How to learn to play the guitar. Left hand extraction

Instructions for thosewho dreams of learning to play their favorite songs in front of friends

This article is written for you , if you want to learn to play the guitar, but don’t know how to approach it and do it quickly and with minimal effort.

P/S If learning from articles is boring, then it is better to study through interactive video courses:

* Video course:

I'll help you see the situation a little from the outside, dispel myths about training, and convince you to study. Thanks to this, you will have the opportunity to understand that “the devil is not as scary as he is portrayed,” avoid many beginner mistakes and learn to play quickly and joyfully.

So go ahead and sing!

I want to say that first of all, I a regular guy, who loves travel and creativity in all its forms.

By education I - mathematician, by profession in this moment- System Administrator. He was a ski instructor, and also a programmer, storekeeper, engineer, and everything else he did.

Guitar is a wonderful instrument , which I began to master about 15 years ago absolutely on my own. And I can say with confidence that every day I play it, I constantly find something new. Like any creativity, it calms and adjusts your mental mood in the right way. She will always be your best friend, unless, of course, you are afraid to make friends with her.

Many people believe that learning to play the guitar is very difficult. I hasten to reassure you - not as much as you imagine. Having the experience of teaching many friends and acquaintances, I can say that knowing what difficulties you will face, learning to play is much easier. And if you tie each lesson to one or two simple songs, you will get an incentive and enjoyment of the work.

Your 8 Difficulties in Learning to Play the Guitar

Let's look at 8 main difficulties that you may encounter. The guitar is an instrument that reacts very sensitively to your mood and therefore you need to know the enemy by sight.

1. There is an opinion that “learning to play is VERY DIFFICULT”
“Really!”, you think. Guitar is hard work, and skill is developed through years of training and grueling practice. At the same time, you need to be diligent, patient, and it’s also advisable to finish music school or at least be able to read musical notation.

You have neither one nor the other. You start asking people about this who play the way you like and find out that each of them has been playing the guitar for at least two or three years.

And then you wonder, is the game worth the candle? Am I willing to puff so much for this guitar? And there’s never any time. And “then” turns into “never.”

2.The second belief sounds like “I have no inclination towards music”
Musical aptitudes are key. And it seems like a long-standing dream to play the guitar and you want everything and everything... but always when you start singing, those around you grimace and ask you not to spoil the music.

You've never played any musical instrument and have no idea what notes, chords or tablature are. You watch someone master the guitar in a matter of months, and you don’t even know how to approach it.

And what is the result? You form a clear opinion that this is not given to you, this is not for you.

3. Third - when they tell you that “You can learn on any guitar”
You are determined to learn to play the guitar. An old dream. Moreover, my grandfather’s guitar was lying on the closet somewhere. True, there are a couple of strings missing, but that’s okay, we’ll add it.

In general, you take it in your hands and try to extract some sounds. But the sound is disgusting, and did the grandfathers really know how to pinch these strings? No fingers are enough! Really.

You try to play this guitar over and over again. Due to the fact that it is difficult for you to pinch the strings, you learn the incorrect position of your fingers, body, and hands. After such classes, I don’t want to study further, but I don’t even want to think about the guitar. This is what happened to me personally.

4. The fourth opinion is that "It's better to start with classical guitar»
Classical guitar is the basis of the basics. And various respected guitar teachers will repeatedly tell you that this is the ONLY way you can learn to play correctly and become a great guitarist, and that’s exactly what you want!

That is, first play three months of scales, etudes, arpeggios, etc. Have words scared you yet? Next - study classical works by notes. All this should be accompanied by the study of musical notation, intervals, and other unknown to you musical terms.

This, in brief, is a classic approach to learning at a music school or with a tutor. Hearing this, you remember again set on edge the misconception that you are “not entirely musical”, that this is all very difficult and not for you.

5.You try to play something, but “at first everything hurts and is uncomfortable”
Let you decide to learn the guitar on your own, practice hard, buy a tutorial and start furiously learning the first chords.

BUT at first everything is terribly uncomfortable: after ten minutes of training, the pads of the fingers begin to hurt, then the joints of the fingers, the arms become numb, the hands get tired, the back and neck hurt from a long and uncomfortable position.

In this state, the creative spirit and initial desire fades away before your eyes, and the next time you approach the guitar you will remember this. So, every time, learning turns from pleasant more and more into torture.

6.Again, you are playing, but “sounds terrible!”
When you look at the performances of great guitarists and don’t understand why, repeating seemingly note for note and playing everything as written, their composition sounds great, but yours sounds so good that you want to grimace and spit.

