Master three chords: C/G/D. Practice switching between them quickly. You can play a lot of songs with those three...What should I be focusing on as a beginner?
AcerFC said:https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCmnlTWVJysjWPFiZhQ5uudg/videos
https://www.youtube.com/user/JustinSandercoeSongs/videos
Look for the beginning lessons from these two guys.
Marty also has stuff on guitajamz but Marty Music is more current
Agree with @wilked. If you can switch between those three chords, you will be solid
But your first three chords should be E Minor, A and E. Then move on to D and G. C should be last because it is the hardest
Did you buy an acoustic or electric?
Shoot, I linked the wrong Justin site. I will fixjustinguitar.com has good info too. You can go through his beginner "courses" in order. And it's free. I learned a lot (starting from complete zero knowledge) that way.
well a lot (and perhaps all) of his videos are on YouTube as well, but the website has sort of a roadmap which was helpful for a clueless meShoot, I linked the wrong Justin site. I will fix
I linked his song channel on youtube. I fixed it to his regular channel with all the videos you just mentionedwell a lot (and perhaps all) of his videos are on YouTube as well, but the website has sort of a roadmap which was helpful for a clueless me
Not the way I play.I linked his song channel on youtube. I fixed it to his regular channel with all the videos you just mentioned
Does playing guitar get you lots of hugs?
I have 3 that I suck at playing!I think the OP should buy another guitar ASAP. I'm sick and tired of being the worst guitar player with more than one guitar on the face of the Earth.![]()
I would start working on barre chords. Simple E and A based barre's can be fun and expand your ability to play more songs. You will start to learn some of the physics behind the guitar and understand octaves and how to change the key of a song. Then you can move to various strumming and picking patterns, etc.My problem is, other than probably just lack of talent, is this... I know most (or all) of the basic chords. I can manage on a few of the harder ones (F, etc.), but even just trying to stick to the basic ones, while I can play a few songs with simple melodies, I don't know what do to next. I am sure there are things I'm not doing right. I guess I don't know what to practice to get better and advance my skills. Any tips from the pros?
Acoustic or electric?My problem is, other than probably just lack of talent, is this... I know most (or all) of the basic chords. I can manage on a few of the harder ones (F, etc.), but even just trying to stick to the basic ones, while I can play a few songs with simple melodies, I don't know what do to next. I am sure there are things I'm not doing right. I guess I don't know what to practice to get better and advance my skills. Any tips from the pros?
I have both, but acoustic most of the time.Acoustic or electric?
If acoustic, challenge yourself to write your own song. Stick with the I,IV,V progression that works
Learn different strumming patters and get good playing arpeggios
If electric, start learning the Pentatonic scale and work on soloing. It takes a while, but you will get there and start linking patterns
Work on singing a song while playing. This one took me an entire year to be able to do
If it’s an acoustic work on strum patterns.My problem is, other than probably just lack of talent, is this... I know most (or all) of the basic chords. I can manage on a few of the harder ones (F, etc.), but even just trying to stick to the basic ones, while I can play a few songs with simple melodies, I don't know what do to next. I am sure there are things I'm not doing right. I guess I don't know what to practice to get better and advance my skills. Any tips from the pros?
This is an excellent post.Acoustic or electric?
If acoustic, challenge yourself to write your own song. Stick with the I,IV,V progression that works
Learn different strumming patters and get good playing arpeggios
If electric, start learning the Pentatonic scale and work on soloing. It takes a while, but you will get there and start linking patterns
Work on singing a song while playing. This one took me an entire year to be able to do
That's what I bought first. Rocksmith and the Epiphone Jr electric that came with it. Starting completely from scratch, I found it to be too difficult. The first one or two (where it was just single notes) were fine, but after that it was quickly beyond what I was able to do and I got very frustrated with it.If electric, I strongly suggest Rocksmith for the Xbox or PC. It makes the early learning part fun before you get to the point where you're actively looking to teach yourself by following Youtube videos.
I just cant get my guitar in sync with this. I try every so often. I am at the point where I can play the songs like Blitzkrieg bop but it fails me quick.If electric, I strongly suggest Rocksmith for the Xbox or PC. It makes the early learning part fun before you get to the point where you're actively looking to teach yourself by following Youtube videos.
If I had to start over again from scratch, this is what I'd recommend:wilked said:Master three chords: C/G/D. Practice switching between them quickly. You can play a lot of songs with those three...
I keep reading the thread title that he bought an AIR guitar.Focus on how to use a/an.
Agree with this. After those 3, I would learn all of the open chords (non barre chords): A major/minor, E major/minor, F major. After that, I'd learn the E and A shaped barre chords. Here's the bottom line with playing guitar. Anyone can train their fingers to make chord shapes and run through scales because it only takes persistence and work ethic. What cannot be taught, imo, is rhythm. If you can learn a few chords - and starting with C/D/G is a good start - and then play some songs in rhythm then you can definitely be as good a guitar player as the work you're willing to put in. However, if you're struggling with your rhythm (strumming hand) after a couple of months then you may want to save yourself the frustration and find another hobby. I only say this out of experience in teaching others how to play. The players who don't have rhythm struggle with the instrument. They can play the chords but if you can't play in rhythm then there is really no point. And in my experience, rhythm is the one thing that you can't really teach, it seems to be natural. Either you have it or you don't.wilked said:Master three chords: C/G/D. Practice switching between them quickly. You can play a lot of songs with those three...
I take it that was me - I guess I should have been clear that it is not the answer to rhythm and learning a song - my point was in training the fingers on where to go especially on chord changes and be able to bring that up to speed by using the metronome to get your fingers working through the transitions as you start to play at the beginning - people tense up during those changes and by starting slow and thinking through the movement, learning to relax your hand, fingers, mind while going slow helps some - the metronome just applies a time reference to complete it. Once you know how your fingers should move then by all means work on a strum patterns, rhythm and such. Get a drum track - blues shuffle track or whatever and play along. In fact you should try to do both - it's my opinion that a fast work through of a song in rhythm/time while butchering your chord changes is not helpful as well. It's a problem with some of the rocksmith stuff - you want to play a tune and all of a sudden you are at 100/120 or so tempo and missing parts cause your fingers can't make the change at speed and it all comes crashing down. And a metronome would help you stay in a 4/4 time pretty easily at the start while you practice different strum patterns - but like you said there are options and opinions.I'm not trying to call anyone out but I do not agree with playing to a metronome. Human rhythm is much more dynamic than machine rhythm. I've played to a metronome a handful of times in my 26 years of playing and it never feels right. I can do it but it's not a natural rhythm and I highly suggest NOT learning to play with a metronome. I'm sure the feelings on this are all over the place but for me personally, I don't recommend that approach. Again, I'll fall back on rhythm being natural, you either have it or you don't. If you're struggling that much to play in rhythm, music, or at least guitar, may not be the right hobby for you.
IIRC the only way I could get it to sync was using the component (red/blue/green) cables.I just cant get my guitar in sync with this. I try every so often. I am at the point where I can play the songs like Blitzkrieg bop but it fails me quick.