By far and away one of the most popular musical instruments in the World is the guitar, I think the attraction comes from the fact that you don’t really require much else other than the guitar to play a song. Drummers, bass players or flautists generally require something else going on behind the scenes to play a song whereas a guitarist can simply pick up an acoustic and create something beautiful their own.
Playing a basic tune on a guitar can be done quite easily by many but actually being able to play the guitar is a different matter entirely. In order to be a decent guitar player then you are going to need to put the work in to master your instrument. If playing guitar is something you want to do then here are some tips to follow in order to help you succeed at it.
Start Off Acoustic
Even if you have dreams of becoming the next Steve Vai, shredding the electric guitar, playing crazy solos and stomping on the wah-wah pedal, you are better off starting with an acoustic guitar to learn your craft. To begin with, you don’t need much more than an acoustic when playing, you can buy electric acoustics but these aren’t necessary. With an acoustic you don’t need amps or cables, just the guitar and a pick. Learning first on an acoustic before the electric will help you far more when it comes to learning strumming patterns, finger picking and other playing styles. Once you hit the electric after the acoustic you will find it very easy to play.
Get Some Lessons
As with anything, the best way to learn is through being taught, you can self learn but guitar lessons are a far easier way of learning. Paying for lessons can be expensive but there are some brilliant options for you online where you can watch videos and play along. Tom Hess, Rhapsody of Fire’s former guitarist and music teacher has a great program of lessons online that can help guitarists of all abilities, check out the Tom Hess reviews to see for yourself how much he has helped people to play better. If you are going to opt for lessons then try and find lessons that are structured and will teach you all aspects of guitar playing, you could just look online and learn individual songs but if you want to truly master the guitar then learning various styles and techniques is the best way to go.
Practice
Without question, the most important part of learning to play the guitar is to practice, religiously. You should be aiming to practice for at least an hour per day, if you want to be able to play to a high level but aren’t prepared to put the hours in then you will never achieve any kind of improvement. You will see that after just a few weeks of practice that you’re ability is increasing more each day and if you truly want to be able to play the guitar then you’re going to need to put the hours in.