Beginning guitar can be daunting at first, but with the right advice you can easily be put on the fast track to playing hundreds of songs in your first year. I’ve heard the same story over and over again, “I’ve tried to learn the guitar but it hurt my fingers and I couldn’t figure out what to do.” This is all valid when you are new to the instrument and have no idea where to start. Just follow these steps and I promise that you will be enjoying yourself as you learn the guitar.
Learn Basic Chords
When you first start playing, it is vital to learn some standard chords. Even knowing just two or three chords is enough to make up many different songs of your own. In fact, a lot of famous pop songs in history are only made up of only a few chords. To start, the first chords to learn are G, E and C. These three are among the easiest chords to play. Here is how to play those chords:
Practice Transitioning Between Chords
Once you have a few chords down that you are comfortable strumming, now it is time to try and switch between chords as you are playing. At first, you will likely stop as you put your hand in the next chord position. But with a bit of practice, you will be able to switch between chords with ease. With each new chord you learn, introduce it to your transitioning. This method will have you playing lots of different songs very quickly.
Learn How To Read Tabs
Tabs are a way for you to learn pretty much any song. They are made up of six lines to represent each string of the guitar. On each string is a number, which represents which fret to put your finger on. It will take you about 5 minutes to figure out how to properly read tabs. This is quite a relief compared to sheet music. Once you are able to read tabs, there are many sites you can visit that have tabbed out songs from your favorite artists. It is important to learn your favorite songs as this is a great and fun way to practice. As well it will introduce you to new chords.
After you have followed these steps, you will be well on your way to beginning the guitar. Just remember, even 5 minutes of practice a day will go a long way!
Check out these great courses for more easy guitar songs.
Ultimate Guitar Song Collection Vol-1