You start to think that you probably need to practice more and more often or buy a better guitar, but for some reason something still doesn’t feel right. It rattles there, it’s unclean there, it’s out of place. Perseverance usually doesn’t last long, and the desire to play disappears.

7.Seventh difficulty - “I can’t sing and play at the same time”
And it seems like I learned the chords, and I can play, and sing separately, too. But I can’t take it and sing with a guitar. Either the fight or the search goes wrong. It’s impossible to sing along with the fight.

This, by the way, is not the same anymore simple task - learn to sing UNDER the guitar. You thought everything was simple, but it’s not. Another pitfall and obstacle on the way, discouraging the desire to study further.

8.Eighth and most disappointing - "nobody listens to me"
And of course the main problem. That's why you sweated and worked so hard. We learned a couple of songs. And here is an opportunity - you can play in front of an audience, friends, acquaintances or not so people and blow them away with your game.

But halfway through the song, you are surprised to notice that the expected effect does not occur. Moreover, the listeners talk, turn away, walk and, to put it mildly, are not delighted with your playing.

A couple of such performances are enough to discourage you from playing in front of anyone further, especially if you are clearly being hinted at giving the guitar to someone who is listened to more.

8 main mistakes. Look carefully - isn't this about you?

Let's now look at the errors that are bothering you.

1. Charting a complex path
You tried to play unsuccessfully, someone said that you don’t have the ability or told you how much you studied yourself and how difficult it is - the result is that you don’t want anything before you start.

If you know a teacher or you read that you need to know the notes - YES, YOU SHOULD. as a result, you start studying self-instructions instead of ALREADY picking up a guitar and learning directly the fat itself - songs and performance.

The desire for a heap of information quickly disappears. Your head becomes filled with a bunch of information that you cannot apply. But depending on what your goal is... to become a pro - yes... without knowledge of notes and music. literacy - you won't get far. but in the case when you just need to play songs, this is not necessary.

2. “Anti-musical” stereotypes
Again - the opinion and intimidation of others about talents and lack of singing skills. You were told as a child “don’t ruin the music.” You grimaced when you sang - as a result - you don’t want to learn guitar because of the stereotypes that “it’s not your thing.”

Often one beginner stops at the stage - I will play, but not sing, because there is no voice or hearing. Others try to sing something to themselves, but only in front of a mirror or... But more often than not, they don’t get to study because of this “stigma of non-musicality.”

3. Too lazy to take a suitable guitar
When a beginner takes a guitar with steel strings thicker than 10 gauge, he is unlikely to enjoy learning. To pinch the strings on such guitars you need to have enough practice, strength and finger technique. In addition, if it is an old “grandfather’s” guitar (as mine was), then it was most likely played by those who were not beginners, but those who already had experience performing in front of a company.

Of course, there are exceptions when the guitar is quite suitable, but more often than not, beginners learn “at least on anything”. This is wrong - the guitar should be suitable for a beginner, the size of the resonator, the thickness and type of strings, the distance from the strings to the neck, etc.

If you neglect this, attempts to learn will be difficult, and the playing technique will most likely be developed incorrectly. The desire to play will also disappear with each lesson.

4. “He studied for a long time - that means I need it too”
You look at a friend who graduated from music school or goes to a tutor who is starting to succeed in something, and you start going to him yourself. You’ve been playing scales and classical pieces for a couple of years, but you know the songs once or twice and you’ve lost your mind. I personally had an example of a friend who graduated from music. school for 5 years, who then came to me to learn basic combat and chords. as a result, you will spend a lot of time and money learning scales and classical works, when your goal was much closer - just to show off with a couple of songs in front of your friends.

5. Patience and strength are not enough
The first training is to develop finger motor skills. The problem called “fingers getting tangled in the strings” is a matter of training. The pads of the fingers hurt because the skin on them is initially soft. The brush gets tired because it is not yet used to the load or you are straining your hands too much. The same thing happens to your back when you sit crooked for a long time, or your neck when you constantly look at the neck of the guitar.

The next stage is that you learn the wrong position of your hands or body, and as a result you do not develop. As soon as you need to play for more than 15 minutes, your fingers start to hurt, your hand gets tired, etc. This happened to me myself when I learned the position of my hands incorrectly. As a result, the desire to play became less and less, and for the majority it completely disappeared.

6. Newbie-maximalist, newbie-perfectionist
There may be several reasons. The first are technical: inappropriate strings, guitar, poor preparation. Beginners who are constantly unhappy with the way they play are called "perfectionists." It’s good, of course, to practice “to perfection,” but if you study one piece for a couple of months... It’s unlikely that the excitement will be maintained at the proper level. You will pick up a guitar “because you have to” rather than “because I want to.”

