who was more interested in song writing than learning a back catalogue - fine if you want to become a musician but all I wanted to do was learn to play songs I liked.
Have fun!
Lots of great content on you tube. Justinguitar was who I used.
Practice. 15 mins a day is better than 2 hours once a week.
Once you’ve got basics like tuning, a handful of chords, a couple of scales and strumming patterns sorted it might be an idea to find a local teacher, try to find one who can teach the type of music you like and understands what you want to achieve.
I ended up with a young lad who was more interested in song writing than learning a back catalogue - fine if you want to become a musician but all I wanted to do was learn to play songs I liked.
Have fun!
Edited by Lefty on Wednesday 5th June 05:08
I have played on and off since I was a teenager and basically taught myself, but I would have got on a lot better if I had had a few lessons. So I think it's important to find a local tutor who can show you how to get started and point you in the direction of a suitable guitar, because there is a huge amount of choice. You can learn a lot from watching and listening to others, both live and online, but you need to have some idea of what they are doing first. A good player makes it all look easy, but sadly it is not.
If you want to play country or blues then you need a steel-strung acoustic, and perhaps consider one with a built- in preamp which you can plug in to an amp at a later stage if you want to. It needn't be expensive - it's a very competitive market and most budget priced brands nowadays are quite good. Most however can be improved by better strings and adjustment of the string height (called the "action") which makes it a bit easier to play. You also have to consider the width of the neck and fretboard - don't choose one which is too narrow, and if you want to play finger style - individual notes rather than strumming - then a wide fretboard is easier. There is a lot of variation in overall sound quality as well. So there is much to think about, hence you need to get some advice. Most independent music shops are run by enthusiasts and are knowledgeable and helpful.
You will need to learn a bit of music theory, but you can get by with very little. You don't need to be able to read music, but it definitely helps if you can. You will also learn more quickly if you have somebody else who you get on with to play with, and literally compare notes as you go. It's a bit of a grind working it all out on your own without any standard to refer to. Oh, and your fingers will be very sore for the first few weeks. But don't let that put you off, and keep at it. It is worth it.
If you want to play country or blues then you need a steel-strung acoustic, and perhaps consider one with a built- in preamp which you can plug in to an amp at a later stage if you want to. It needn't be expensive - it's a very competitive market and most budget priced brands nowadays are quite good. Most however can be improved by better strings and adjustment of the string height (called the "action") which makes it a bit easier to play. You also have to consider the width of the neck and fretboard - don't choose one which is too narrow, and if you want to play finger style - individual notes rather than strumming - then a wide fretboard is easier. There is a lot of variation in overall sound quality as well. So there is much to think about, hence you need to get some advice. Most independent music shops are run by enthusiasts and are knowledgeable and helpful.
You will need to learn a bit of music theory, but you can get by with very little. You don't need to be able to read music, but it definitely helps if you can. You will also learn more quickly if you have somebody else who you get on with to play with, and literally compare notes as you go. It's a bit of a grind working it all out on your own without any standard to refer to. Oh, and your fingers will be very sore for the first few weeks. But don't let that put you off, and keep at it. It is worth it.
Thanks both, maybe the best option is to find a local music shop and ask some questions.
I used to be able to read music, I was Grade 4 on the trumpet as a 12 year old
and did have some guitar lessons even younger than that, a long time ago.
Looking for a hobby and a reason to disappear into the man cave for an hour a day!
I used to be able to read music, I was Grade 4 on the trumpet as a 12 year old
and did have some guitar lessons even younger than that, a long time ago.Looking for a hobby and a reason to disappear into the man cave for an hour a day!
AB said:
Thanks both, maybe the best option is to find a local music shop and ask some questions.
I used to be able to read music, I was Grade 4 on the trumpet as a 12 year old and did have some guitar lessons even younger than that, a long time ago.
Looking for a hobby and a reason to disappear into the man cave for an hour a day!
Father in law started in his late 60's and is getting pretty good now 10 years later, we can sing beatles songs along with him!!I used to be able to read music, I was Grade 4 on the trumpet as a 12 year old
and did have some guitar lessons even younger than that, a long time ago.Looking for a hobby and a reason to disappear into the man cave for an hour a day!
