How did I learn to play the guitar? Personal experience and advice of one self-taught musician…. Beginning guitarist. How and what guitar to learn? What are the best strings to learn

Start off learn to play best on regular classical guitar. It is also often referred to as Spanish. It is equipped with soft nylon strings, which will allow you to strain your fingers much less than in the case of an acoustic guitar with metal strings. This is especially important at the initial stage of training. But if you already have acoustic guitar, then at first it will be a little more difficult. However, gradually the fingers will get used to the new sensations for them, and the skin on the fingertips of the left hand will become much thicker and less sensitive.

Choosing a guitar is a separate big topic. Perhaps, best advice here is one - to take a knowledgeable, experienced person with you to the store (or to the seller, if you buy through an ad). If possible, invite a guitar master or teacher, or just an experienced guitarist with you. It is better to pay a small amount to this specialist for help in choosing a guitar than to be disappointed in an unsuccessful purchase later. There is one general rule: the better the instrument, the more pleasant and easier it is to learn to play it, and the faster it will go. musical development student. But since better does not always mean more expensive, knowledgeable person when choosing a guitar is a must.

2. Do I need to know the notes?

Learning and knowing musical notation is, of course, a huge plus for any good guitarist. However, this knowledge is NOT at all necessary in order to. You can play and select songs by ear well and even very well, without knowing the notes at all! For example, the famous virtuoso guitarist Paco de Lucia began to study musical notation only at the age of 44. The lack of this knowledge did not prevent him from performing and composing great amount amazing in beauty and sound of guitar works even before this age. Of course, knowing musical notation is better than not knowing it, but you can learn to play, and play well, even without this knowledge. Moreover, in the process of learning, there may come a moment when you realize that musical notation suddenly needed.

3. How often should I exercise?

You need to do it regularly. Best of all - in the morning. But if this is not possible, you can do it both during the day and in the evening, preferably at the same time and devote at least an hour to this matter. A simple rule works here: the more you practice, the faster you will achieve the desired results. However, if at some point there is a feeling of severe fatigue or slight pain in the fingers, classes should be stopped for a while. Even if it happens earlier than an hour later. Extra injuries, bruises and sprains are useless. You can train your left hand with an expander, but still best workout It's just playing the guitar.

Hello everyone, in the 3rd grade I heard heavy music for the first time, my friend brought the recordings of gr. "Iron Maiden" and gr. “Aria”, of course, when I ran home, I immediately told my father about it, and he bought me an audio cassette of these groups. That's when I started dreaming about buying a guitar.

Listening to my favorite songs, I imagined myself playing the same music on stage. I was 9 years old, I did not understand anything, but I really wanted to play the guitar. Let's put aside my parents' skepticism about this, because in the end I bought an old guitar with two plugs and was larger than myself, as well as video cassettes with guitar lessons. Nothing worked out, I understand that now, but then I considered myself a first-class rock guitarist. A month has passed since the purchase of the instrument, and already with my classmate, who knocks on the sofa with sticks, imitating drums, we are playing our first rock. It is worth noting that the acoustic guitar did not stay with me for a long time, maybe a year or a year and a half, because I wanted a different sound, I felt like a person who wants smartphone functions from a push-button phone. A little time passed, I saved up something, added something, and so I bought a used, but not bad, Indonesian-made electric guitar. Then I got what I wanted.

Why this preface, I was “self-taught” for 6 years, during this time I got an electric guitar, learned how to use gadgets, played music that I like, composed songs, etc., but did not learn how to play. I rather played with the guitar, but oddly enough, now I don’t promote lessons with a teacher from the very beginning of my journey, relying on my “bitter experience”, no, the experience is not bitter, because I enjoyed this lesson, i.e. I did exactly what I wanted, what I like and, if not immediately, on the guitar that I like.

So, let's start, if you want to learn how to play your favorite music, then first choose an instrument, I don't mean the company, not even the manufacturer's country, but the type of guitar: electric guitar, classical guitar, acoustic guitar or even bass guitar. There is a popular belief that you first need to learn how to play the “regular” guitar, I don’t think so, choose a guitar according to your taste and musical direction.

If you want to play pop styles of music such as blues, jazz, rock, metal, if you dream of guitar riffs and solos, then feel free to buy an electric guitar, if you want to sing with a guitar or play acoustic music and fingerstyle, then acoustic, if, want to purposefully learn how to play classical guitar If you don’t have nylon strings, then buy it; if you like this particular instrument, take it with a bass guitar as well. Play the instrument you like. Switching from an electric guitar to a classical guitar is the same in terms of complexity as it is from a classical guitar to an electric guitar.

We figured out the guitar, now we will decide whether it is possible to learn to play on our own or with a teacher. I think it's better to start with a teacher anyway, for a few simple reasons.

