Guitar Lessons Just for You

I’ll adapt your lessons to fit your prior knowledge and personal situation.  You’ll learn how to use your ear and how important that is when learning and playing your favourite songs. This will make you a much better player.  These days there is a wealth of learning material available everywhere. You can buy books with songs and tablature, or use the internet to get free tabs. However, tabs are often very wrong, so having well developed ears will help you learn the right notes from the wrong ones.

You’ll also learn a little bit of music theory. When theory is taught and learnt properly it helps you learn quicker as it gives you a better understanding of what is happening.  If you have any questions about starting to learn guitar, then just call me or email me.

Some of the Things You Will Learn:

How to Hold the Guitar

Learn the different and correct ways to hold the guitar when sitting down or standing up.

Right Hand Guitar Technique

Playing guitar is all about picking and strumming and you will learn how the fundamentals of how to use your hand to strum and pick the strings of the guitar.

Left Hand Guitar Technique

Your left hand will have to do an incredible amount of physical work, so knowing how to position, relax and work your left hand is a critical skill.

Chords

Chords are the building blocks of guitar music, and you will learn the fundamental Major and Minor chord shapes.

Guitar Lesson Sample

Disclaimer: As with all instruments, a teacher is vastly better at correcting mistakes than a website tutorial or Youtube video. If you are using this tutorial, be sure to demonstrate for your teacher as they will be able to correct any mistakes with technique.

Step 1. Learn a chord

• