How To Write A Song On Guitar

Learn How To Write A Song On The Guitar!

Let’s take a look at how to write a song. I am not a songwriter by any means but I can give you some tips on what chords you have to choose from when starting to write a song. If you know what chords are in a given key, it can narrow down your chord choices and give you a good structure to work with for writing.

For our example let’s use the key of E major. The notes in an E major scale are E, F#, G#, A, B, C#, and D#. Each note in the E major scale has a chord that goes along with it. In major keys, the 1st, 4th, and 5th notes of a major scale have major chords to go along with them. In the key of E major the 1st, 4th, and 5th notes are E, A, and B. With that in mind, if you were writing a song in the key of E, your basic major chord options would be E major, A major and B major.

In a major key the 2nd, 3rd, and 6th notes of the major scale have minor chords to go along with them. In the key of E major the 2nd, 3rd, and 6th notes are F#, G#, and C#. Now you have three basic options for minor chords when writing a song in E major, F# minor, G# minor and C# minor.

In order to be able to tell what notes and chords are in a given key it takes a bit of hard work and study. You really have to know what chords are major and minor in a key and you have to know your key signatures.

In the example I randomly picked chords out of the key of E major. I started with an F# minor chord and moved to a B major chord. I just moved back and forth between those to chords for a verse. This impromptu verse ended up sounding kind of like Pink Floyd. For the chorus I used the E major B major and A major chords. This ended up sounding a bit like “Knocking on Heavens Door”.

Picking random chords from a key can be a cool way to come up with ideas for new songs. What you should do now is pick a few other keys and see if you can figure out the chords in those keys. Remember the 1, 4, and 5 chords will be major and the 2, 3, and 6, chords will be minor. Don’t worry about the 7 chord for now, we will cover it in other lessons. I will write out the keys of G major and A major for you so you can have some more examples to look at.

The notes in the G major scale are G, A, B, C, D, E, and F#. The major 1, 4, and 5 chords for the key of G major are G, C, and D. The minor 2, 3, and 6 chords are A, B, and E.

The notes in the A major scale are A, B, C#, D, E, F#, and G#. The major 1, 4, and 5 chords for the key of A major are A, D, and E. The minor 2, 3, and 6 chords are B, C#, and F#.

How To Play Guitar

Learn How To Play Guitar With Free Video Guitar Lessons!

Before you begin this guitar lesson, you may want to go through the finger numbering,fretboard numbers, and string notes.

This guitar lesson is designed to get you playing as quickly as possible. We are going to be using just one power chord shape with our left hand. You will see that you can play a lot of songs by simply moving this one shape around the fretboard.

Power chords are basically two note chords. The lowest note that you will be playing is the root note of the chord. The other note is the fifth of the root. Let’s look at an example. If the lowest note, or root note, of your power chord was a G, you would count five letters up from G and that would be your other note, the fifth, in the chord. Start with G as one and count up five notes G, A, B, C, D. This would be a D note, the fifth of G.

Let’s start off by learning the basic shape for the power chords that we will be using. Take your 1st finger and put it on the 3rd fret of the thickest string. This is a G note. Now put your 3rd finger on the 5th fret of the next string over. That is a D note. You are playing a G power chord. This is the basic shape that we will be using throughout this lesson. It is called a power chord.

Take a guitar pick and hold it between your index finger and your thumb. With a downstroke, play just the two strings on which you were making your power chord. Don’t worry too much about technique right now. Just focus on playing the guitar. If you would like to learn more about picking technique and the proper way to use your picking hand, check out the lesson Right Hand Guitar Fundamentals.

Place your 1st finger on the 5th, or second thickest, string on the 5th fret. This will be the root of this power chord. Now play the fifth of this chord on with your 3rd finger on the 7th fret of the 4th string. Play just the two strings that you fingers are fretting. This is a D power chord. Now you are going to slide this shape up two frets. Your 1st finger should be on the 7th fret of the 5th string and your 3rd finger should be on the 9th fret of the 4th string. Again, play the two notes that you are fretting. This is an E power chord. Keep your fingers on the same strings and slide the shape down to where your 1st finger is on the 3rd fret and your 3rd finger is on the 5th fret of the same two strings. This is a C power chord. Practice moving this shape around until you get use to the shape and feel of power chords.

Often beginners will play the root of the chord and it will sound great, but the fifth of the chord will not be ringing out properly. This is usually because the index finger is not curved over enough. If the fifth of your power chords are not ringing out very well, odds are that your 1st finger is muting the note that your 3rd finger is playing. Make sure that you are curving your index finger over enough to let the other note in the power chord ring out.

Now that you have the power chord shape down, try putting a steady rhythm with the progression. Play each power chord eight times and try to move to the next one without stopping. Remember the progression is G, D, E, C. You can also try playing the progression using some palm muting. To palm mute the strings, just let the fleshy part of your picking hand rest on the strings where they take off from the bridge of the guitar.

Now that you know what a power chord is and how to play one, you can play tons of different songs. If you listen to the songs “Glycerine” by Bush and “When I Come Around” by Green Day, you will hear the exact same progression that we used in this lesson. Power chords and progressions like the one in this lesson are used in all kinds of music all of the time. Try to mix the power chords up and make up your own music. Have fun!

Left Hand Guitar Fundamentals

Practice Your Left Hand Guitar Fundamentals!

There are many things about your left hand that you should be aware of when you are playing guitar. Relaxing and finger placement are the two main things that we will focus on during this lesson. Many guitarists have their own idea of what proper technique is. The ideas in this lesson are not necessarily strict rules for technique, but they are good guidelines for developing your playing and keeping yourself injury free. At the end of this lesson, we will give you an exercise that will help you to focus on good left hand technique.

Being relaxed is something that is very important for you to be aware of. If you are practicing the guitar and you start to feel any excessive tension in your fingers, hands, arms, back or neck, you should stop and relax. Doing some stretches helps too. Tension can not only be hazardous to your health, but it can also slow down your playing. A relaxed hand can move much more quickly and efficiently than a tense hand.

