So, I bought a guitar...now what?

thebloodfiend

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This is the 21st century - I have a tuner on my iPad. ;)

Smart move. I don't know what I would do without the cleartune app.

It's worth learning how to tune off the e, as well, though. If you're ever without the tuner. But I don't think you need a teacher for that. It helps you learn the placement of notes on the fretboard.
 

kuwisdelu

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Yes. That's kind of the point. You also have to remember where I live. And singing is a crucial part of this.

Fucking dammit. What about those of us who love to sing and want to sing but can't?

What I hate about singing is that it's one of the few things in the world where it doesn't matter how much you practice if you don't have natural talent for it. It pisses me off.

ETA: I should probably mention I have a major complex about singing because of high school *things*. I can't even sing alone anymore without feeling guilty and like I should shut up and it makes me angry.

But I think you were doing it wrong. These guys were good. I don't count knowing three chords and a walk down as "good." ;)

Neither do I. I'm better than that, but I'm not Jimmy Page.

But I haven't played guitar in years now. A lot of it has to do with the singing thing.

...Maybe it's this thread, but I had a dream about guitars last night... goddammit...
 
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thebloodfiend

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What I hate about singing is that it's one of the few things in the world where it doesn't matter how much you practice if you don't have natural talent for it. It pisses me off.
Mhm, if you can carry tune, there are at least four songs you can play and sing, IMO. I have a horrible range. I don't know what's wrong with my voice, but I can't hit notes the average female can, yet my voice isn't deep enough to hit notes the average guy can. So, I have to settle for midrange. I suppose it helps that I was in band for a few years playing trumpet, so I "trained" myself out of being tone deaf. Not literally, but you know what I mean.
But I haven't played guitar in years now. A lot of it has to do with the singing thing.
I had a class in modern flamenco style last year. It totally put me off playing until a friend of mine came over and convinced me that it doesn't have to be work. And then another wants me to give him beginning lessons. When you have someone to play for, or impress, in my experience, it makes me want to practice.

I've been debating putting up some YT vids. I've always been super nervous about speaking and singing in front of other people, though, strangely, playing an instrument in front of others has never been a problem for me.

We should have a "play your favorite song" thread. I'd be interested in hearing other people play. I doubt your voice is as bad as you think it is.




Question: Am I the only person who thinks they need a 3/4th sized acoustic? I've been playing full sized for years and my hands still haven't grown any bigger. Barre chords and power chords are a pain in the ass. I don't think I've ever met another person with hands smaller than mine.
 

kuwisdelu

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Mhm, if you can carry tune, there are at least four songs you can play and sing, IMO. I have a horrible range. I don't know what's wrong with my voice, but I can't hit notes the average female can, yet my voice isn't deep enough to hit notes the average guy can. So, I have to settle for midrange. I suppose it helps that I was in band for a few years playing trumpet, so I "trained" myself out of being tone deaf. Not literally, but you know what I mean.I had a class in modern flamenco style last year. It totally put me off playing until a friend of mine came over and convinced me that it doesn't have to be work. And then another wants me to give him beginning lessons. When you have someone to play for, or impress, in my experience, it makes me want to practice.

The main reason I learned guitar was to write and perform my own songs. I want to sing my own songs, too. If I couldn't do that, I kept feeling like there wasn't a point. The melodies I wanted to write were never in my range anyway. I never really bothered to learn many other peoples' songs.

I'm not really tone deaf so much as I just can't make my voice do what I want it to.

These days, I don't have much time, and prefer to focus on my writing.

Question: Am I the only person who thinks they need a 3/4th sized acoustic? I've been playing full sized for years and my hands still haven't grown any bigger. Barre chords and power chords are a pain in the ass. I don't think I've ever met another person with hands smaller than mine.

