beginner lessons

Josh Urban takes you through the very first steps of soloing, making the process a little less mysterious than many of us think it is! And less scary, too…

Here’s an interesting twist – we’re going to use a walking bass line as a way to help us get faster and cleaner chord changes, specifically between the G and C chords. Sound implausible? Well, come along and join in the fun.

Walking bass lines are an easy way to spice up your playing and also learn a little about music in the process.

When you’re starting out, sometimes it seems like your hands have a mind of their own. Maybe even two minds, since you have two hands! Josh Urban explores how using a little psychology can help you to get faster and cleaner in making your chord changes.

Time to tackle the notes on the third string of our guitars! Peter’s series on learning the notes of the guitar in standard notation continues along, complete with exercises and sound files.

Learning to read music is easier than you might think. Peter Simms returns to Guitar Noise with a lesson on the notes found on the second (B) string, complete with some simple exercises to help you easily learn the notes.

If one of your New Year’s Resolutions was to start (or finally) learn music notation, then help is here in a big way! As Peter points out: the only obstacle is that reading music takes a while to learn. If you truly want to learn, patience and consistent practicing will get you there.

Getting better at making chord changes is an early goal for every guitarist. Graham discusses how using the art of visualization can help you develop smooth chord changes, both in learning new chords and in practicing the ones you already know.

In the second installment of Tom’s series on reading notation, you’ll learn about ledger lines, repeat signs and other musical traffic signals, as well as delve into accidentals and key signatures. Plus you get an arrangement of Jingle Bells to get you going for the holidays!

Allan’s back and this time he’s got a lot of good advice to pass along on the subject of power chords and double stops. As in his first article, Forty-Something Guy Learns Guitar From The Internet, this piece includes a lot of links to other helpful articles as well as numerous musical examples.

Even people who don’t read standard notation will tell you that it’s a good idea to learn to do so. And it’s easier to learn than people think. Tom’s latest piece is a great place to start to pick up this skill that will last you a lifetime.

Here is a wonderfully detailed, step by step tutorial for those who are having a bit of trouble with their strumming. Matt’s put together a series of exercises designed to jump start your rhythm guitar playing and it’s a great read, too!

It sounds like the headline from a tabloid, but more and more people are learning that they can learn how to play guitar. And while the Internet certainly can be of help, all the choices can also seem pretty overwhelming! First time contributor Alan Abbott has been kind enough to write of his experiences, in a well thought-out, step-by-step manner, and includes many websites that can help you start to realize your guitar dreams.

As I wrote down the usual list of items that teachers tend to discuss when asked this question, I realized that most of them, if not all, could be lumped into a single category: Impatience. Perhaps this is a bit of my trying to lump a lot of stuff into a small and neat package, [...]

When I started teaching, all of my students were adults. They had no visions of being the next Jimmy Page or Jimmy Rogers. They simply wanted to play and play for their own enjoyment. And this meant playing songs, as few people find satisfaction in playing a string of exercises over and over again. As [...]

Which chords should I begin learning and how should I practice switching from chord to chord? Like most topics, there’s a lot of discussion about this, not only among both teachers and students, but most guitarists are willing to give you an opinion on it as well. Before we delve into chords, though, I’d like [...]

Bruce returns to Guitar Noise with his second piece, one on the fascinating topic of chord voicings. This is a great thing for those of you who play with other guitarists to read up on and put to practice.

Bruce was kind enough to write out this concise article, which spells out some of the basics of chord theory. He was even kinder to include all sorts of handy charts and diagrams that should help out any beginner wanting to tackle this subject.

In response to the many people who’ve written with questions on how to tune the guitar, Graham’s written this wonderful step-by-step process for those of you who are unfamiliar with how to tune with a tuner.

Paul Humphreys offers us this inspirational piece on how to get through those tough first few months of playing. His advice is great for people of all ages!