The second type of newcomers is maximalists. They try to study Unforgiven metallics, when in reality they cannot play “Afghanistan” with three chords or ditties without falsehood. It will sound disgusting because a complex composition requires a certain level. Many people even think that everything sounds good. But the listener - best criterion assessments and often it is the listeners who discourage the beginner from playing, grimacing during his “miserable performance.” The question arises: “Why do I need a guitar if I teach what I want, but no one listens?”

7. I want everything at once
If you can play three chords perfectly and sing the motive of a song separately, then everything should work out together. Not so. Most often, singing and playing at the same time does not work for anyone. Beginners often try to play at too fast a tempo, are in a hurry and want to “connect everything right away.” If you rush and are not patient, it will turn out that when you sing, you forget about the battle and the hand begins to play whatever it wants. And vice versa, when we play, we forget the words and don’t get into the rhythm. The result is that we can’t learn the song and the desire to play further disappears.

8. Performance without preparation
Unlearned songs, playing an out-of-tune guitar - these are the main reasons when people don’t listen to you. In general, they may not listen to you due to any of the reasons when you went out to speak and did not prepare well enough. The public is a different people, of course, and many will listen to you just out of respect.

But the majority listen precisely when they feel that you yourself like your playing. On personal experience I can say how many guys, trying to play in a company, played for themselves, because either the words were not learned enough, or they sang too quietly, or the guitar was out of tune, or they were clearly afraid to sing.

At the first couple of “such performances”, they still had enough excitement, but then the desire disappeared and they played mostly for themselves, or even didn’t play anymore at all, giving the guitar into the hands of more experienced ones.

8 ways to solve these difficulties

1. Forget about myths
In order to play 5-10 favorite songs with a guitar, one or two months of training is enough. It won't take several years.

Also, I hasten to reassure you. To play the guitar, you DO NOT NEED TO KNOW THE NOTES. A ear for music, which you think you don’t have - in fact, EVERYONE HAS! You just need to train him. And the voice develops during training!

We do not set ourselves the task of competing with Steve Wei, although, of course, nothing is impossible. Do you think all guitarists know how to read music??? From personal experience - out of all my students - there was ONE like that, who came after music school)

2. You have been blatantly deceived!
They told you that you don't have musical abilities?? And of course you believed it! From personal experience - YOU HAVE BEEN DECEIVED!

I have more than once witnessed how people, who at first glance did not “get into” either the rhythm or the notes, after a month or two of training sang quite well and played in front of friends. Musicality can be developed in EACH OF US.

And with a guitar, it develops twice as fast! You have an additional incentive to play in front of an audience! Believe me, the guitar works wonders in developing musical abilities.

3. Choose a guitar for practice
Buy yourself YOUR own guitar. If you can't, borrow it from friends. Learn to play ONE guitar. This will save you a lot of effort and time and will pay off in training.

Personally, I recommend that beginners take a guitar with a small resonator and steel strings, which for learning after purchase should be replaced with nylon or steel strings 10 mm thick or thinner. Be sure to bring a guitarist friend with you to try it out. Rate the sound that you like best.

5. Patience and work
Everyone has their own position on how to hold the guitar and, of course, the main thing is that you feel comfortable, but There are general points that cannot be neglected. Fingers hurt - this is normal for the first two months of training, so don’t push like crazy and take breaks.

I recommend studying for half an hour in the morning and half an hour in the evening. For the first two weeks, do it every other day. To soften the fingertips, it is also recommended to immerse your fingers in warm water, but personally I have never done this, because if we are men, we can endure it.

If your strings are 10 or thicker, change to thinner ones. Sit up straight and don't lean over the guitar while looking at the neck. When bending over, not only your arm, but also your neck will become numb. Do not bring your right elbow forward and DO NOT grab the bar. thumb left hand.

6. Play simple songs
If everything is fine with your guitar, i.e. normal strings and a normal guitar, which I wrote about above, then develop your technique. Learn as many simple songs as possible, with three to six chords at most. At the same time, constantly monitor the position of your hands so that your right hand does not strain too much. To do this, it must be in correct position, that is, lie with the bottom part on the body of the guitar, and not hang. Try to put in a MINIMUM amount of effort.

Once you feel confident, try varying a couple of chords by adding or removing one note from the chord. Try playing with a different battle. And most importantly, don’t drive yourself into a frenzy by spending hours studying complex compositions. Alternate what you are currently studying with what you have already learned. If this doesn’t exist yet, play “there was a grasshopper sitting in the grass” - but CORRECTLY and watch the technique.