Enjoy.
AB said:
Thanks both, maybe the best option is to find a local music shop and ask some questions.
I used to be able to read music, I was Grade 4 on the trumpet as a 12 year old and did have some guitar lessons even younger than that, a long time ago.
Looking for a hobby and a reason to disappear into the man cave for an hour a day!
I'm sure being able to read sheet music will be a big help, I can't! Loads of material available in TAB which makes it really simple.I used to be able to read music, I was Grade 4 on the trumpet as a 12 year old
and did have some guitar lessons even younger than that, a long time ago.Looking for a hobby and a reason to disappear into the man cave for an hour a day!
I started on electric guitars and ended up with quite a few, I did have a parlour acoustic but never used it and actually ended up buying a resonator (a Gretsch Honey Dipper) and now that is all I play, the electric guitars are mere ornaments.
I started during lockdown. I bought the cheapest Fender acoustic I could find and started with a few of the Marty Music free lessons online. I was practising every day and picked up the chords pretty quickly. But I found it a bit of a dead end as I was learning chords and strumming patterns but not really playing any songs which I think was due to it being a US site and Marty being wary about copyright.
The positive part is that for about £150 I worked out that I was enjoying it and wanted to carry on.
I then switched to electric picking up an unplayed PRS SE on Ebay and Mrs Knee buying me a practice amp for my birthday which cost around £700 all in but you easily get something playable for a lot less. My kids also arranged for lessons with a guy who I immediately got on with and was playing something recognisable from the first lesson. I have quite broad tastes in music but tend towards 60s British Rock and Blues but we zip all over the place-Pixies, The Cranberries, The Who, Rolling Stones, AC-DC, The Beatles, BB King etc. I don't read music at all but using TAB notation which is pretty easy to pick up.
I was lucky that I (my kids) found a teacher who understood what I wanted and what I didn't want (hours playing scales) so it keeps it all fun and I can keep interested and motivated. If I want to do more in theory and scales (which I may do in the future as it is really useful if you are soloing or more advanced noodling about) my teacher can do that as well but I may have left it a bit too late to get really good.
The main thing is to keep it fun which will mean you want to pick the guitar up every day.
The positive part is that for about £150 I worked out that I was enjoying it and wanted to carry on.
I then switched to electric picking up an unplayed PRS SE on Ebay and Mrs Knee buying me a practice amp for my birthday which cost around £700 all in but you easily get something playable for a lot less. My kids also arranged for lessons with a guy who I immediately got on with and was playing something recognisable from the first lesson. I have quite broad tastes in music but tend towards 60s British Rock and Blues but we zip all over the place-Pixies, The Cranberries, The Who, Rolling Stones, AC-DC, The Beatles, BB King etc. I don't read music at all but using TAB notation which is pretty easy to pick up.
I was lucky that I (my kids) found a teacher who understood what I wanted and what I didn't want (hours playing scales) so it keeps it all fun and I can keep interested and motivated. If I want to do more in theory and scales (which I may do in the future as it is really useful if you are soloing or more advanced noodling about) my teacher can do that as well but I may have left it a bit too late to get really good.
The main thing is to keep it fun which will mean you want to pick the guitar up every day.
Edited by Dicky Knee on Wednesday 5th June 10:36
AB said:
I’m looking for a new hobby and a way to clear my head at the end of the day.
Are there any recommended courses to sign up to?
I quite like the idea of country and/or blues.
Will also obviously need a guitar, but where to start? Acoustic? Electric with an amp? Total beginner but quite good at sticking stuff out when I set my mind to it.
Cheers
Personally, I think you're heading in the right direction. Even after playing for 35 years, I still look forward coming home after work and spending an hour or so on the guitar every evening just chilling out. Are there any recommended courses to sign up to?
I quite like the idea of country and/or blues.
Will also obviously need a guitar, but where to start? Acoustic? Electric with an amp? Total beginner but quite good at sticking stuff out when I set my mind to it.
Cheers
As for choosing an acoustic or electric, and specifically for country / blues, I can't speak for country but for blues it all depends if you want to play this sort of stuff:-
or this:-
(BTW, in the second vid, Albert was a left-handed guitarist who played a right-handed guitar upside down)
AB said:
Will also obviously need a guitar, but where to start? Acoustic? Electric with an amp? Total beginner but quite good at sticking stuff out when I set my mind to it.
Great stuff!Personally I think that electrics are easier to play than acoustics (typically lighter strings & lower actions).
If you go down the electric route and like blues then any 'traditional' Stratocaster, Telecaster or Les Paul style guitar will be a great place to start. Choose a maple (light wood) or rosewood (dark wood) fretboard based on visual appeal (arguably it affects tone and playability, but not enough to worry about as a beginner, so buy what you like the look of).
Yamaha Pacificas are often recommended as great value beginner guitars (https://www.thomann.de/gb/yamaha_pacifica_112v_vw_rl.htm), but you'll find plenty of others options. Established brands include Fender (Squier is their more affordable cheaper range), Gibson (Epiphone is their more affordable range), PRS (SE is their more affordable range - get great reviews), Ibanez (generally more rock/metal focussed...normally very good quality but with confusing model numbers!), etc. Online retainer Thomann has their in-house Harley Benton range too, which offer guitars with comparatively high specs at very low prices (they also do lots of beginner friendly bundles: https://www.thomann.de/gb/guitar_sets.html).
Most practice amps will be fine to begin with and 10W will be more than loud enough (arguably 1W is still more than enough for home use). If you have to have something bigger, the Boss Katana range offers amazing value (and lots of built-in effects) and are insanely popular as a result (https://www.thomann.de/gb/boss_katana_50_mkii.htm).
Don't be afraid to buy secondhand but if at all possible get someone who knows about guitars to check things over before you accept them, so you don't end up buying something with a twisted neck, worn out frets, dodgy electrics, etc.
I'd say there is no easier guitar for a beginner than a classical. Wide necks, short scale length, low tension, wide strings. I have over a dozen guitars & after 30 years playing, nothing feels as good in my hands as my £130 Takamine classical. And guitars are a journey, you always want another.
but if I were to offer one piece of advice to a total beginner, it's this. Go to a shop, speak to the guys & get them to hand you a few. Go with your heart & buy the one that feels the best in your hands. ignore flashy colours or sparkly inlays, always go with the one you know you'll want to pick up again & again. and stick at it. everyone is rubbish for a while, it feels impossible untill it doesn't and that comes with putting in practice.
Hours & hours of it - don't underestimate the commitment. I have known lots of people give up because they were sure they'd be Jimi Hendrix in six weeks. That's two pieces of advice I realise but I doubt many long term players would disagree. On the upside, look aroud you, there are millions of players - it can be done! Good luck.
but if I were to offer one piece of advice to a total beginner, it's this. Go to a shop, speak to the guys & get them to hand you a few. Go with your heart & buy the one that feels the best in your hands. ignore flashy colours or sparkly inlays, always go with the one you know you'll want to pick up again & again. and stick at it. everyone is rubbish for a while, it feels impossible untill it doesn't and that comes with putting in practice.
Hours & hours of it - don't underestimate the commitment. I have known lots of people give up because they were sure they'd be Jimi Hendrix in six weeks. That's two pieces of advice I realise but I doubt many long term players would disagree. On the upside, look aroud you, there are millions of players - it can be done! Good luck.
If you're just starting playing I would go with a steel string acoustic, a dreadnought with a thin neck.
Can't go wrong with a Yamaha acoustic and don't spend a lot on it - the cheaper ones are actually really good guitars.
If you are using a pick / plectrum then I would always recommend a steel string guitar over a classical / Spanish guitar. Fingerstyle is a different conversation.
Learn all of the major and minor chords and practice the corresponding major and minor scales - most popular blues and country tunes use pentatonic scales. Once you have mastered musical keys and some basic scales the rest is quite easy.... If you really want to progress, get lessons from a person rather than doing online courses - although you tube is good.