This is the other reason I haven't played guitar in years. It got to a point where I just wasn't getting any better because I have small, girly hands and my fingers couldn't reach the right frets.
 

thebloodfiend

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The main reason I learned guitar was to write and perform my own songs. I want to sing my own songs, too. If I couldn't do that, I kept feeling like there wasn't a point. The melodies I wanted to write were never in my range anyway. I never really bothered to learn many other peoples' songs.

I'm not really tone deaf so much as I just can't make my voice do what I want it to.

These days, I don't have much time, and prefer to focus on my writing.
Writing my own stuff was never really a goal for me. At the start, anyway. But I got my first guitar when I was 13. All I wanted to learn then was everything from School of Rock and the Smells Like Teen Spirit solo. I just want to break out of this monotonous intermediate phase I've been in for years.

I really doubt your voice is terrible, though. If Chris Martin can front a band with his falsetto... and I actually like Coldplay. When I get the money, I want to look into voice training. Maybe.
This is the other reason I haven't played guitar in years. It got to a point where I just wasn't getting any better because I have small, girly hands and my fingers couldn't reach the right frets.
I'm glad to see I'm not alone. Piano was pretty much a no because of my hands. I might sell something and pick up a smaller guitar. Probably doesn't help that I broke my left thumb last year, either.
 

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Question: Am I the only person who thinks they need a 3/4th sized acoustic? I've been playing full sized for years and my hands still haven't grown any bigger. Barre chords and power chords are a pain in the ass. I don't think I've ever met another person with hands smaller than mine.

I play a 3/4 classical. I have long fingers and extraordinarily long arms (thanks to my mum rather than Mr Tickle :tongue) but I still find it more comfortable. They don't sound any different, so go for it if you think it'll help. :)
 

kuwisdelu

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I really doubt your voice is terrible, though. If Chris Martin can front a band with his falsetto... and I actually like Coldplay. When I get the money, I want to look into voice training. Maybe.

steven-wilson-coldplay-are-wankers.jpg


I don't know if I'm worse than the average person or not, but back in high school, I made a few demo albums, and my singing wasn't very good. I asked some of my friends to listen to them, and they pretty much made fun of me anytime I tried to sing or when I even talked about trying to sing from then on.

I'm glad to see I'm not alone. Piano was pretty much a no because of my hands. I might sell something and pick up a smaller guitar. Probably doesn't help that I broke my left thumb last year, either.

My fingers cramp up very quickly whenever I try to play piano. I've never known any other guitar players with hands smaller than mine, and it does make it difficult. Some more difficult chords I've encountered I'm like, "okay, my fingers literally cannot reach those different frets unless I break one of them."
 
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thebloodfiend

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steven-wilson-coldplay-are-wankers.jpg


I don't know if I'm worse than the average person or not, but back in high school, I made a few demo albums, and my singing wasn't very good. I asked some of my friends to listen to them, and they pretty much made fun of me anytime I tried to sing or when I even talked about trying to sing from then on.
:Shrug:Yellow was the first song I learned how to play with my capo. Despite their descent into Rock/Pop Maroon Five-esque blandness, they will always hold a special place in my heart.

I think you have to make the best out of your voice. Leonard Cohen might have the voice of a smoker who had his vocal chords ripped out and glued back into place with epoxy and a staple gun, but he never let that hold him back.

Course, if I had to pick a modern singer, I'd like to have the voice of a) Adele, b) Max Milner, or b) the lead of Young the Giant. But you work with what you're given, I suppose.
My fingers cramp up very quickly whenever I try to play piano. I've never known any other guitar players with hands smaller than mine, and it does make it difficult. Some more difficult chords I've encountered I'm like, "okay, my fingers literally cannot reach those different frets unless I break one of them."
If I stretch really hard, my hand span is 7 and 6/8ths. Which, apparently, is average. And that comes from years of forcing my hands into awkward positions.


@Fran: If there's little sound difference, I think I'll definitely go for it.
 

kuwisdelu

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:Shrug:Yellow was the first song I learned how to play with my capo. Despite their descent into Rock/Pop Maroon Five-esque blandness, they will always hold a special place in my heart.