First, hand placement and proper posture. You can find all this in the media. Internet, study guides, now there is a lot of all this, but based on my experience I will say that at first a knowledgeable person should follow the training. You can play and not understand why the sound is not the same, why the pain in one or another part of the body after the game, and understand the reason after two years, but in the classroom with the teacher they will immediately tell, correct and explain what is right and what is wrong and, How to fix it.

Secondly, information, you need to be able to “filter” it, it is difficult to understand manuals, notes, tablature, video lessons at the initial stages of learning.

Thirdly, mistakes, starting to learn, you often do not notice your mistakes, the teacher will pay attention to them and help correct them.

The first 6 years, as already mentioned, I studied on my own, in the end I went to a teacher, but on electric guitar. If from the very beginning I went to the classical guitar and started playing what I did not like at that time, then perhaps I would not have become a musician. Now I like to play classical guitar with nylon strings, but then it was different. Therefore, I advise you to find a teacher who specializes in exactly the style that you are interested in and the guitar that you want.

I want to say in defense of self-learning that you can learn this way, but only longer and you will face the problems that are described above. Even a month of classes with a knowledgeable teacher can change a lot in your game.

Play the guitar, educate yourself and remember that every guitar is equally good, whether it be classical, acoustic or electric guitar, as well as musical directions, it's only a matter of taste, do what you like.

For a person who is just planning to learn to play the guitar from scratch, it is usually difficult to choose the first guitar. When there is an experienced teacher nearby, there are no problems! But many try to learn on their own, for example, using tutorials or video tutorials from the Internet. According to experienced guitarists, the authors of the online resource https://gitarre-stimmen.net, it is possible to learn to play almost any instrument, even the simplest one. There are plenty of examples where world-famous bands and musicians began to hone their skills on cardboard boxes and homemade instruments. All because they did not have money for normal equipment, etc., nevertheless they achieved success, popularity. And it really real stories legendary musicians. If only there was a strong desire, and everything else is secondary. What guitar should a beginner buy? By and large, it is of little importance, because the main thing is that she there were 6 strings.

It is clear that it is much more pleasant to play a quality instrument. The point is that in former USSR it was difficult to buy something, although the money was. One could only dream of a cool guitar, and only domestic manufacturers were on sale. Times have changed and today any ordinary person can afford to buy a not bad guitar, somewhere for one month's salary or 2. It is quite possible to learn how to play an ordinary instrument, and guitar tuning is very important. If you play on detuned strings for a long time, the guitarist will simply ruin his ear for music and learn nothing.

A beginner guitarist with zero experience will be fine with a simple guitar, and he does not need to buy an expensive, branded one. In other words, such a beginner simply will not see much difference between an expensive and a cheap instrument. Such a move has many advantages, what? Firstly, the price of a simple guitar is not high, so you won’t have to collect money for a long time. Secondly, a simple guitar at the start is such seriousness check. If you like playing the guitar, then you can buy yourself a brand new and cool guitar, and sell the old one. And thirdly, there are a lot of used things on the Internet, and you can buy old acoustics made in the USSR almost for nothing. At the same time, in order to learn, it is quite suitable. Of course, it's up to you, my dear reader! A lot depends on your financial situation. If there are no problems with money, then it makes sense to immediately give preference to a cool guitar at the start.

P.S. My name is Alexander. This is my personal, independent project. I am very glad if you liked the article. Want to help the site? Just look below for an ad for what you've recently been looking for.

Copyright Muz4in.Net © - This news belongs to Muz4in.Net, and is the intellectual property of the blog, protected by copyright and cannot be used anywhere without an active link to the source. Read more -

There are two main types of acoustic guitars. This is a classical guitar with nylon strings, and a western guitar with metal strings. A separate branch is occupied by electric guitars, but I will not dwell on them, since you should start learning in any case on an acoustic guitar. But on which of these two types, we will now understand. First, let's define them character traits, strengths and weaknesses, scope.

classical guitar

It has a wide neck, relatively small body, nylon strings and slotted headstock. The sound is soft, deep, balanced, with a good bass register. This is a versatile tool. Classics, romances, jazz, flamenco, popular melodies sound good on it.

This is a guitar with a long history, it is the progenitor of all modern types of guitars. It is on it that the entire classical school and the classical technique of the game are based. Also great for singing accompaniment. But due to its somewhat matte sound, it is not enough to be heard in the ensemble when playing chord accompaniment, although this problem is easily solved with a built-in pickup and tone block. This type of guitar is played by all classical guitarists, guitarists who play Spanish music (flamenco), I also play a wide variety of music only on classical guitar.