When you are playing the guitar, it is very important that your fingers on your left hand have proper finger placement. Good finger placement is right behind the fret. If you are playing a note and notice that your finger is in the middle or toward the back of the fret, you should move it up until it is pretty close to the fret. This will make it easier for you to play clean and clear notes. You should use your ears to help you with your finger placement too. If you hear some buzzing on a note, check your finger placement. Most of the time a small adjustment will help to clear up some buzzing. Keeping your left thumb right in the middle of the back of the neck is also an important thing to remember. If you remember to do this, you can eliminate some of the tension that bad technique can cause.

There is a very simple exercise that you can use to focus on relaxing and good finger placement. Start out by putting your 1st finger on the 3rd fret of your 6th string. Now stay on the low E string and play the 4th fret with your 2nd finger. Finish your low E string by playing the 5th fret with your 3rd finger. That is the pattern for all six strings. Move to your A string and play the 3rd, 4th and 5th frets with your 1st 2nd and 3rd fingers. Continue this pattern on your D, G, B, and E strings. This may seem like a simple exercise but that is the idea. If you don’t have to remember a scale or a complicated pattern, you will be free to focus on your left hand technique. Start out slowly, get the exercise clean, and then build up your speed. Be sure to use alternate picking throughout the entire exercise.

You really don’t have to spend a lot of time on exercises like this. Five to ten minutes a day should do. It is important that you take exercises like this slowly if you are a beginner. Slow practice in the beginning will pay off with good pain free technique in the future.

Holding An Electric Guitar

Learn How To Hold An Electric Guitar

In this lesson we are going to take a look at how to hold an electric guitar. The three basic options that you have to choose from when holding an electric guitar are the casual method, the classical method and standing up. We will cover each one of these methods and let you know about some gear that you might want to buy.

The casual method is probably the most popular method of holding the electric guitar. This is because, with this method, it is easy to just pick up the guitar and start playing. You don’t necessarily need a strap or a footstool to pick up the guitar and go. To use the casual method, just sit down and place the guitar over your right leg. Hold the guitar close to your body and use you right arm to make sure that the guitar does not slide down your leg. It is a really good idea to make sure that you are sitting up straight. Bad posture can lead to back problems and poor technique.

The classical method of holding the guitar requires that you put the guitar over your left leg. Usually people that use the classical method have a footstool to rest their left foot on. This brings their leg up higher and puts the guitar in a better position for playing. You can find a footstool at pretty much any music store for about $15-$30 The advantages of the classical method are that it puts your fretting hand in a better position for playing and it gives you better access to the higher frets. Again, make sure that you are sitting up straight.

Standing while playing the guitar is a great way to practice. When you are performing in front of an audience you will usually be standing. If you practice in the same position that you will be playing in, you will probably be more comfortable and make fewer mistakes. If you want to stand when you are playing you will need to have a guitar strap. Straps for electric guitars can cost anywhere from $10-$50. Most straps are fully adjustable so that you can wear your guitar low or high. There are a lot of guitar players out there that wear the guitar really high and there are a lot that wear their guitar really low. Try adjusting your strap to different heights and see what position works best for you.

Experiment with all three methods of holding the electric guitar and pick the one that you are the most comfortable with. You can also learn how to hold an acoustic guitar here!

Nate Savage’s Guitar Collection

Take An Inside Look At All The Guitars That Nate Savages Uses!

I’ve probably owned about 35 guitars throughout my lifetime so far. In this clip I just wanted to share with you guys and let you know exactly which guitars I have been using in these videos.

The acoustic that I use is an Alvarez Yairi GY-1. This guitar is a 1990 model and it’s hand made in Japan. The back and sides are made of rosewood, the top is made of spruce and the fretboard is made of ebony.

This guitar is really sentimental to me because my mom gave it to my dad for their 22nd wedding anniversary and then my dad gave it to me years later when I graduated from college. I have played a lot of other really nice acoustic guitars that I really like over the years but the Yairi sounds and plays so great that I just can’t bring myself to buy another.

The electric guitar that I played for about half of the videos is a PRS SE Custom made in Korea. The body is made of mahogany with a maple top and the neck is made of mahogany with a rosewood fretboard. It has two humbuckers, a three-way pickup selector switch and a stoptail bridge. This guitar is pretty cool because it doesn’t cost an arm and a leg but it plays nicely and sounds pretty incredible. There are a lot of other guitars out their in the same price range but is seems to me that the PRS SE series is a bit nicer and bit better quality that most of it’s competition.

How To Write A Love Song

Learn How Write A Love Song On The Guitar!

Welcome to the comedy relief portion of GuitarLessons.com. In this lesson we are going to take a look at how to write a love song. I’m not the greatest with words but I will give you a few writing tricks that I have come across throughout the years.

Emotions are a great source of inspiration whether they are sad or happy. They can give you some good motivation and material for writing songs. In the example in this lesson my girl broke up with me so I just wrote down everything I felt for two or three days. That’s where the lyrics in this song came from. Even thought they were a bit sappy they got the idea across.

Try to be aware of your day-to-day experiences and use them to come up with content for songs. The next time something good or bad happens to you just jot down how you feel and see what happens.

I got the music for this song going from kind of ripping off the feel from a random song that I had heard somewhere. I just used the basic feel of that song and changed the chords to a progression that I had come up with. The music doesn’t have to be complex especially if you want your audience to focus on the lyrics. Sometimes the best songs just have a few chords with some basic strumming.

Try to take some experience in your life and put it to music. You might be surprised with what you can come up with.

How To Play Acoustic Guitar

Use This Acoustic Guitar Lesson To Master The Acoustic Guitar!

Let’s learn how to play the acoustic guitar. In this lesson we are going to learn the G, C, and D guitar chords and then put a basic strumming pattern with them. I am going to assume that you have never even held a guitar before so lets start with the basics by learning how to hold an acoustic guitar. Rest your guitar over your right leg, and hold it close to your body with your right arm. Remember to sit up straight and relax. When you place your finger on a fret of the guitar, remember to place that finger very close to the fret. We have supplied you with some diagrams of the chords that you will be learning. Learn how to read chord diagrams here!

