Learn to Play Acoustic Guitar

Archive for May, 2010

There are so many tools for learning how to play guitar that you can get on the internet, it makes you wonder whether how to play guitar books have a place in the world of technology. When you used to have to learn to play guitar from a teacher you always had to have a book that you learnt out of. It was a way of making sure you and your teacher understood where you were in your guitar playing. And if you did not have a teacher you possibly learnt to play guitar by copying what you heard on the radio or on records. Even then you probably had to go out and buy a guitar tutor or at least a chord book.

The advantage of books is that the printed page is a record of information that you might learn today but need to refresh your memory at some time in the future. Video guitar lessons are a fantastic way to learn to play the guitar but the written word has its own way of expressing thoughts or helping you with your approach to music, and you do not have to go through the laborious process of fast forwarding through countless videos to remind yourself of something the teacher said. Also a book can be read when the power is down and you have to practice on an acoustic guitar by candlelight!

So let us look at a few really excellent how to books for guitar. An example of concise, easy to understand, useful guitar info is “The Guitar Book” by Chris Lopez. This book not only contains all the solid information you need to begin your life as a guitar player, you will find it is an inspiration to share in the author’s obvious passion for the guitar. This book has everything for the beginner guitar player: basic chords, changing from major chords to minor, chord progressions, playing blues guitar through to slightly more advanced but extremely useful stuff like transposing a chord progression if the original key is not right for your voice. If you are sticking with playing chords to accompany your singing or if you want to get into solo guitar, this book should be by your bedside.

“The Everything Guitar Book” by Ernie Jackson promises to have you playing like a pro in no time. It certainly contains all the basic information like some history of the guitar and the names of all the parts of the instrument, and all the basic chords. This is the kind of stuff you would expect to find in a how to play guitar book. You also have a reference guide for the information you will need to keep in your head as you learn how to play guitar. The circle of fifths is covered,as are scales and arpeggios. You are introduced to playing songs by getting to know what you can play on the treble strings first, then you are introduced to bass patterns.

“The Everything Guitar Book” also introduces you to guitar players you should know about in whatever musical genre you are interested in whether it is classical, jazz, blues, flamenco or whatever is in between. The book then gives you an intro to playing electric guitar, buying an instrument and finding a teacher. Like any book that covers everything, there are some spots that you will need to explore elsewhere but this is a good first book for a beginner guitarist.

Frederick Noad is a classical guitar player and teacher who wrote a famous classical guitar tutor called “Solo Guitar Playing”. He also wrote a book aimed at the wider world of guitar players called “The Complete Idiot’s Guide to Playing the Guitar”. This book carries a heavy classical guitar orientation but it also gives a good start for playing blues and flamenco. So it is a book for acoustic guitar players, but it is by a guy who know how to get the best from his instrument without causing severe injury to his hands and back and without using amplification. If you are a rock guitarist, do not skip past this book. There is a bunch of stuff in here that will help you become a great guitarist, and you probably will not find this kind of material anywhere else. Get it.

Ricky Sharples
http://www.articlesbase.com/music-articles/how-to-play-guitar-books-688644.html

Today’s electric guitar amps are a crucial  piece of a guitarists arsenal. There’s no doubt that everyone loves the sound of an acoustic guitar. But, it’s just hard to beat the driving, energy making vibe of an electric guitar. To get the most out of that electric guitar, you’re definitely going to need a good electric guitar amplifier. There are so many different units to select from, that it can get a little overwhelming. Simply walk into your local music shop and see all the available models.

Do not let the salesperson sucker you with fancy jargon when discussing these amplifiers. The best thing to do is to try them out and figure out which one sounds the greatest to you. What may sound satisfactory to one person may sound totally opposite to you. After all, you will be the one who is going to be paying for it and using it. Another thing, after you’ve discovered the model you like the best, get on the web and do a little cost shopping. If you can find it for a lower price, find out if the salesperson will match the cost. This way, they make the sale and you don’t have to wait.

Electric guitar amplifiers have been around since the 1930’s. Guitars were the first instruments to actually benefit from being amplified. It took a little spell to make it precise, but with the progression of electronics followed more quality built amplifiers. Matched with an electric guitar, this produced a new trend of music. It wasn’t the first time a guitar had been amplified, as acoustic guitars had been miked earlier. But, this was something different.

The early units had a limited ability to control the creation of decent sound quality. These amplifiers were just so basic. They missed having a satisfactory bass sound while providing a pretty solid treble sound. But, over time, the producers started bestowing more control to the amplifiers. Reverb and tremelo effects were two of the original additions. Today’s models provide all kinds of effects to fit your taste.