Can't go wrong with a Yamaha acoustic and don't spend a lot on it - the cheaper ones are actually really good guitars.
If you are using a pick / plectrum then I would always recommend a steel string guitar over a classical / Spanish guitar. Fingerstyle is a different conversation.
Learn all of the major and minor chords and practice the corresponding major and minor scales - most popular blues and country tunes use pentatonic scales. Once you have mastered musical keys and some basic scales the rest is quite easy.... If you really want to progress, get lessons from a person rather than doing online courses - although you tube is good.
My two pennyworth
Yamaha Pacifica electric & Fender Acoustic both bought s/h. Had the Fender re set up by an expert (can give you his name if you live in N Yorks).
Played off and on for years, took over my son's guitar lessons after he stopped (long story). Then I moved away too and started using the vids of Marty and a number of others plus the Justin books. Thereby lies my problem. I keep jumping about and really need to connect with a new teacher where I live now. There's no substitute for one to one instruction AND practice.
Yamaha Pacifica electric & Fender Acoustic both bought s/h. Had the Fender re set up by an expert (can give you his name if you live in N Yorks).
Played off and on for years, took over my son's guitar lessons after he stopped (long story). Then I moved away too and started using the vids of Marty and a number of others plus the Justin books. Thereby lies my problem. I keep jumping about and really need to connect with a new teacher where I live now. There's no substitute for one to one instruction AND practice.
Yahonza said:
If you're just starting playing I would go with a steel string acoustic, a dreadnought with a thin neck.
Can't go wrong with a Yamaha acoustic and don't spend a lot on it - the cheaper ones are actually really good guitars.
If you are using a pick / plectrum then I would always recommend a steel string guitar over a classical / Spanish guitar. Fingerstyle is a different conversation.
Learn all of the major and minor chords and practice the corresponding major and minor scales - most popular blues and country tunes use pentatonic scales. Once you have mastered musical keys and some basic scales the rest is quite easy.... If you really want to progress, get lessons from a person rather than doing online courses - although you tube is good.
Agree with this. If you like blues then its a really good place to centre your learning as it can start simple but capable of increasing layers of complexity and even cross over into jazz. It's a really solid basis for learning music theory as its a relatively (but deceptively) simple format.Can't go wrong with a Yamaha acoustic and don't spend a lot on it - the cheaper ones are actually really good guitars.
If you are using a pick / plectrum then I would always recommend a steel string guitar over a classical / Spanish guitar. Fingerstyle is a different conversation.
Learn all of the major and minor chords and practice the corresponding major and minor scales - most popular blues and country tunes use pentatonic scales. Once you have mastered musical keys and some basic scales the rest is quite easy.... If you really want to progress, get lessons from a person rather than doing online courses - although you tube is good.
Also some artists who are described as bluesmen like Mississipi John Hurt and Rev. Gary Davis have tunes that are outside the 12 and 8 bar formats and much more 'country' and 'bluegrass'. These are finger style tunes. I think it would be difficult to get far with acoustic blues without having fingerstyle skills ie. thumb for bass and i,m,r for treble strings
They come from the same origin but I think there's a basic distinction between acoustic and electric blues. If you think about an accomplished player like Clapton, do you like his acoustic (usually covers of Robert Johnson etc.) or his electric stuff - essentially lead playing. This will instinctively guide you where you want to go.
I would definitely push you towards acoustic as personally I wasted a lot of time noodling over a backing track playing simple pentatonic licks when I I couldn't lay down a convincing groove on an acoustic. Blues was the equivalent of EDM 100 years ago and guitarists had to keep people dancing. To this end I'd recommend practising with a metronome. John Lee Hooker and Muddy Waters grooves are great for this and the basis of many rock classics - these work on both acoustic and electric. To me someone laying down a solid groove that gets you nodding or your feet tapping is way more impressive then loose fingerpicking or noodling on an electric.
If you get reasonably proficient on an acoustic and toughen your fingers then an electric will feel easier when the time comes.
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