Let’s move on to the chord shapes. Don’t worry about making the chords sound perfect right away. Just focus on getting the shapes down. The strength in your left hand will come with some practice. Try to make sure that you are curving your fingers enough to play on the the very tips of your fingers. This will help the fingers that your are playing with to not mute the surrounding strings.

Our first chord will be a G chord. Put your 3rd finger on the 3rd fret of the low E (6th) string, your 2nd finger on the 2nd fret of the A (5th) string, and your pinky on the 3rd fret of the high E (1st) string. Now take a pick, if you have one, between you thumb and index finger on your right hand and give all six strings a strum. That’s your G chord.

To play a C chord you need to put your 3rd finger on the 3rd fret of the A (5th) string, your 2nd finger on the 2nd fret of the D (4th) string, and your 1st finger on the 1st fret of the B (2nd) string. Now strum all of the strings except for the low E (6th) string.

One chord to go. To make your D chord, place your 1st finger on the 2nd fret of the G (3rd) string, your 2nd finger on the 2nd fret of the high E (1st) string, and your 3rd finger on the 3rd fret of the B (2nd) string. Now strum all of the strings except for the low E and A strings. Thats it, all three chords.

Practice these chords until you get the shapes memorized and then try changing from shape to shape. Don’t get frustrated if your fingers get sore or tired, thats normal. If you need some time to get the shapes down, take a few days to practice and then come back to this video and put the strumming pattern with the chords.

Now it is time to take the chords we have learned and put a simple strumming pattern with them. We will be using all down strokes for the strumming pattern. Make your G chord and get your pick ready in your right hand. Strum the G chord four times. Switch to your C chord ,and strum that chord four times. Finish off by making your D chord and strumming down four more times. Switching between chords smoothly is probably the hardest part of playing something like this. Try to make your strumming as even as possible, especially when your changing chords. Take it as slow as you need to at first. Don’t be in a rush to play fast, just focus on playing clean and evenly.

Knowing these chords, and a few basic strumming patterns, can enable you to play a lot more songs than you realize. Many many songs you hear on the radio are just a few chords with some basic strumming. Take the chords that you have learned in this lesson, experiment and mix them up. Try to come up with your own strumming patterns too.

How To Tune A Guitar To Itself

Learn How To Tune A Guitar To Itself In This Guitar Lesson!

In this guitar lesson we are going to learn how to tune the guitar if you don’t have a tuner, piano or any reference note available. There are several different ways to tune a guitar by ear but we have chosen to present this one because it will probably be the easiest for you. If you are new to tuning don’t be frustrated if you can’t do it right away. Some times it takes a while to train your ear to be able to hear if a note needs to be tuned up or down. If you are not yet familiar with the names of the strings of the guitar, check out the lesson The Strings Of The Guitar.

Let’s say that you are somewhere there is no tuner available, maybe at the beach or on a camping trip. If your guitar is really out of tune but one of your guitar strings is relatively close to being in tune, you can use that string as a reference note to tune your other strings. Most guitar players use the low E or A strings as a reference note. In our example we will be using the low E string. The low E doesn’t have to be perfectly in tune, just close.

Start off by playing the low E string on the 5th fret. This is an A note. The next string over, the 5th string, is an open A. Since the note on the 5th fret of the low E string is the same note as the open A string, you can it as a reference note to tune the open A string. Play both notes at the same time and see if you can tell if the open A string needs to be tuned up or down. Try to match the open A string to the 5th fret of the low E string by adjusting the A strings tuning key up or down. This may be difficult and frustrating at first but the more that you practice this the better your ear will get.

Once your A string is in tune, switch to the 5th fret of the A string and play that note along with the open D, or 4th, string. Use the pitch of the 5th fret of the A string as a reference not to adjust the open D string. Repeat the same process with the 5th fret of the D string and the open G string. When you get to the next pair of strings the tuning method changes a bit. Instead of fretting the G on the 5th fret you need to use the 4th fret. Play the 4th fret of the G string and tune your open B string to that note. For the last string play the 5th fret of the B string and tune the open high E string to that note.

This is just one method of tuning the guitar but it works well and it is easy to remember. If you forget how to do it, just remember 5, 5, 5, 4, 5. That is just an easy way to recall what fret numbers you need to hold down if you start on the low E string. It is a good idea to use a tuner to help you work on your tuning. Try tuning your guitar by ear and then checking it with a tuner to see how close you were. Remember to be patient with yourself.

Holding An Acoustic Guitar

Learn How To Hold An Acoustic Guitar!

There are three basic ways that you can choose to hold your acoustic guitar. The casual method, the classical method, and standing are the options that you have when it comes to holding your guitar. Try experimenting with each way of holding your acoustic and then choose the method that feels the best for you.

The casual method of holding the guitar is probably the most common. To use the casual method, place the guitar over your right leg and pull the guitar close to your body. Use your right arm to hold the guitar close to you and keep if from slipping downward. Some people like using straps while they are using this metheod. This just helps to keep the guitar stable and close to you. Now bring your left hand up and place it on the neck of the guitar. Make sure that both of your arms are relaxed and that you are sitting up straight.

To use the classical method of holding the guitar you will need a foot stool. You can pick up a foot stool at your local music store for about $15. If you already have a foot stool, place your left foot on it. Now put the guitar over your left leg. Put your right arm over the guitar to hold it in place. Now bring your left hand up to the neck. You will probably notice that the neck of the guitar sticks out to the left much more than it did when you were using the casual method. This is one thing about the classical method that is really good. Having the neck farther to the left gives you much better access to all of the frets. This method makes it easier to play more difficult things when they are higher up on the neck of the guitar.

Now let’s take a look at standing with your acoustic guitar. I like this method because if I am playing in front of people, odds are that I will be standing. Practicing like I play helps me to be more consistent. In order to stand with your guitar you will need a guitar strap. Most straps can cost anywhere between $5-$35. In order to used a strap on your acoustic guitar you will need to have a guitar with strap buttons, or you could use a strap that you can tie to the headstock of your guitar. Most straps are adjustable so that you can have your acoustic guitar in a high or low position. Playing your guitar in a high position gives you better access to the neck of the guitar and keeps you in a better overall position for playing. Playing your guitar in a low position looks cooler and it may be more comfortable for you. I recommend adjusting your strap to where your guitar is in the exact same position that it would be if you were sitting. This will make your practicing and playing more consistent.

