self-taught guitarists: need your help. IMO!!

First jacoinmalawi Welcome to GN! Secondly, We're not really "self-taught" since we rely on lesson's found in books, web, etc. We're more "self-motivated. As for what's important is really up to you. What are your goals for the guitar (make money, write songs, just play covers, hobby, etc)? The answer will determine what you should concentrate on. For myself, guitar is just a hobby...I am not really interested in playing in clubs or getting a recording contract. It has just been a dream of mine since I was a kid. I am 40 years old and have been playing 14 months. I may someday get together with other musicians and jam but for now my 4 walls are my only audience (and in all honesty, my only friends).

I tend to wing my practices which really isn't a good idea but it is working for me at the moment. One day I'll do nothing but working on my chops, nect day I'll work on improvising, and still the next will be songs. MOST ofthe time I do mix it up a bit depending on time. Lately I have only been practicing about 1 hour per day with a day off periodically. When I started I played about 2-3 hours a day (I am a teacher so my summers are free!) split up throughout the day. Time is a bit tighter now so I get about 1 hour from 7pm to 8pm...sometimes I'll extend it but I have to turn the volume down. Sometimes I have time at work and will take my guitar to play on my break or for my students.

My suggestions for you are:

*practice daily even if for only 10 minutes
*get your open chords down
*work on barre chords if you haven't already
*learn the pentatonic scale in all keys
*work on chops such as alternate picking, string skipping, hammer-on's/pulloffs, slides, bends, etc.
*find songs YOU like that incorporate what you have learned so far
*find songs YOU like that incorporate what you have NOT learned yet
*keep a journal of what you do in each practice (something I wish I did from day one!)
*record yourself so you can hear where you are making mistakes (check the "In the Studio" forum on this site!)

I know I probably didn't answer your question but hopefully it will get you started and the more experienced players can guide you further and MUCH better than I can!

I know I probably didn't answer your question but hopefully it will get you started and the more experienced players can guide you further and MUCH better than I can!

You answered his question well mike and its not about experienced players giving suggestions.Its about how anyone, whether beginner or advanced explains them (whatever they know or can suggest in a proper manner)

Btw Jaco, you already know a bit about the guitar atleast, so you can start digging the beginner's lesson section on the main website and there you will find an ocean of guitar related lessons.Ready to dive ? :wink:

I consider myself self taught, although that's never really true. I never had lessons, but I would buy instruction books, and learn from others. I even used to learn a lot from watching players on TV. :D

I don't know if I'd recommend the method I learned. I simply tried to learn songs I liked from day one. I did see scales and arpeggios and such in books and studied them, and even tried to understand theory. But 90% for me was simply playing songs I enjoyed. I was never one to just sit and practice scales, or techniques like tapping.

Having said that, there are some positive things about learning this way. Myself, I really don't think I would have enjoyed guitar much if I sat and practiced scales and techniques for hours. Man, I wanted to play those great songs I heard on the radio and records. And the thing is, you can't help but learn technique this way. I mean, if you wanted to learn an Eddie Van Halen song, you are going to end up being pretty good at tapping by the time you get that song down. If you love Hendrix like I did, you are going to be a real good string bender after you get a couple of his songs. If you love Duane Allman, you are gonna get real good at slide by copying his songs.

So, for me learning this way is way more fun. It is not work or boring repetition. When I learned to play a song I was thrilled and picked up technique without really thinking about it.

I do think lessons are very helpful. You learn to read which is the best thing you could know. You learn good habits from the start. You learn from an experienced teacher, not the school of hard knocks like me. :D

I take a slightly different view and would argue that we are all self taught in a way. If you take a lesson every week but practice everyday for two hours then most of your playing experience is spent teaching yourself. If you happen to have a good teacher then 14 hours per week will be spent practicing and learning effeciently. In my experience a lot of self taught guitarists are spending that time less efficient than they could be and even though it might not be a waste of time, good teaching will get you where you want to be a lot quicker.

I am selft taught and even though I am happy with my playing now, I could have been at this stage many years ago, although I must admit the internet is probably the next best thing. If you do not want lessons then my advice is find just one part of your playing that you would like to improve the most right now and concentrate mostly on that one part until you really feel you have progressed before moving on to something else.

Lee

Try to think about you've learned when playing songs. Don't just play them, but realize what you are playing. Theory lessons on this site are amazing, read up on them and then when playing your favorite song you will realize what you are actually doing, it's mindblowing!

One of my favorite quotes, and of course now I can't locate who this is attributed to....

"I can't teach you anything but if you want to learn I can help you with that."

My practice routine involves practicing pentatonic scales at natural note positions. Practicing my strumming and timing by learning a song. But this is what my teacher told me to work on, so it's not really coming from self-taught experience.

My practice routine involves practicing pentatonic scales at natural note positions. Practicing my strumming and timing by learning a song. But this is what my teacher told me to work on, so it's not really coming from self-taught experience.

and it shows great improvement in your latest recordings.

play what you like and the rest will come in due time.

If you find yourself progressing slowly, take lessons. I've had lots of teachers, all have been great except one. Make sure you find a teacher who is prepared to hear what you want to learn.

Online resources like GN.com are also great. You can also get lessons by correspondance, but make sure you have the physical stuff down first (technique, etc) In-person instruction is best for that sort of stuff.

Matt

for myself the best way for me to see the music is to map it out.. i make my own diagrams on everything.. have one with every note mappped out in color coded ink.. also mapped out all the chord forms and scales. i look at the notes as degrees in the scales not the note names.. so i can hear what a 7th sound like and a 5th etc.. when in the middle of making the diagrams i then can see them in my mind and work out things in my head when i am a work. i learn as much without the guitar in hand as i do with it..