7. Turn on the metronome
Download a metronome program (eg Metronome), launch it and try playing your favorite song at a slow tempo. For those who don’t know, the metronome counts the rhythm you set. First without
words, simple accompaniment, but most importantly the rhythm.

The hand should play the fight automatically. Try singing to a metronome without a guitar. When you feel the rhythm well and easily “string” words and guitar to the rhythm, the quality of your playing will noticeably improve. It really works. Gradually increase the rhythm.

When you feel like you can play WITHOUT a metronome, try playing along with the original recording of the song. True, this only works if you studied the song in the original key, but we will also consider this issue. In general, if difficulties arise, a metronome will help you.

8. Play in front of the mirror
Be sure to tune your guitar using a portable tuner or tuner software (eg AP Guitar Tuner). Playing an out-of-tune guitar discourages the desire to listen to you, even if everything is fine with the performance. The next tip is to sit in front of a mirror and play while looking at yourself. It can be difficult at first, especially if you are used to looking at the neck of your guitar and leaning over the soundhole, humming to yourself.

Remember - when playing to an audience - you must be open and look the audience in the face as if you are telling a story. interesting story best friends who listen to you with enthusiasm. And for this, such things in the song as fights, chords and, of course, words must be learned to the point of automatism. Only then will you be able to focus on the pleasure of performing. A tuned guitar, a song learned to automatism and pleasure from performing are the key to being listened to.

What can you do RIGHT NOW to learn how to play your favorite songs faster?

1. Take a notepad and pen
RIGHT NOW take a NOTEBOOK and redraw the fingering of the three main chords Am, Dm, E. Make yourself your own personal cheat sheet for playing, which every beginning guitarist has. Almost all army songs and more are based on these chords. Do it - it's easy!

2. The best inspiration is to take it and PLAY!
Sit down RIGHT NOW and try playing basic chords. Turn the metronome on slow pace. Pinch the strings with your left hand, according to the fingerings written out, and with your right hand, calmly run your thumb along them from top to bottom.

Play under. metronome first one chord, then another. This is exactly how beginners learn their first songs on three chords and you can do it!

3. RIGHT NOW tell yourself that music is YOURS!
Those who told you otherwise have no idea what talents you are hiding.
in itself. Do you like to hum songs when you hear them on the radio??? Wonderful! This is already enough to pick up a guitar and play it live.

You can’t even imagine how much positive performance it will give you with a guitar in front of an audience. So - go ahead! There are no barriers!

4. Chat with other guitarists

RIGHT NOW games Tommy Emmanuel and imagine how you play in front of an audience with the same passion. Sit with a guitar in front of the mirror and make yourself like yourself.

RIGHT NOW call a guitarist you know, make an appointment and ask your questions. Ask a question on any guitar forum for beginners, ask others how they started learning.

5. Learn from Video Lessons from Proven Musicians!

* Video course: Quick guitar learning

RIGHT NOW think - who else can help This article, recommend to friends and acquaintances.

How to learn to play the guitar yourself from scratch at home and is it really possible to do it? Many people will now think that to do this they need to take various guitar courses or go to a music school. But I will say - no, in order to learn to play the guitar you need patience and strong fingers of your left hand.

I will tell you my story of how I learned to play, and from the story you will understand how to learn to play from scratch while sitting at home. While studying at the institute and living in a dormitory, I managed to meet people who know how to play the guitar. I really enjoyed gatherings with a guitar (usually with alcohol) and soon I became obsessed with the idea of ​​learning to play. I started asking craftsmen to learn how to play, I watched their fingers, and memorized them. No one wanted to explain to me the features of the game for a long time, everyone said: do it like this, then like that, but a lot of things were incomprehensible to me. For example, even at what point to rearrange the chord while playing.

Then I was lucky, they gave me a guitar for a day, and by that time I had already learned the finger placement for the simplest chords: am, dm, c, em - but I could not play the chords as the fingers of my left hand were not prepared. First I decided that I needed to learn how to play a fight. I pressed some simple chord and learned to play the beat. My very first fight was: down, down (glush), up, up, down (pears) - I don’t know what it’s called, but for me it turned out to be the simplest. Another simple battle: down, up, down (blank).

The mute in parentheses means that the strings need to be muted with the palm of the hand, i.e. As soon as you draw down, you must immediately quickly mute the strings so that their sound does not continue.

I could play the string only by looking at the strings, then when I took my eyes away (for example, to rearrange the chord), everything went wrong for me. As a result, from morning to evening I sat with this guitar, the fingers of my left hand hurt very much, it seems that there were even small cuts from the strings, but I learned how to play, with shoals of course, but still.