Experiment with each of these ways of holding the acoustic guitar, and choose the way that works best for you.

All About Guitar Strings

This lesson is designed to give you all of the basic information that you need to know about different types of acoustic and electric guitar strings.  We will talk about string gauges, types of acoustic strings, types of electric strings, coated vs. non-coated strings, nylon strings, flatwound vs. roundwound, what strings are made of, differences in tone and much more.

Hopefully you will use this lesson to educate yourself about the different kinds of strings out there and maybe even use some of the different types of strings that you learn about to experiment with your own personal guitar tone. Click Here to Download a PDF Of The Full Article.

String Gauges

Overview - The Gauge of a string is simply the thickness of that string. This is usually measured in thousandths of an inch. Typically a set of strings will be named after the thickness of the 1st or thinnest string in the set.  You may hear some say that they use “10’s”. That just means that they are using a set of strings where the 1st string is .010 of an inch thick.

Acoustic String Gauges – Acoustic guitar strings usually come in sets anywhere from .010 – .013. The most common gauge is considered to be light or .012 gauge. Anything lighter than .012 is considered to be a custom-light or an extra-light. Typically, the heaviest acoustic strings that you will see will be medium or .013 gauge.

Acoustic String Gauge Pros & Cons - Thicker gauge strings sound fuller and louder but they are harder to play.  This is great if you like a really thick tone or need a lot of volume out of your acoustic guitar. Using a thinner gauge of strings will make your guitar easier to play but you will sacrifice some tone and volume.

Electric String Gauges - Electric guitar string gauges usually range from .008 – .013. You can find sets thicker than .013 but they are usually flatwound sets or for baritone guitars. Typically you will find .009 or .010 gauge strings on most electric guitars. Jazz guitars will typically have thicker flatwound sets on them.

Electric String Gauge Pros & Cons – Thicker gauge strings sound fuller but they are a bit harder to play, just like on the acoustic. If you are more concerned with having a fat tone than you are with playability you might want to use thicker strings on your electric. Thicker gauge electric strings are also great if you down tune your guitar. Using a thinner gauge of strings will make it easier to play your guitar but you will sacrifice some tone and the strings will be a bit looser feeling.

Acoustic Strings: Bronze vs. Phosphor Bronze

Bronze
Bronze acoustic guitar strings are typically pretty bright when compared to phosphor bronze strings. They are also more golden in color while phosphor bronze strings have a bit of a red or copper tint to them. Bronze is usually made 90% copper and 10% tin. Typically, bronze guitar strings will be 80% copper and 20% tin. Bronze is softer than steel but it still resists corrosion pretty well, especially around salt-water or humid climates.

• Common Brands – D’Addario, Martin, Ernie Ball, Elixir, Cleartone, John Pearse, GHS, Dean Markley, DR, Fender, Black Diamond.
• History and Usage – Discovered around the 4th millennium B.C. Used for tools tiles, boat fittings and Cymbals.
• Alloys – Typically 90% Copper and 10% Tin.
• Sound -A bit brighter than Phosphor Bronze strings.
• Cost – Non-Coated $5 – $10. Coated $10 – $20.

Phosphor Bronze
Phosphor Bronze acoustic guitar strings are a bit warmer and airy than regular bronze strings. A lot of players think that this makes them better for finger picking. They also have a bit more of a red or copper color to them as well. Phosphor bronze is like regular bronze but it has a small amount of phosphor added to it. This helps to keep the metal from oxidizing or corroding as quickly.

• Common Brands – D’Addario, Martin, Ernie Ball, Elixir, Cleartone, John Pearse, GHS, Dean Markley, DR, Fender, Black Diamond.
• Other Uses – Ship propellors, springs, bolts.
• Alloys – Typically 90% Copper, 10% Tin and a small amount of Phosphor.
• Sound – A bit warmer and robust than regular Bronze strings.
• Cost – Non-Coated $5 – $10. Coated $10 – $20.

Electric Strings: Nickel Plated, Pure Nickel & Stainless Steel

Nickel-Plated
Nickel-plated strings are probably the most common type of electric guitar string in use today. The winding on the thicker strings is made of nickel-plated steel. The steel that the string is made of is great for the magnets in the pickups to “pick up” while the nickel-plating helps to balance out the bright sound of the steel. The nickel also helps to keep the string smooth and protects it from corrosion.  Nickel is a bit softer than steel so nickel or nickel-plated strings won’t wear your frets out as quickly as stainless steel strings will.

• Common Brands – D’Addario, Dunlop, Ernie Ball, Elixir, Cleartone, GHS, Dean Markley, DR, Fender, Gibson, Rotosound.
• Alloys – Steel strings with nickel-plating on the winding of the wound strings.
• Sound – Bright but balanced. The nickel plating mellows out the sound of the steel a bit for a bright but balanced tone.
• Cost – Non-Coated $5 – $10. Coated $10 – $18.

Pure Nickel
Pure nickel strings are more mellow and warmer sounding than stainless steel or nickel-plated strings.  If you are in to blues, jazz or classic rock you might really like the thicker sound of pure nickel strings. Nickel is pretty good at resisting corrosion and is a great metal for the magnets in the pickups to “pick up”.

• Common Brands – D’Addario, DR, Ernie Ball, Fender, Gibson, GHS, Thomastik.
• Alloys – Pure Nickel
• Sound – Warmer and more mellow than Steel or Nickel Plated strings.
• Cost – $5 – $20 More expensive sets are usually flatwound strings.

Stainless Steel
Stainless steel strings are the brightest and sharpest sounding of all electric guitar strings. They also last a long time and stay bright due to stainless steels inherent ability to resist corrosion. Stainless steel does feel quite a bit different than other electric strings. Some players say that it feels a little dryer or just not as slick as nickel or nickel-plated strings. Stainless steel is a pretty hard metal so it can wear your frets out quicker than nickel strings but if you want a brighter sound it is the way to go.