I don't really have anything particularly against Coldplay, but the photo is Steven Wilson, who is brilliant and one of my most favorite musicians of all time.

I think you have to make the best out of your voice. Leonard Cohen might have the voice of a smoker who had his vocal chords ripped out and glued back into place with epoxy and a staple gun, but he never let that hold him back.

Course, if I had to pick a modern singer, I'd like to have the voice of a) Adele, b) Max Milner, or b) the lead of Young the Giant. But you work with what you're given, I suppose.

I meant less to explain what I sound like and more to explain why I have a major inferiority complex about my singing. It's one of the few things I could say I was "bullied" about in high school.

If I stretch really hard, my hand span is 7 and 6/8ths. Which, apparently, is average. And that comes from years of forcing my hands into awkward positions.

Mine is a single pinky joint wider than an iPad's width, which I think makes it within about a 1/4" or so of yours. (I literally do not have a ruler or tape measure. I travel lightly...)
 

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I got my first guitar (a Taylor Big Baby, steel strings) 4 or 5 years ago. In the beginning I taught myself chord guitar by printing out chords of songs I loved, learning the basic chords and playing those songs until I had them down. As a result there are scads of songs I can play now that were self-taught. Weirdly, learning chord guitar improved my ability to sing a bit too. I found this MUCH more compelling and rewarding than just learning chords and scales (ugh). I suppose that's an approach, but that would have killed it for me in about a week if I'd have started there. From there, learn to read tablature. The internet is loaded with guitar tabs, some more accurate than others.

Yes, playing hurt at first but the action on my guitar was also set too high at the factory. I had it corrected at the local guitar shop. It still hurt some but my callouses developed pretty quickly. If it's too painful, have your guitar checked by someone who really knows guitars.

Whoever said to take lessons from a real live human is onto something. After a year or so of learning on my own, I started lessons and have taken them weekly ever since. My guitar teacher is a guitar genius with the patience of a saint. Yes, there were some things I taught myself wrong and a bad habit or two to unlearn. But for me the real point of lessons is there is so much to learn that I could never teach myself, and that video tutorials just couldn't convey to me. You can't beat the instant feedback of an expert teacher. And yes, we do go through chords and scales and theory and notation and all that technical stuff, but what I remember best are songs.

However, since you don't have lessons in the budget, do learn all you can on your own. I strongly recommend beginning with a few songs you've always loved and always wanted to learn to play. Keep at it!
 
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richcapo

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So true. Really, I think you can get away with only knowing g, c, d, and am. Or jut pachebel's canon. That'll give you at least three songs in every genre. You'll be able to play with any band.
Sure, if you're playing in a 1970s punk band. But for most other genres, e.g., jazz, blues, funk, prog, et cetera, you need to know far more than just G, C, D, and Am. Make no mistake about it: playing the guitar can be very, very hard, especially when you reach out beyond three or four chord rock.
 
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thebloodfiend

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Sure, if you're playing in a 1970s punk band. But for most other genres, e.g., jazz, blues, funk, prog, et cetera, you need to know far more than just G, C, D, and Am. Make no mistake about it: playing the guitar can be very, very hard, especially when you reach out beyond three or four chord rock.
I was being facetious, as was the post I was responding to. From reading the entire thread, you do know that I play guitar?

And I'd wager for a 1970s punk band, you'd need a minimum of three power chords.

G, C, D and Am will get you going if you're a Green Day/Avril Lavigne cover band. And even then, you'd need Em, Bb, and B#.
 

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Question: Am I the only person who thinks they need a 3/4th sized acoustic? I've been playing full sized for years and my hands still haven't grown any bigger. Barre chords and power chords are a pain in the ass. I don't think I've ever met another person with hands smaller than mine.