In the morning, no one was in a hurry to take my guitar, I decided to consolidate what I had learned and I began to do very well, despite the pain in my fingers. I decided that today I would need to learn how to rearrange chords to get a more or less pleasant melody. It was even more difficult with chords: I couldn’t move all my fingers to another chord at once, I moved them one by one. For example, holding down the dm chord and moving to am, I first moved the middle and ring finger, and then the index finger - it was easier for me. The strings hurt my fingers, but the desire to learn was stronger.

These were all weekends, during weekdays there was school and it was difficult to get to the guitar, there were a lot of study assignments, and my fingers couldn’t move. By the next weekend I was able to pick up the instrument again, things were much better, at least the battle was already playing on the machine, and I could only rearrange the chords when I looked at my hand. A month later I was already playing these 4 chords on the machine and was able to play simple songs. Then, just as quietly, I learned to play barre F - I really liked the sound of this chord.

Having soon mastered, so to speak, the basics of guitar technique, I wanted to learn how to play by fingerpicking. It turned out to be much easier than playing in combat. Everything is simple here: thumb pulls bass strings, index, middle and ring are the first 3 strings. The simplest picking: 6 (or 5th string, or you can alternate), 3, 2, 1, 2, 3. Once you lose the picking, change the chord and so on.

About a year later, I bought myself a Colombo guitar for 4,000 rubles. I didn’t know much about guitars, so they handed me one with nylon strings; at that time I didn’t even know that such existed. I took it home, and naturally the guitar from the store was not tuned, I decided that the sound was not very good and bought it metal strings. By the way, I also bought a tuner for tuning the strings, since from my hearing I still didn’t know how to tune (and even now).

Having my own guitar, I played almost every day when it was free time, even began to improvise, changing chords, changing the beat, etc. The playing technique improved every time and then I decided to learn some long beautiful melody without words. Once I heard the song Nothing Else Matters Metallica and realized that this was the song. For those who want to see my game, watch the video. Of course, I have a lot of mistakes when performing this song, but I’m learning and will improve. And I’ll say it again to all beginning guitarists: to learn to play the guitar you need strong fingers and patience.

It’s hard to imagine a friendly hike without a fire, warm company and favorite songs. And here there remains one still unsolved (for some) problem: “How to learn to play the guitar?” If you are already ripe for this practice, if your hands are ready to play on anything, if your soul is torn by motifs familiar from childhood, and fingers are looking for support for melodic fingering– congratulations, you are ready to learn how to play it.

Of course, a great desire is already half the battle, but you also need a guitar. We hope you are aware that there are guitars:

• classic;
• acoustic;
• electric.

The tool may have:

• 6 strings;
• 7 strings;
• and even 12 strings.

For beginners, in order to learn to play the guitar, it will be quite it is enough to master a classical guitar with six strings. It is advisable, as training, to take nylon strings. They will help keep your fingers safe - and this is very important in the early stages.

So, we’ve decided on the tool, there are still accessories left. Since we are learning on our own, we must be prepared that no one will tune our guitar every hour. Therefore we tuner needed. You can also purchase a case so you can easily travel with your instrument, a left foot rest, and a pick.

How to learn to play the guitar: help for beginners

So, you got the desired tool, where to start so that the divine music of real Russian rock pours out of it?

Or, more simply put, how to learn to play the guitar on your own from scratch? Of course you will need video lessons for beginners. But this is not yet a guarantee of success.

Get ready for some time to pass between your bold statement “I want to play the guitar” and the real “I play the guitar”. Before the chords form a melody, you you'll have to learn some basics. However, don’t worry, all beginning guitarists have gone through this, the main thing is to spend at least 30 minutes a day learning. Practice at home regularly, and very soon you will surprise your friends with a pretty decent game.

So, to begin with, learn what parts your tool consists of. Now this is your friend, assistant, comrade, advisor and the best outlet in life - so it is simply vital for you to know what a guitar is made of.

Each guitar has body, neck and head. Carefully look at the photo of the guitar's structure: pay attention to the strings, frets, frets, sound hole - you will need all this to get sound. To hold the instrument correctly, it is very important for you to know where the stand, shell, sill.

Correct fit

Before you learn to play the guitar yourself from scratch, you should understand how to properly hold this thing in your hands. Of course, you need to take the right attitude. And it consists in keep your back straight, without leaning or throwing your body back. The left leg is elevated. IN right leg the base of the guitar rests. Next, we will tell you how to learn to play the guitar yourself from scratch; video lessons will also be at your disposal.

Correct hand placement

We have not yet figured out how to extract sound from an instrument. After all, the guitar definitely needs an approach.