• Common Brands – D’Addario, Dean Markley, DR, Dunlop, Ernie Ball, Fender, GHS, Rotosound.
• Alloys – Steel with chromium and Nickel.
• Sound – A bit brighter than nickel-plated strings and quite a bit brighter than pure Nickel strings. Pretty sharp sounding.
• Cost – $5 – $15

Coated vs. Non-Coated Gutiar Strings

Coated Strings
Coated stings are treated with some kind of webbing or “coating” that prevents the string from oxidizing, corroding and getting dirty. This will help the string to sound new and bright for a longer period of time. Coated strings are quite a bit more expensive than non-coated strings, about twice as much, but if you hate changing your guitar strings they are worth the extra money. I find that coated strings generally stay bright and fresh about three times longer than non-coated strings. Coated strings are a great option if you have a corrosive body chemistry, play a lot or live in a place with high humidity.

• Common Brands – D’Addario, Cleartone, Dean Markley, DR, Elixir, Ernie Ball, GHS, Rotosound, Sevilla.
• Coating – Polymer webbing or molecular treated strings.
• Cost – Electric $8 – $13 Acoustic $10 – 18

Non-Coated Strings
Non-coated strings are quite a bit less expensive than coated strings but they loose their brightness much more quickly. 

• Common Brands – D’Addario, Black Diamond, Dean Markley, DR, Dunlop, Ernie Ball, Fender, Gibson, GHS, John Pearse, Martin, Rotosound, Thomastik.
• Cost – $5 -$10

Nylon Guitar Strings

Tension
Nylon stings sets are measure by tension instead of thousandths of inches like metal string sets. There are generally three levels of tension for nylon strings: Normal, Hard and Extra Hard. Normal tension strings are quite easy to play on but they can get quite floppy if you are playing louder or faster kinds of music.

Hard tension nylon strings tend to hold up to louder or faster types of music better but the added tension can be harder on your fingers. Extra-hard tension is generally for very fast or loud music. They are considerably tighter feeling than a set of normal tension nylon strings. A lot of very fast players use extra-hard tension strings.

Ball vs. Tie End Nylon Strings
There are two basic ways that a nylon string can attach to the bridge of a nylon string guitar, ball end and tie end. Typically when you see a nylon string guitar it will have a tie end string on it. Tie end strings require a bit more work when changing strings but they are much more popular.

Ball end nylon strings have a plastic or metal bead or ball on the end that lets you avoid the tying process when changing strings on your nylon string guitar. These types of strings are a bit harder to find and not nearly as popular.

Roundwound vs. Flatwound Guitar Strings

Roundwound Strings
Roudwound strings are what most people think of when they picture a typical guitar string. If a string is roundwound that simply means that the winding on the thicker three or four strings is round. It is kind of like winding a straightened out paper clip around another straightened out paper clip. Roundwound strings are brighter than flatwound strings.

Flatwound Strings
Flatwound strings are warmer and quite a bit more mellow than roundwound strings. That is why flatwounds are generally used for jazz some kinds of blues music.

The winding on the strings is not round but flat. That is what makes the sound so mellow. Think of it as taking some wide ribbon and wrapping it around the cardboard roll of some used up wrapping paper. Flatwound strings generally last much longer than roundwound strings because there are fewer crevices in which dirt and grime can get trapped

How To Tell When You Should Change Your Guitar Strings

There are generally three ways to tell if you should change your strings, how they sound, how the feel and how they look.  Arguably, the most important of these is how your strings sound. If they sound good to you, there is probably no need to change them. If they sound thuddy, muddy, dull or flat it is probably a good idea to go ahead and change them.

Now lets talk about how your strings feel. If they feel slick and clean you are good to go. If your strings feel really dry, dirty or rusty it is definitely time to change them. You don’t want to get tetanus right!

Take a look at your guitar strings. Are the shiny and glossy looking or do they look dull, tarnished and like someone just ate off of your fretboard. If the later is the case you know what to do . . . give them a change.

How Often Should You Change Your Guitar Strings

How often you should change your guitar strings depends upon quite a few things. How much you play, where you live, your body chemistry and how well you take care of your strings all can all be a factor in how long your strings will last.

Some players change their strings every week or after every show while others go months without a string change.  How much you play has a lot to do with how often you should change your strings. If you play tons you will probably change you strings every week or two. Just remember to keep an eye out for the things we discussed in the “How to Tell When You Should Change Your Guitar Strings” section and act accordingly.

How To Make Your Guitar Strings Last Longer

There are a couple of things that you can do to make your strings last longer. First of all, wash your hands every time before picking up your guitar to play. This will keep the dirt and oils that are on your hands from getting on your strings and causing corrosion.

The second thing you can do is wipe your strings down with a polish cloth or rag after you play. While you have your polish cloth out you may as well polish your guitar up too. These two simple things can really cut down on your monthly string bill.

• See Wikipedia, Bronze, http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bronze (as of April 15,2010 11:52 PAC)
• See Wikipedia, Phosphor Bronze, http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Phosphor_bronze (as of April 15,2010 11:52 PAC)
• See Wikipedia, Nickel, http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nickel (as of April 15,2010 11:52 PAC)
• See Wikipedia, Stainless Steel, http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Stainless_Steel (as of April 15,2010 11:52 PAC)

Learn To Play Guitar

Learn To Play Guitar With Free Video Guitar Lessons!

If you have never picked up the guitar, but you really want to learn how to play, this is the lesson for you. By learning just the two chord shapes in this lesson you will be able to play a ton of songs. The idea behind this lesson is not to play perfectly, but to get started making some real music as quickly as possible. If you, as a beginner, can play some cool music right away, you will be encouraged and a lot more excited about learning to play the guitar. Your fingers will probably be a bit sore after playing for a while but that will pass after a few weeks.

The chord progression that we will be using in this lesson is E, A, B, and E. Start off by putting your index finger on the 7th fret of the second thickest string. Now put your 3rd finger on the 9th fret of the 4th string and your pinky on the 9th fret of the 3rd string. If you have a pick, hold it between your right index finger and your thumb, if you don’t have a pick just use your fingers. Strum all six strings. That is an E chord.