Electric guitar amps today basically come in four models, and this is decided on their inner make up:

Tube. The oldest type, and commonly the best sounding have glass tubes on the inside.
Solid State. Have transistors instead of glass tubes and sounds good at medium levels.
Digital. Equals the sound of a tube amp and is frequently chosen by masters.
Hybrid. A combination of tube and solid state that doesn’t produce the best sound.

It’s truly going to boil down to you traveling to a music shop and examining the amplifiers yourself. The good thing about that is you’ll get to try out a variety of electric guitar amps, and get to play the top of the line companies like Marshall and Crate.

Jeffrey Veal

The actual date and time of the invention of the electric guitar hasn’t ever been recognized, although it was first seen in the early 1930’s by members of orchestras and musicians. The inventors of the electric guitar at that time, who were electronically minded individuals, realized that the guitar needed to be amplified to produce louder sounds in noisy venues and to be able to be heard alongside other instruments.

The reason for this of course was due to the fact that at the time, many of the musical instruments at that time were often made of brass. With this being the case, acoustic guitars would simply not be heard in a band. This frustrated many of the musicians, because the guitar was a popular instrument and was simply being pushed out of the music place.

The version of the instrument that is best known today is the solid body electric guitar, a guitar made of solid wood, without resonating airspaces within it. The electric guitar of this type has an innovation of technology which includes a pickup of some kind that actually causes the vibration from the strings being played to sound through some kind of amplifier. Obviously, the amplifier for the electric guitar was also an issue and the earliest of these often had tubes as televisions did during that time period.

Electric guitars in history have been rather heavy due to the inner components. Over the past few decades the electric guitar has been getting lighter and lighter. The electric guitar and the components are essentially made out of not only lighter wood, but the actual pickup is smaller. This allows for a bigger sound. In fact, some of these electric guitars are even becoming digital in many different aspects of the overall design of the electric guitar.

There are many web sites dedicated to the concept of the electric guitar, and those that are sold today are reasonable and affordable. It is for this reason that so many individuals today are learning to play the electric guitar more. According to statistics the number of those individuals who play the electric guitar has increased tremendously over the past decade alone. With the history of the electric guitar so long ago, the design of the body of the electric guitar has changed too. There are many different colors for the electric guitar now.

There are also those that are considered cut-outs. Cut-outs are those electric style guitars that literally have portions of the body removed for appearance. Depending on where or what type of music the guitar is going to play will usually vary in the appearance and color of the electric guitar.

Electric guitars are found in most bands today. From classical music, rock music and other styles, to ultimately country music that often used acoustic guitars in times past. Many of the electric guitars now also have add-ons or pedals for the guitar that can essentially make the electric guitar sound like any instrument. This is a big advancement from the 1930’s when the entire idea of an electric guitar was simply so it could be heard among the other instruments in a band.

Richard Neesal

Many young people of today who are interested in modern music have a love for the sound of an electric guitar and when asked if they would like to learn how to play a musical instrument, the electric guitar is always a favorite. However, some guitarists will tell you that it’s so much easier to learn how to play an acoustic guitar first of all. Why do you think that is? Well, one thing to bear in mind is that electric guitars have steel strings. If you are not used to playing a guitar, your fingertips will be soft so the steel strings are likely to feel very uncomfortable, even painful at times.

If you decide to begin with an acoustic model, by the time your fingers have hardened sufficiently on the softer strings, you well be well on the road to knowing your chords and many other aspects of playing needed for the electric guitar. The transformation will be quite simple. On the other hand, some guitarists will say, just go with the type of guitar which is best suited to your taste in music. So if an electric guitar is the instrument of your choice, then go for it.! Remember to start off gently in order to let your fingers get used to the steel strings without a blister in sight.

Aside from the strain on the fingertips, another reason to begin your guitar playing with an acoustic instrument is that you are more likely to learn how to play correctly. This means you will be laying down a good musical base instead of having to rely on sound boxes to achieve your desired results. It is important when you start to learn to play the guitar you are aware of what all the controls and knobs allow you to do. This is not just a plug and play machine. A sensitive ear is needed to get the mix just right.

A good way to learn how to play properly from the beginning is to take one to one lessons. But it really doesn’t matter which type of lessons you have as it is practise which will make you perfect. It’s the only way to learn to how to play an instrument well.

When you buy your electric guitar there are a few other pieces of equipment which you will need. It’s advisable to get the best amplifier within your budget to go with your guitar. Even the greatest or most costly guitar will sound disappointing, if the amplifier is not of good quality. You’ll also need a good effects box with lots of characteristics such as distortion, reverb, chorus, amp simulator and easy adjustment modules.

Last but not least, don’t forget the cables. Just like the amp, its better in the long run to spend your money on good quality cabling. At least then, you will not have to replace them so often.

Kevin Sinclair