Let's take a look at your hands:

1. The left hand tightly grips the bar.
2. The right hand is responsible for extracting clean, ringing sound. To do this, you need to relax her.
3. Place your right elbow at the intended intersection of the body and bridge of your guitar. To do this, you need to draw a conventional line upward from the stand to the shell.
4. Get your fingers ready for fingering.

It is impossible to quickly learn to play the guitar until you learn the position of your fingers. Each finger has its own position and is responsible for his string. The strings are numbered from bottom to top, in descending order of sound: from highest to lowest. Since we have 5 fingers and 6 strings, the distribution will be as follows:

Now it's time to find out what it is rhythmic pattern of the right hand. Speaking in simple words, this is the way you produce sound. For example, you touch the 6th string with your thumb (p). Forefinger Place (i) on string number 3, middle (m) on second, and ring (a) on first. At the same time, notice that your index and thumb form a cross, and your thumb is also ahead of the rest.

Learning to play on your own: first exercises

Help you learn to play guitar from scratch simple exercises for the right hand:

1. Let's try bass 3, 2, 1, 2, 3.
2. Get your fingers ready to play.
3. Hook the 6th string with your thumb - you got a dull low sound.
4. Now alternately pluck strings No. 3, 2, 1, 2, 3.
5. Then repeat the picking, but with your thumb hooked on string No. 5.

Bass pluck 3, 2, 1. Hook the 6th string with your thumb and then pluck the 3 strings together: 3rd, 2nd and 1st.

Learning chords

All we have to do is install the left hand on the instrument, which will help to extract chords or sounds that make up the pleasant sound of your instrument. At first, it will be a little unusual to pinch the strings located on the neck, but as you practice your fingers will get used to it.

1. Bend your thumb slightly and place it parallel to the frets.
2. At the same time, your hand should also be kept slightly rounded, placing your fingers closer to the frets.
3. The fingertips touch the strings only with their upper part, so we recommend that girls cut their nails before they decide to learn to play the guitar from scratch at home.

We already know the string numbering order on a guitar, now Let's study the numbering of frets(they are usually denoted by Roman numerals). One fret occupies the space between two iron lines located on the fingerboard perpendicular to the strings. They are called fret saddles. Frets are numbered starting from the head of the guitar. Beginners usually draw chord diagrams starting with the first three frets (the Am chord in the key of A minor). In the diagrams, the strings are numbered from top to bottom (1, 2, 3...)

Having set ourselves the goal of mastering something new, we often run into the same question: where to start? The same problem arises for a person who decides to learn to play the guitar on his own. Our article will tell you how you can learn the basics of playing the guitar at home from scratch and quite quickly.

What is important is that below is the simplest and quick way learn to play guitar. Here we will not suggest you study notes and theory. Just practice!

1. Guitar. First of all, you will need the guitar itself. But don't rush to spend money. If you have the opportunity to borrow a guitar from friends, then by all means take advantage of it. What if you don't like it? You will always have time to buy a guitar, but selling an inexpensive instrument is very problematic. But if you still have a burning desire to become a great guitarist, then this article will help you with choosing a guitar: How to choose an acoustic guitar?
2. Settings. In order for a guitar to delight you and your neighbors with its sound, it must always be in tune. Therefore, you need to learn how to configure it yourself. The process is not particularly complicated and is well described in almost any tutorial. You can find an online tuner on the Internet. If you have a microphone in your computer, then using it it is very easy to tune each string to the appropriate note. If not, it doesn’t matter: look for a tuner online that produces the sound of each string. By sounding string It's very easy to tune your instrument.
3. Correct posture and hand placement. Please pay SPECIAL attention to correct posture and hand placement. This is very important because... playing incorrectly will not only hinder your progress in the future, but can also cause overwork, muscle tightness and other unpleasant “sores.” There is a lot of material on the Internet with photos and videos on hand placement and landing. But ideally it is better to take 2-3 lessons from professional guitarist. No matter how hard you try yourself, you can see better from the outside. A good professional will easily detect all your mistakes in the bud, which will have a beneficial effect on your training in the future. Correct landing is a big asset for future progress.
   In general, there are 2 types of landing: classic and fatal. Each type of planting has its pros and cons; we will not describe them here. It’s easier to position your hands - there are several unshakable rules that will help you easily pinch the strings, play with strumming and plucking.
   Regarding sound production, it is worth paying attention Special attention right hand. Proper sound production - necessary condition for the purity of your music. There are many exercises for the right hand in the tutorials. First, perform them separately, only with your right hand. Then - together with the left, changing chords. This will help develop hand coordination. As a result, it will not be difficult for you to play the rhythm with your right hand and press the chords with your left.
4. Chords. Now that the guitar is tuned, you can start learning chords. They are in all tutorials and on the Internet. Start with simple ones, for example Am, Em, Dm, etc. After learning a few chords, try changing them. For example, Am to Dm, etc. A quick change of chords is practiced as follows: take 2 chords and within one minute move from one to another: Am-Dm-Am-Dm... And so on for a minute. At first it will be difficult, your fingers, as if made of wood, will be reluctant to search Right place on the frets. But after a few days of consistent practice at home, you will feel progress.
5. Right hand technique. If you are not an ardent electric guitar fan, then forget about the pick at first. You need to master the finger technique. There are 2 options for playing with the right hand: combat and bust. Accordingly, there is different types battles and various searches. Mastering them yourself will not be difficult, it’s just a matter of time.
6. Songs. So, we have a minimum set of knowledge and skills. What's next? The simplest thing is to start practicing chords, strumming and strumming on songs. Find a few easy songs that you like and play them. Slow songs are sung with strumming, fast songs with strumming. At first it will be difficult to remember the chords and move your fingers in time. However, this skill develops quite quickly. And in just a few weeks it won’t be difficult for you to play more than half of the repertoire of the average “drive-in” guitarist. Yes, and don’t try to sing on the guitar right away. And don’t be too upset that you can’t sing and play at the same time - we’ve all gone through this stage :) First, practice the accompaniment until it becomes automatic and only then start singing along.
7. Performance of compositions. How to learn guitar compositions? Education musical notation requires serious effort and time. A simpler option is to play using tablature. These are schematic images that show which string to press on which fret. Today there are many computer programs that present music in the form of tablature. The most popular is Guitar Pro. Download a few simple tablatures and practice them. This will allow you to learn new playing techniques and take your game to the next level.