Put your 3rd finger on the 2nd fret of the 4th string and your pinky on the 2nd fret of the 3rd string. This is an A chord. This is the same shape as the first chord in the progression, but instead of using your index finger, you just have an open 5th string. Strum all of the strings except for the Low E string.

Take the same shape that we first learned and instead of having your index finger on the 7th fret of the 5th string, put it on the 2nd fret. Now your 3rd finger should be on the 4th fret of the 4th string and your pinky should be on the 4th fret of the 3rd string. Strum all of the strings except for the low E. This is a B chord.

One chord left to learn. The last chord is a regular open E chord. This is the only chord where you have to learn a new shape. Take your index finger and place it on the 1st fret of the 3rd string. Now place your 3rd finger on the 2nd fret of the 4th string and your 2nd finger on the 2nd fret of the 5th string. Strum all six strings.

Now that you have all of the chords learned, let’s put a basic strumming pattern with the progression. To start out, lets keep it simple. Use all down strokes with your right hand. You should have eight down strokes for every chord. Take you time changing chords at first and try to make the notes as clear as possible. If you are not hearing all of the notes in the chords, make sure that you are pressing down on the strings hard enough. If the chords still don’t sound right, make sure that you are not muting some strings with your fingers that are fretting the notes. Concentrate on keeping a steady rhythm with your right hand.

Listen for these chord and progressions like this one in music that you like to listen to. Take the shapes that you have learned in this lesson and try mixing them up to come up with your own songs. Just experiment. At this point there really is not right or wrong. Be patient with yourself and remember to have fun learning the guitar.

Right Hand Guitar Fundamentals

Learn Right Hand Guitar Fundamentals To Strengthen Your Playing!

In this lesson we are going to learn some of the fundamentals for good right hand technique. The techniques presented here for picking and strumming are more guidelines than rules. There are many incredible guitarists all over the world who use different techniques than the ones presented in this lesson. Just look at this lesson as a good place to start out with your picking and strumming. Try not to be frustrated with yourself if you are not getting the hang of this right away. There are players who spend years working on their right hand technique. I would encourage you to look up some videos of your favorite players and see what their right hand technique is like.

Let’s start off by looking at what kind of pick to use and how to hold the pick. Picks come in a wide variety of shapes sizes and thicknesses. It is a good idea to go down to your local music store and buy a variety of picks so that you can see what works best for you. If you don’t want to buy a ton of different picks, I recommend starting with a nice medium thickness. A good medium pick will work well for most people and most styles of music.

Curl your index finger on your picking hand and place the pick on fleshy part of the finger between the fingertip and first joint. Now bring your thumb down and lightly pinch the pick to hold it in place. You should have a firm grip on the pick but your hand, fingers, and arm should still be pretty relaxed. If you ever feel any excess tension in your picking hand you should stop and relax. Tension can lead to tendinitis, cramps, or other injuries that you really don’t want to deal with.

Place the pick on the low E string and use a downward motion with your wrist to pick the string with a downstroke. Now use an upward motion with your wrist to pick the string with an upstroke. Go back and forth with upstrokes and downstrokes a few times. Try to move the pick just enough to make the string sound. If you are making wide pick strokes, it will be harder for you to come back to pick the next note. Most of the picking motion comes from the wrist but there are really good players out there who use their elbow or fingers to obtain most of their picking motion. Using the wrist for the picking motion is not a rule, just a guideline.

The angle of the pick on the string is something that you need to be aware of. Some players angle the pick up or down and some keep the pick parallel with the string. This is more of a personal preference but I have found that most players angle the pick downward.

Let’s look at an exercise that really focuses on helping you to develop your picking technique. This exercise uses alternate picking the entire time. That simply means that no matter how many times you pick, you always alternate up and down strokes. Never have two upstrokes or two downstrokes in a row. All you are going to do is start on the low E string and pick that string open three times. Down Up Down. Move to the next open string and pick that string three times. Up Down Up. Continue playing three notes on each open string using alternate picking. Changing from string to string is the hardest part of this exercise. Don’t be frustrated if you don’t get it right away. Start this exercise out slowly and build up speed only when it is clean a clear. We have provided you with the notation and tab for this exercise. Be sure to pay attention to the upstroke and downstroke indicators on the tab.

Strumming is the next right hand technique that we will look at. I once heard a great guitar player say that good strumming technique is like pretending that you have some honey on your finger and that a feather is stuck to the honey. If you try to shake off the feather that is pretty much the exact motion that you want when you are strumming. Most of the motion comes from the wrist, but the fingers and elbow help out a bit too.

If you know an E chord, make it and try strumming all six strings up and down. Imagine that the feather is stuck to the pinky of your strumming hand. This may seem silly but it really works well. Make sure to practice often, relax, and check out some videos of your favorite players.

How To Tune A Guitar

Learn How To Tune A Guitar In This Guitar Lesson!

Tuning your guitar is a very important skill that every guitar player should have. If your are constantly out of tune you, and everyone that has to listen to you, will probably not enjoy playing your guitar as much as you could. Being in tune as much as possible is one of the greatest things that you can do to make yourself sound like a pro. This lesson will start out by showing you what some of your options are when you go out to buy a guitar tuner. Once we look at some of your options for buying a tuner, we will learn how to use a digital tuner to tune up.

There are three basic categories of tuners that we are going to cover in this lesson, clip on tuners, pedal tuners and hand held digital tuners. One thing that you should be aware of is the difference between a chromatic and non-chromatic tuner. If a tuner is “chromatic” that just means that it can tune any note that you can think of, not just the six notes on the guitar. A non-chromatic tuner usually only tunes the six notes found on the open strings of the guitar.

Let’s look at clip on tuners first. Clip on tuners are really convenient because you just clip them on to the head stock of your guitar and leave them there. Any time you want to check your tuning you just hit an open string and look over to see if the note needs to go up or down. These tuners work off of the vibrations of your guitar and work with both electric and acoustic guitars. You could probably expect to pay about $40.00 – $80.00 for a clip on tuner.