My first decent-quality guitar was a Yamaha 3/4 steel string acoustic. Since I was 14 years old at the time, it was perfect for my underdeveloped hands and arms. It was quite a bit easier to play than my first guitar, a really bad no-name copy of a Fender Jaguar electric.

Funny thing...when I was a teenager, some music store employees used to refer to 3/4 electric guitars (such as Fender's Musicmaster, Mustang, and Duo Sonic, or the Gibson Melody Maker) as "student model" guitars. Took me years to figure out it was because they had originally been marketed for pre-teen guitar students. :e2smack:
 

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I bought my beloved a guitar for his fifty-th birthday. (Q: WHat do you give the fifty-year-old who has everything - and no sense of music? A: A guitar.) It terrified him, but it was a publically-given gift and much too expensive (as he saw when he looked at his credit card slip) to give back.

He started by learning one song via you-tube for a party piece. Then when he'd played it often enough for his fingers to loosen, he started with you-tube tutorials. He joined a weekend open mike thing in a pub twelve months later, and a couple of years after that he was lead guitar in a shed band. They got some gigs and everything.

Disclaimer: he reminds me he used to get up every morning at 5:00 and do a couple of hours of scales that he learned from you-tube. Yeah - he's a bit obsessive. (After that we went to live in a tiny village in France because we didn't speak French. Learning things all about immersion, apparently. )

So - advice - play your guitar! A lot!

ETA: Don't forget to enjoy.
 
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Ward Littell

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Sure, if you're playing in a 1970s punk band. But for most other genres, e.g., jazz, blues, funk, prog, et cetera, you need to know far more than just G, C, D, and Am. Make no mistake about it: playing the guitar can be very, very hard, especially when you reach out beyond three or four chord rock.
But why would any sane person want to play Prog rock?
 

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My advice: get the guitar professionally set up. Especially with an acoustic guitar you want to make sure the action (distance between fretboard and strings) is not too high or else you will just hurt your fingers and make learning barre chords so impossibly hard that you will just give up. Learn all of the notes on the E string. In order they are E F G A B C D and back to E. The distance between each of these notes two frets, except for E/F and B/C where the distance is only one fret. Use the dots on the fretboard as visual cues (dot at third fret is G, dot at 5th is A etc, the two dots at the twelfth fret is E, but at a higher octave - the notes keep repeating)

Memorise the notes of each string (in standard tuning) from left to right (thick string to little string) it is E A D G B E. Learn how to tune a guitar by ear (very important: training your 'ear' is absolutely necessary to becoming a good guitarist and learning how to tune your guitar is the first step towards this).

Learn your basic open chord shapes (E/Em, C, D/Dm, G, F, A/Am) and then learn your E barre chord shape in both major and minor. These are moveable so once you know the shape you can move it up and down the fretboard and play every chord there is (E/F/F#/G/G# etc). Then learn the A barre shape in both minor and major. Finally learn basic chord progression theory and then your minor 7th, major 7th and dominant 7th chords to embellish your chord progressions with some flavour.

Seeing as you're starting on an acoustic I wouldn't dive too deep into scales straight away, instead I would save that for the electric guitar, but if you want to get into scales I would start with the C major scale purely for its importance in music theory.

I've written a few guitar lessons on my site that could be helpful to you, the most valuable ones to a beginner such as yourself would be the three part chord guide (1 - open chords, 2 - barre chords, and 3 - chord progressions).
http://endofthegame.net/guitar/

How much you want to learn really depends on what you want to achieve as a guitarist/musician. You could learn a few basic chords and strumming patterns and call it a day, but what would be the reward in that?
 

Jack Oskar Larm

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Most of the hard work of learning something new can be made much easier if you find a reason to do it. Learning to play guitar can become a background effort if you focus or couple it with a strength like lyrics and singing. I'm going to assume that a person on this forum buying a guitar is a person with a knack for writing. The singing part might be more undeveloped, but, really, everyone sings. It's part of our ability to use language, to speak. We all start out by doing stuff for ourselves in the comfort of our own solitude.

