Online Guitar Lessons

Your friend Mike here from KillerGuitarTips.com with another Free Guitar Lesson

This week Id like to answer some questions I get asked quite frequently.

I get asked all the time questions like, “Do I have good guitar playing fingers?” Or “What is the best guitar for me to learn on” and very often “How should I practise?”

In over 2 decades of teaching guitar I can say without question I have probably seen every shape and size of hands and fingers there can possibly be. From short and stumpy through to long and thin. I have not yet found anything that has prevented a student from successfully learning guitar. What matters is practice, with practice comes dexterity in anybody dedicated to learning to play the guitar. So please dismiss the fact that your fingers make a difference, it’s not your fingers it’s all about practice and dexterity. Just keep practicing and adjusting your hand position when you hear a muted (duff) note. Slowly and surely you will build up the skills and technique in order to play all your favourite tunes both easily and smoothly.

What is the best guitar to learn on?

This question revolves around money and personal choice. If it’s rock music you’re into then maybe consider an electric guitar to practice and learn on. If you prefer the sound of an acoustic guitar then learn on an acoustic guitar. there are no hard and fast rules. It’s you that will be learning and to learn you must enjoy yourself and to enjoy yourself you need to practice on a guitar that you love the sound of either electric acoustic or classical.

the better guitar you can afford usually means they will be easier to play, in turn being easier to learn on. Try to purchase the best quality guitar you can afford as it will help with the ease of playing. If your pocket cannot stretch that far then don’t panic as there are plenty of cheaper guitars that are plenty good enough for you to start out on.

A good point to bear in mind is that an electric guitar will be easier on your hands than an acoustic guitar, however if you learn on an acoustic the transfer to an electric guitar will be a delight. If the transfer is the other way around then you will have to put in a little extra effort to hold down even the simplest of chords. It doesn’t however matter what type of guitar you choose, you will still have to put in the practice to obtain good results.

Practicing.

In my personal experience I have found it better to practice for short regular periods rather than trying to cram it all in on a Sunday afternoon!! Half to one hour sessions everyday are best. As well as trying to master new pieces and exercises go over your older stuff just to ‘keep your hand in’. Divide your practice time into sections for exercises, scales and chord work not neglecting some time to play your favourite songs. Try and restrain yourself from just messing with chords and ditties, construct a regular practice workout and stick to it!!

Just another note to expand on the importance of practicing I cannot stress this enough

Learning to play the guitar is a combination of knowledge (What to play) and physical motor skills (being able to accurately and quickly move your fingers). The two together create great killer guitarists.

Any guitarist needs to develop their motor skills in order to progress. Way too many guitarists give up way too soon because they struggle to play a particular piece blaming themselves for not being good enough. Their friends stick at it and succeed purely through stickability. One of the main differences between you and the likes of Eric Clapton is they stuck at it. You can do the same, don’t give up at the slightest obstacle.

It takes time to develop the necessary skills to play a guitar well. But heres a killer tip: You should learn in your head before you start to practice, the passage, chord sequence or riff you desire and then practice it slowly so there is no possibility of making a mistake and increase your pace as you improve.

As mentioned earlier in this article, it is better to practice for short periods of time as oppose to cramming everything in when you can.

Remember ‘repetition is the mother of skill’ the more you can practice the better you will become. This is quite obvious but you must practice the correct technique.

There are no short cuts, no free rides, you will get out what you put in so practice, practice, practice.