Pedal tuners require that you have an electric or acoustic/electric guitar. These tuners are very practical because, once you stomp on them they mute your guitar signal. If you are playing or plan on playing in a live situation, pedal tuners are a great choice because the audience will not have to listen to you tune through your amp or the sound system. Stomp on the pedal tuner to activate it. After you tune up, stomp on the pedal tuner again to bring your guitar signal back. Pedal tuners usually cost about $100.00.

Digital tuners are probably the least expensive of each type of tuner that we will cover in this lesson. A descent hand held digital tuner should cost you $15.00 – $40.00. This is the kind of tuner that we will be using to learn how to tune the guitar.

Before we start learning how to tune the guitar let’s review the names of the open strings on the guitar. The names of the open strings on the guitar from low to high are E, A, D, G, B and E. If you have a regular hand held tuner you can probably just plug your guitar into the tuner. If you have and acoustic, you can just use the mic on the tuner to pick up the sound.

Once your tuner is on play your low E string. The tuner should indicate a note, hopefully it is an E. If its not an E we need to adjust the tuning to make it an E. Let’s say that you hit your low E string and the tuner display says that you are playing a D flat. D is before E in the musical alphabet so, this means that we need to raise the pitch of the string until it becomes an E. Imagine that the tuner said that the note that you were playing was an F#. In this case, you would need lower the pitch of the note until it became an E.At this point you should use your tuning peg for your low E string to raise or lower the note until it becomes an E. Okay, you have your E string tuned to an E note, but is it in tune? Most tuners have a needle or some light that let you know if a note is sharp or flat. If the note that you are tuning is flat, the needle or light will be off to the left of center. If the note that you are playing is sharp, the needle or light will off to the right of center. The idea is to “tune up” the note if it is flat and to “tune down” the note if it is sharp. When the note is “in tune” the needle will be in the middle of the display. If you have a tune with lights the “in tune” light is usually green and in the middle of the display. Repeat this process for all five remaining strings. Don’t be frustrated if you break a string or if it takes you a while to really get the whole idea of tuning. Thats normal.

Finger Numbering On Guitar

How To Number Your Fingers For Learning The Guitar!

In this lesson we are going to learn about the finger numbering system that we will be using in all of our lessons. These finger numbers refer to the fingers on your left hand. This may seem very simple, but if you are a beginner it is very important to use the correct fingering on the examples that we will be giving you. Getting in the habit of using the proper finger now will make your life a lot easier when you start to learn more complicated passages on the guitar. Use this video as a reference and make sure that you understand which finger to use in any given situation.

Use the provided finger numbering diagram to reference which number is associated with what finger on your hand.

Your index finger will be referred to as your “first finger.”

Your middle finger will be referred to as your “second finger.”

Your ring finger will be referred to as your “third finger.”

Your pinky finger will be referred to as your “fourth finger.”

After you learn the proper fingering numbers, you can begin to learn many different guitar chords and guitar scales. You should also get comfortable with the fretboard numbers on your guitar!

Acoustic Vs. Electric Guitar

Learn The Pros And Cons Of Acoustic And Electric Guitars!

If you are a beginner guitarist, you might be wondering about how to choose between an electric guitar and an acoustic guitar. I worked in a very large music store for over 4½ years and I always saw people who couldn’t quite decide on which way to go. In this lesson I will give you some tips that will help you decide between starting on an acoustic or electric guitar. For even more great guitar tips you can sign up for the GuitarLessons.com Practice Routine Generator.

The first thing that I usually tell people, when they are trying to decide between an acoustic and an electric guitar, is to choose the one that they like the most. If you like folk, country orbluegrass music you should probably go with an acoustic guitar. If you are more drawn to metaland hard rock music you should go with an electric guitar. Choosing a guitar that goes with the style of music that you enjoy listening to is a great way to pick out a guitar. If you pick a guitar that fits the style of music that you are in to, you will probably practice guitar more and get better faster.

The acoustic and electric guitar both have some unique advantages that you should be aware of. The acoustic guitar is nice because you can just grab it and play pretty much anywhere you want. You can go camping, to the beach, or over to your friends house to play and you don’t need an amplifier or electricity. Acoustic guitars are great to just grab and go, but they can be a bit harder to play than an electric guitar.

Electric guitars are nice because you can play around with distortion and effects. It is really nice to have an electric guitar when you want to play more aggressive music like metal and rock. Electric guitars are a bit easier to play than acoustic guitars, but you usually have to have some kind of battery powered device or electricity to get the most out of them.

If you don’t really know what kind of guitar that you want, I would recommend that you go to your local music store and just play around on all of the electric and acoustic guitars that you can get your hands on. It might help to listen to many different types of music and see which style you enjoy the most. Don’t be in a hurry to buy a guitar. Go back to the music store as many times as you need to. Play around and experiment with all types of guitars until one really jumps out and says “Buy Me!”. Of course, if you can afford an acoustic and an electric, that would be the most fun.

12 Bar Blues Guitar Riff II

Take Your 12 Bar Blues Riff To The Next Level!

In this lesson we are going to dress up the basic 12 bar blues riff by adding in a few new notes. Simple ideas like the ones presented in this lesson can really help make your blues playing stand out from average run of the mill blues riffs. If you haven’t learned the Standard 12 Bar Blues Riff yet you might want to go back and review that lesson.

The blues riff in this lesson is still in the key of E blues, but we have added a few notes in to change up the sound a bit. You can download the TAB for this lesson by clicking on the PDF icon right below the video. Take the ideas presented in this lesson and use them to try and come up with your own new versions of the basic 12 bar blues riff.

12 Bar Blues Guitar Riff

Learn To Play The 12 Bar Blues Guitar Riff!

In this lesson, we are going to learn a classic 12 bar blues riff that you will be using quite often in your guitar playing. Riffs like this pop up in blues, classic rock, hard rock, jazz and even metal. Odds are that you have already heard something like this before because it is really cool sounding and pretty easy to learn. In order to learn this 12 bar blues riff, you will need to be familiar with the 12 bar blues progression, basic power chords, a B7 bar chord and some basic muting techniques.

