Guitars - From The Beginning

Guitars are one of the most common instruments that music lovers choose to play.  You can recreate sounds from your childhood or from the past after learning a few simple cords to strum.  However, learning to play such an intricate instrument such as the guitar is the same with everything else; it takes a large amount of practice and determination.  You have to be willing to practice on a daily basis in order to excel with the instrument.  If you do not have the time to practice, then learning the basics of beginner guitar is probably not for you.  But, if you take the time to go forth with the instrument, you will be amazed at how well you can be playing in such a short amount of time.   

Your first step is to decide how you are going to learn to play the guitar.  If you have had any previous musical experience, such as knowing how to read music, then the process with go much more smoothly.  You can teach yourself with a beginner’s guitar book; however, if you have a person to help you it will be much easier.  If you are not able to read music, many of the beginner books will show you how to do that as well.   

While purchasing a guitar online might allow you to find a better deal, it is often a better choice to ask a local music store for suggestions, or your instructor.  The strings on some of the guitars are very hard to hold down for beginners, and you cannot learn to play on these types of strings until you have built up enough calluses on your fingers.   

Many beginner guitars have strings that are slightly more loose to help with the learning process.  It might not be a wise choice to purchase a very expensive guitar your first time around.  You need to make sure that the investment will be worth it, and you will not know this until you have mastered the art of the guitar.  However, keep in mind that extremely cheap guitars are harder to keep tuned and often harder to play.   

One thing that can help you excel is to listen to guitar solos in songs.  Listening is usually the best type of learning.  Many instructors also recommend this and they will usually have you choose a song that you want to learn and request that you listen to it over and over again.  Choose wisely, because a very hard song is not always the best option.  You have to go slowly and learn the basics first.   

“Wonderwall” by Oasis is a great song that is simple for all beginners to learn.  The song made the top 10 list in the U.S. and the hot top 100 in 1995 when it was first released.  You can search online for the guitar tabs to the song on search engines such as Google.  Neil Young’s song “Heart of Gold” is another easy song to learn.  It made the Rolling Stone top 500 list, and it has a deep meaning.  Overall, the song is easy and very popular for beginner guitarists.  There are many sites online that allow you to download these songs for free so that you can listen to them.   

The desire to learn the guitar is often not enough in order to learn.  You also have to have determination and the ability to have patience when you are not able to get it right the first time.  Try not to get frustrated, and know that your fingers will eventually toughen up enough for you to be able to play on any guitar.  The first steps are the hardest, but after you learn, it is like riding a bicycle; you will never be able to forget.