Western guitar

It is also called simply "acoustic", but this is not entirely true, because the classical guitar also belongs to the acoustic type.

This guitar has a narrow neck, a larger body than a classical guitar, iron strings and a headstock without slots. The sound is loud, ringing with a predominance of high frequencies. The bass register is not as pronounced as the classical one. This type of guitar sounds great in an ensemble due to its sonority. When playing with a pick, it produces a very powerful, dense, characteristic sound. Initially, it was used only as an accompanying instrument. Then it began to be used as a solo instrument, playing with the fingerstyle technique by such musicians as Chet Atkins, Tommy Emmanuel, Andy McKee.

Which one to study?

Any professional teacher will advise you to start learning classical guitar, and they will be right. This guitar will allow you to master the basics of classical playing technique, which is the basis for all other finger techniques. After all, the same fingerstyle is, in fact, nothing more than a kind of classical finger technique. In the future, you can play any type of guitar, but it is best and most correct to start on a classic.

Nylon strings are much softer and more pleasant to the touch than metal, it is easier to master all the basic techniques on them. The increased string spacing is also very handy when practicing a variety of arpeggios (picking) in right hand. You will immediately learn to hear the timbre of the extracted sound, and its dependence on the angle of attack, the position of the hand. You can hear it very well on classical guitar.

Another plus is that for relatively little money you can buy a fairly high-quality student instrument. For example Hohner HC-06 or Valencia, which at a low price have a pleasant sound and will serve you for a long time.
If you take western-type guitars from the same price category, then these are most often very low-quality instruments with poor tuning, which dry out quickly, their neck leads. It is quite possible that there are cheap and at the same time high-quality westerns, but I have not seen such. They usually cost a lot more.

In any case, do not buy an instrument without consulting with your teacher. Very often they come to the first lesson with newly bought guitars, which are impossible to play.

And the last. Many people think that only classical music can be played on a classical guitar. Nothing like this. This is a versatile tool. Classical technique will allow you to play in any style, as it is a basic finger technique.

Note: people often ask if it is possible to put nylon on a western. You can put it, but it will sound very bad. Dull, quiet, expressionless. Because Western guitars are designed specifically for iron strings. Nylon strings ONLY sound good on classical style guitars. But you can’t put iron strings on the classics, you can damage the instrument.

Classical guitar brands: Hohner HC-06 (or other models, but with nylon!), Valencia, Yamaha, Admira, Sanchez, Almansa

How to choose a guitar?

If you have an old guitar in the corner of your house, which was played by your father or grandfather, which is already more than 20 years old, then let it stand, we won’t need it! These guitars have a bad sound, they are terrible in appearance, they are hard to learn to play - all these factors negatively affect our desire to learn to play the guitar. Take such a guitar in your hands and all desire will disappear ...

Here I will tell you about 2 types of guitars: acoustic guitar and classical. More clearly described in the video.

Classical guitar:

• Wide neck approximately 52 mm
• Body shape other than acoustic guitar (see video)
• Nylon strings ("Fishing line")

Acoustic guitar:

• fingerboard 42 mm
• large body
• metal strings

Which guitar is best for learning?

game on acoustic guitar more sonorous, rich - it's great to sing songs under it. This is what we need, we will master various songs with you and we need a bright and loud sound. But there are also disadvantages - the acoustic guitar has a narrow neck, so it will be harder for beginners to hit the strings than on a classical guitar. Hence the conclusion: it is easier to learn on a classical guitar, but the sound is better with an acoustic guitar.

What to do?

There are special guitars - "classical guitar, sharpened for acoustic" or "acoustic guitar with classical parameters" - with a wide neck.

Can I put metal strings on a classical guitar?

Not! Mess up the guitar. On a classical guitar, we have a nylon “line” and the sound is quiet, so the body of the guitar is made thinner so that the sound is louder. If we put metal strings, they pull the metal much stronger than the “fishing line” and the body should be thicker accordingly! That's why You can't put metal strings on a classical guitar!

Problems can be the following: blisters on the body, curvature of the neck, cracks in the body, neck, the neck can break, etc. Also, the problem may not appear immediately, but after some time. Due to the strong tension of the strings, a gradual deformation will occur and as a result, what is written above will happen ...

So, let's recap: above, we looked at the pros and cons of acoustic and classical guitars. Found golden mean in the form of an acoustic guitar with a wide neck.

Name of the guitar in the video:bestWoodMCA-101/1EQ/SB

Attention! After recording this video, I went to the music store. tools and saw a large number of similar guitars. In the video, the model is already old, so I recommend you take something else, fresher. Go to the store and say you need a wide neck acoustic guitar. But before going to the store, watch the next few lessons, then I will tell you how to choose a guitar in the store and what you need to pay attention to!