   So, how to learn to play the guitar from scratch on your own and at home? Of course, the path described in this article is not the only correct one. If you already have some musical experience behind you, or have an irresistible desire to approach the issue thoroughly, then you can immediately start learning with theory. Learn notes, scales, modes, and how they all apply on the guitar. However, for a person who picks up an instrument for the first time, such an abundance of theoretical information will most likely lose any desire to study music in the future. I would like to immediately learn the minimum basics.

   I wish you creative success!

The most burning question for people who want to play guitar is “Where to start?” and “how to quickly learn to play the guitar,” preferably without leaving home, and fitting into the most minimal student budget. And strangely enough, with our learning and self-development portal, even this becomes real, so today we are starting a new series of articles on how to quickly learn to play the guitar at home.

And so, to begin with, it is probably logical to assume that you can learn to play the guitar only if you have the instrument itself. Well, it's not very complicated here.

Where can a beginner buy a guitar?

If your choice fell on the store, then you may be speechless from the quantity and variety different guitars. There are mainly classical, acoustic and electric guitars(meaning 6 string guitars), and of course 12 strings, 7 strings. More details about the classification and variety of guitars in another article.

Which guitar is best for a beginner?

In general, you can quickly learn to play any guitar, but The most convenient for beginners and beginners is, of course, a classical guitar. Firstly, because of the strings. The classics are equipped with nylon strings, and the the other two use metal, which will add even more lasting impressions in the form of sore fingertips. Nylon will also make your fingers hurt, but not as much.

Metal strings have increased tension, and never put metal strings on a classical guitar, as this will simply break the guitar over time. Metal guitars, at a minimum, have a metal rod in the neck and iron tuners.

And in any case, as your level increases, you will buy yourself new guitar, more consistent with your more professional preferences. And this old guitar suitable for a beginner and allowing you to learn to play the guitar, your first chords will be left for trips to sing around the fire, or you will throw it into the fire out of indignation and dance on the coals.

Is a guitar expensive for learning?

Now let's decide on the price range. In the beginning, to learn to play the guitar, there is no point in buying an expensive, sophisticated guitar; the cheapest classics are enough. Fortunately there is great amount companies specializing specifically in low-price student instruments.

Essential accessories for the beginning guitarist

A tuner is a magical thing that helps people tune a guitar without much strain on their hearing and mental apparatus, which is ideal for a beginner who has little understanding of guitar tuning.

The guitar will often go out of tune and you need to be prepared for this, like the pioneers, or whoever you like. New guitars will go out of tune every 30 minutes or more, but this will pass with time.

You can purchase a rest for your left foot for proper fit, but more on that later.

The choice seems to have been sorted out.

Guitar Basics for Beginners

The guitars don't differ much from the outside, so let's look at this structure of a classical guitar. Everything is clearly visible in the picture, only it’s still on the stand. sill, and the sound hole is called a "rosette" in some circles.