Let’s get started by looking at the basic 12 bar blues progression. We will be playing in the key of E. So the chords that we will be using are E, A and B. The basic 12 bar blues progression in the key of E consists of the following: 4 bars of E, 2 bars of A, 2 bars of E, 1 bar of B, 1 bar of A, 1 bar of E and 1 bar of B. We have provided a chart so that you can see a nice layout of the 12 bar blues progression.

There are three basic shapes that you need to have down in order to play this riff. A regular open power chord, a regular power chord and a B7 bar chord with the root of the chord on the A string. We have provided all of the chord diagrams for you to make learning this riff as easy as possible.

When you listen to this 12 bar blues riff you will notice that there are some spaces in between the notes that we create by muting the strings. All that we are really going to be doing is stopping the strings with the palm of your right hand just after you hit the strings. It is very important to work on your muting in order to give the riff the proper feel for the particular style of music that you are playing. I really encourage you to experiment with different amounts of muting to change the style of this riff.

The actual riff that we will be using is pretty easy but it sounds really great at the same time. Play a regular open E power chord with your index finger on the 2nd fret of the A string. You should just be playing the open E and the 2nd fret of the A string. Once you play those two notes, mute them with your right hand. Now, all you have to do is use your 3rd finger to grab the 4th fret of your A string. You should be playing an open E and the 4th fret of your A string. That is really all there is to this riff. Move this shape over to the A and D strings. You should be playing an open A and your 1st finger should be fretting the 2nd fret of your D string . Play those two notes. Now use your 3rd finger to grab the 4th fret of your D string. You should be playing an open A and the 4th fret of your D string.

Now, we just have to learn the part of the riff that is played over the B chord. This part is a bit harder, but after just a little bit of practice it should be pretty easy for you. The riff over the B chord is very similar to what you are already playing, but it involves a pretty good stretch with your left hand. If you have never had to use any big stretches in your playing, you may have a bit of trouble at first. Take your 1st finger and put it on the 2nd fret of the A string. Keep that 1st finger there and stretch up to the 4th fret of the D string with your 2nd finger. Play those two notes together. Here is where the big stretch comes in. Leave your 1st and 2nd finger where they are and stretch your 4th finger all the way up to the 6th fret of your D string. You can let up with your 2nd finger when your 4th finger is down if you’d like. Now we will finish off the riff with a standard B7 bar chord.

Thats it-the basics of the 12 bar blues riff. Now you should go to the detailed tab for the entire riff. This 12 bar blues riff is a great way to have fun and start playing with other people. Play this riff with your friends. You can even take turns improvising over the riff with your E blues scale. Remember that this is just one variation of this popular 12 bar blues riff. Listen for this riff in some of your favorite music and use it to come up with your own original music as well.

Dominant 7th Guitar Chords

Learn How To Play Dominant 7th Guitar Chords!

This guitar lesson is going to be all about dominant 7th chords. We are going to cover how dominant 7th chords are made and give you a few practical chord shapes to learn. Dominant 7th chords have a really bluesy sound so once you learn these chords you can throw them into your blues playing. For our example we will be in the key of A major, so lets review the A major scale. A B C# D E F# and G# are the notes in the A major.

The formula for a dominant 7th chord is 1, 3, 5, and a lowered 7th. An A major triad is made of the 1, 3, and 5 of the A major scale. Those notes would be A, C#, and E. To make an A major 7th chord you would just add the 7th scale degree of the A major scale to the 1, 3, and 5. This note would be a G#. For this lesson we need to make a dominant 7th chord not a major 7th chord. All you need to do to make a major 7th chord in to a dominant 7th chord is lower the 7th scale degree one half step. Take the G# and lower it to a G natural. This would give us the note that we need for an A dominant 7th chord. The notes in this chord would be A, C#, E, and G. Another way to look at this would be to simply make a major 7th interval, A to G#, into a minor 7th, A to G.

One thing that you should know is that the five chord in any major key will automatically be a dominant 7th chord. Let’s look at the fifth chord in the key of A. The fifth scale degree in the Key of A is an E. Use the E as the 1 and build a major triad using the 1, 3, and 5. 1 would be E, 3 would be a G#, and 5 would be a B. E G# B would be how an E major triad is spelled. Now, to finish the dominant 7th chord we would need a minor 7th interval away from E. Since we are building a five chord, we won’t need to lower the 7th that is already taken care of for us by the key signature of A major. Just count seven away from E in the key of A, using E as one. 1E, 2F#, 3G#, 4A, 5B, 6C#, 7D. The 7th note would be a D. You would spell an E dominant 7th chord E, G#, B, D.

Look at another example. If we were in the key of E the scale would be spelled E, F#, G#, A, B, C#, D#. Taking the 1, 3, 5, and 7 starting on the E in the key of E would give us E, G# B, D#. This is a major 7th chord. This is because E, G#, and B make an E major triad and the interval from E to D# is a major 7th. If you wanted to make this a dominant 7th chord you would need to lower the D# to a D. This may be a bit complicated but don’t sweat it if you don’t understand everything the first time through. Just focus on playing the chords that follow.

Now that you know how dominant 7th chords are made, let’s take a look at two more common chord shapes for dominant 7th chords. We have provided you with the chord diagrams for these shapes.

For the first shape, make a bar across all six strings on the 5th fret with your 1st finger. Now place your 3rd finger on the 7th fret of the 5th string and your 2nd finger on the 6th fret of the 3rd string. This is an A dominant 7th chord.

The second shape starts with a bar on the 5th fret but you can leave out the 6th string this time. Now place your 3rd finger on the 7th fret of the 4th string and your 4th finger on the 7th fret of the 2nd string. This is a D dominant 7th chord.

Remember that these shapes are movable. Play around with these chords and try to start using them in your playing. When you are looking at a chord chart, you will usually just see “A7” when an A dominant 7th chord is called for. Try playing an A7, D7, and E7. This is a basic blues progression that will get you started on using your dominant 7th chords in a musical context.