My suggestion is learn one chord. To be specific - as it worked for me - chose the chord of 'E'. Draw your hand across the strings and let it ring. The sound naturally falls away and disappears into the background. If you have some scribbled words at this stage, great. If not, better.

Find a sentence or phrase. If you're stuck, try "How can I tame this thing?"

Strike the chord again and speak the phrase. Repeat it as though it was a chorus. Hopefully, some emotions will start to rise and you'll naturally begin to change the way you utter the simple phrase. Keep hitting the E-chord (either major or minor) and repeat the sentence.

Do you see how the act of playing the guitar seems to be moving backward? If not, take a break, a sip of coffee or wine and see if you can find one more sentence or phrase that compliments the first one. Don't concern yourself with rhyme or structure, just yet.

For instance, How can I tame this thing? When I just want to cry.

In conclusion, keep things simple. Try not to be overwhelmed by all the possibilities. You will get to the stage (no pun intended) where you will quite naturally introduce new elements to your repertoire.

Good luck. Don't give up.
 

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My brother is a guitar teacher, and is mind-boggling when he plays. He is part or the leader of at least three bands in the Buffalo area. My sister was self-taught, and eventually learned how to read and write music. She is now a professional musical playwright. They both play multiple instruments.

Imagine my mind set when faced with learning how to play. I completely abandoned music and chose fine art, writing and graphic design. I didn't want to rain on their parades, so to speak. I remember getting the lead roles in high school musicals, which pissed off my sister to no end.

Anyway, I decided to buy a guitar this spring for my birthday. I chose a nice little parlor acoustic Fender. It's a Ron Emery model, which I like to call Ron Burgundy. I knew a few basic chords from goofing around with my siblings' guitars. So I went online and found charts which show most of the basic chords.

I will try to match the chords with their names in my mind, and then do some basic songs. I can already sing, so most of my learning will be by ear.

Of course a teacher will be the ideal way to go, but if you can imitate the diagrams on charts and remember their names, maybe you'll be able to practice your favourite songs.

Good luck!

p.s. after 2 months and sporadic practice, I just noticed the callouses forming on my fingers. Yay!
 

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Yeah, so, over a year since I started this thread, and I've got nowhere... :(

It's scary and hard and I'm lazy!

Don't give up - it's a skill worth learning, if only for your own enjoyment. The fact that you haven't given up in a year tells me you still want to make it work.

I've been a guitar player for nearly 40 years, but I clearly remember starting out. Blisters, blood, sore hands/wrists, frustration. I really wanted to be able to play, and I stuck with it.

Much good advice given in this thread.

Someone mentioned light gauge strings and low action. Guitars with light strings and low action are FAR easier to play, making it more conducive to learning to play.

I suggest having your guitar looked at by a guitar tech; it may need some adjustments that will help to make it easier to play. If the action can't be lowered, consider buying a different guitar.

You don't have to spend a fortune - just find one with low action. It makes a world of difference.

Here's another good guitar site with free lessons and discussions: Vanderbilly.com.

I am a member there (screen name: TelePaul). I've done some video lessons on that site, along with some performance vids. I can't sing worth crap, and I'm only a fair guitar player, but it's fun, and that's what guitar is supposed to be all about.

Don't give up!
 

Jack Oskar Larm

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Larry M's right, it always pays to have your guitar set up, especially a guitar that is either new or hasn't been played in a long while. The very least you want to have the action (distance between strings and fret board) adjusted to make it easier to play and for ensuring the notes are true.

My advice would always be to spend a little more when buying an instrument. It will last longer, sound better and be easier to play. Cheap guitars have a way of putting off beginners.
 

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Yeah, so, over a year since I started this thread, and I've got nowhere... :(

It's scary and hard and I'm lazy!
All of the advice after this post is rock solid. I can only add this: pick up your guitar every day and give yourself permission to play.