Guitar strings are also numbered specifically, from thinnest to thickest. Down up. The internal structure of the guitar is not yet fundamental and we will look at it in a separate article.

How to play and even how to sit is also not so easy, you need to learn this before you learn to play guitar strings. It’s reasonable to assume that it makes a difference how you sit, the main thing is to hit the strings and shout louder.

In fact, it’s possible, but it’s my duty to tell, and yours to either accept, or send me on all sides, and do it wrong, but it will no longer be my fault.

The bottom line is that there is a classic position that puts your body in an optimal position in which the muscles do not become overextended during a long game, here it is:

Sit with your back straight, your leg elevated, without leaning on 2/3 of the chair. To develop the correct positioning of the hands, this landing is optimal and does not require unnecessary attention.

But in principle, you can sit simply by placing the guitar on your right leg, the main thing with such a position is to also keep your back straight and the correct placement of your hands, and everything will be great.

Designation of fingers for playing the guitar

For ease of recording when learning to play the guitar, there are certain finger designations. Try to remember them.

Hand placement for those who want to learn to play the guitar

To ensure that your fingers don’t hurt, you can actually practice for a long time and learn to play the guitar quickly, and as you develop your skill, you can increase the speed of play, there is correct positioning hands

Positioning of the guitarist's right hand:

To place your right hand correctly, draw an imaginary line vertically upward from the stand to the shell, and at the intersection place your hand up to the elbow.

Pleave your fingers on the strings, for example: p-6; i-3; m-2; a-1. The index finger and thumb should form a “cross” (as shown in the picture).The thumb is ahead of all the others.

What does the right hand do?

The way the right hand produces sound is called "rhythmic pattern of the right hand". I I will write down one by one which strings to pull. To begin with, let's take two simple drawings:

1. Bass, 3, 2, 1, 2, 3. see how it should look and sound in the video.

2. Bass, 321 (strings twitch simultaneously).

When playing, the basses are played alternately.

Positioning of the guitarist's left hand:

When you first start plucking strings with your left hand, your fingertips will start to hurt. It's normal that the pain will go away over time as long as your skin doesn't become rough.

And as one of my guitarist acquaintances said, “Finger pad stimulation promotes brain development.”. I don’t know if it’s true or not, but it’s nice to think that you’re also getting smarter.

When placing your left hand, place your thumb in the middle of the fingerboard (widthwise). The hand is round, as if you have a small ball in it. The fingers are placed as close as possible to the fret saddles, but not flat, but like needles.

Exercise for quickly learning to play the guitar:

To practice downforce and correct hand placement when learning to play the guitar, we perform exercise "caterpillar".

I won’t describe it, everything can be seen in the video. If you have any questions, I’ll be happy to answer them in the comments.

Important point.

In my experience on initial stage It takes very little time, only 20 minutes, but there is an important feature. The main thing is to do it EVERY DAY.

AND it is advisable to avoid such things as I will sit for an hour today, and rest tomorrow and the day after tomorrow, with this view you will lose everything useful and memorized in two days of rest. The fact is that this is ordinary muscle memory, like that of boxers, dancers, and wrestlers. It needs to be trained constantly, but it is difficult only at the beginning, so be patient, zealous and move on.

Recording guitar chords for beginners

I think everyone has heard a little about chords. Chord - a combination of several sounds that form a pleasant consonance. Without guitar chords, you won't be able to quickly learn to play the guitar, so let's look at graphic method chord recordings for beginners.

Chords are written on tables, which usually have 6 horizontal lines denoting strings, and from 3 or more vertical lines indicating fret thresholds. The strings are numbered from top to bottom.

Let's look at the Em chord as an example:

Dots are placed where we pinch the strings, above the first column the number of the fret from which we set the chord is written. The fret number is written in Roman numerals. As you can see, the strings are not numbered.

The easiest song with 2 chords for beginner guitarists

To begin with, let's take a simple song on two chords for the most beginner guitarists. In song lyrics with chords, chords are written above the places where the transition from one chord to another occurs.

Sergey Matveenko – Screamer – Song for everyone

This song, friends, is not difficult to learn:

You can sing with a guitar, but you can sing without a guitar.

Even if a bear stepped on your ear:

This song can be sung without hearing!

La-a, la-la-la-la,

La-a, la-la-la-la.

La-a, la-la-la-la,

La-a, la-la-la-la.

Here is an example of the easiest song with two chords for beginners, this is only the first verse of the song, if you want to play the whole thing, try it yourself, this will be your homework, about which I also ask you to unsubscribe in the comments:

Well, with this we finish our first lesson about the basics of how you can quickly learn to play the guitar at home, if you have any questions, write in the comments, and we are waiting for you in the next article from which you will learn