In order for you to learn how to play guitar, you need to learn the basic guitar essentials like the proper way to hold your guitar, pick a string and its names, tune the guitar by ear, strum some guitar chords, play basic chords, and read chord charts and guitar tabs which will also enable you to build your adroitness and muscle memory.
There are various types of guitar and they all have their own specific sound. The type of music that you wish to play and the aesthetic appeal of the overall design and performance is mostly the main foundation in choosing your guitar.
How to play guitar
When you’re able to purchase your very own, when learning how to play guitar; you must learn all the parts that make up the musical instrument. This is essential when it’s time for your guitar to undergo repairs or general maintenance. The acoustic guitar is the most common type of guitar and is found anywhere in the globe which led to many variations in both design and purpose.
The various parts of the guitar are the following: The body of the guitar is responsible for its sound and appeal. It’s usually a pear shape instrument or box that vibrates when the strings are played. The neck is the long wooden shaft where the strings are connected. The fretboard is the face of the guitar neck where the guitar frets can be found. You can find the headstock at the end of the guitar neck. It is equipped with tuners which helps adjust the tension of the strings, thus causing variations in its pitch. Tuners are metal pegs accountable for adjusting the tension of the guitar strings that when moved clockwise or counterclockwise, causes the variations in the pitches.
The nut is a think white piece separating the headstock from the guitar neck, when learning how to play guitar. It holds the guitar strings in place so that they are evenly spaced out. The thin metal pieces found on the fretboard placed perpendicular to the guitar neck are the frets which act as tone separators. Because of the presence of the sound hole, another part of the guitar, the guitar gets to release a sound or tune. When a string is plucked, the sound produced bounces around the inner side of the guitar, releasing the sound created and straight into our ears. The bridge on the other hand, holds the guitar strings in placed on the body of the instrument to avoid losing tension and pitch change. Bridge pegs are present to tighten the ends of the strings to the wooden bridge. Pickguard may wear and tear if continuously used for some time. This helps protect the guitar’s body from scratches.
Learn how to play guitar
Learning the proper way of holding your guitar can mean the difference in how you play the guitar. You need to find a comfortable place which will provide you more freedom and room to move while playing your guitar. Position your guitar on the top of your right knee. If left-handed, do it on the other side of your knee. Tilt the guitar slightly back towards you to avoid doing stretches while playing. This will also help you play the instrument in a much relaxed position. The hands that will do most of the strumming should rest comfortably on the guitar, such that the wrist is balanced right above the sound hole part of the guitar. Parallel to the floor is the neck of the guitar to give you the most comfort when playing. The thickest string should be the one closest to you, regardless whether you’re a right or left-handed player. Thumb should be placed at the back of the guitar neck, right in the middle, in order for your fingers to curl around the neck easily and play comfortably.
When learning how to play guitar, guitar picks may either be soft picks for acoustic songs or much lighter tunes and hard picks for the heavy or electric songs. Picks can be made of nylon, metal, acrylic and celluloid materials or even rock. Its shapes vary depending on the music style. They are thumb pick for the classical method, shark’s fin, squared picks and equilateral triangle shape picks. The player should bear in mind that the lighter the string, the lighter the pick. Choosing picks that are not compatible with the string may cause more damage to the guitar strings. The most common and effective way of holding a guitar pick is through these steps. Hold out your picking hand and turn them in such a way that will let your fingers curl over naturally. Place your thumb to the side of your index finger. Then position your pick in between your thumb and index finger, leaving your thumb loose and slightly bent so as to avoid letting the pick fly out of your hand while playing. There are other ways to hold a pick, so it’s really up to you to find the best comfortable position in holding your pick without sacrificing the quality of the sound you’re making.
Picking a guitar string may either be downstroke or upstroke. With downstroke, the pick is positioned on top of the string that requires strumming, pushing it downwards leading you right on the next positioned string. Pick the string as moderately as possible. Not to light nor too hard but just enough force to land your pick on the next strings. For easy downstrokes, the side of the pick can be slightly tilted downward and away from you. An upstroke should be placed on the previous string with enough force. By moving the angle of your wrist inward, you create full pick control. By tilting the side of the pick upwards, this time towards you, this will give you more ease with picking doing upstrokes.
You need to be familiar with the names of the 6 strings. The E string is the 6th string and also the lowest string or the closest towards you when holding the guitar. The A string represents the 5th string, D for the 4th string, G for the 3rd string, B for 2nd string and e string for the 1st string or the highest string and the one farthest from you.
To properly tune your guitar, you need to know the difference between the sharp string and the flat string. It’s also important to learn to number your fingers. Each fingers naturally takes the place on the first (1st), second (2nd), third (3rd) and fourth (4th) frets. By using these numbers, the chromatic scale plays as the following: 0 for the open string. 6th string represents the numbers 01234, 5th string is for 01234, same goes for the 4th string, with the 3rd string, its 0123, back to 01234 for the 2nd string and finally for the 1st string, its 01234.
Playing guitar involves half steps and whole steps method. The half step or 12 semitones is the result of the guitar neck separated by frets. It’s one half step for each fret which is why the 12 fret of any string has the same notes with that of the open string. Whole steps however are equal to two half steps or frets.
Knowing your chord charts is another way of getting familiar with your fretboard. When learning chord charts, place your guitar in a standing position in such a way that the headstock is pointing directly up. Search for the 4 frets which is also your basic chord chart. The 6 strings are represented by the 6 vertical lines. The 5 horizontal lines are the metal frets but both these lines don’t usually appear on the chord chart. The black dots are the place where you rest your fingers. If you an O indicated above one of the vertical lines, this means that the open string is played. Whereas an X meant that the specific string shouldn’t be played at all. If a number is seen next to the top horizontal line, you should start working on the chords based on the numbered fret.
When strumming, rest your elbow on the top of the guitar’s body which will act as a pivot to help your arm swing back and forth to strum the guitar strings. Apply the two default motions, that is by moving your forearm up and down while your wrist rotates from side to side to achieve a continuous and fluid motion up and down all six of the strings.
With regards to the guitar chords, the G major is the most common chords among the guitar players. It is best played in open position using all six strings and all four fingers. Learn to strum the chord clearly by adjusting your fingers accordingly to avoid buzzing sounds and get the cleanest sound out of the G chord. The C major chord like the G chord is one of the most common chords also played at the base of the guitar neck and uses five strings and your first three fingers. Do the same as that of the G chord when strumming the C chord. D chord is the most important chord as it’s often used by the guitar player. It’s played using four strings and your first three fingers.
When you’re done familiarizing yourself with the basic fundamentals of strumming a guitar, you just need to continue practicing and playing music will become a second nature to you. We wish you the best of luck in learning how to play guitar!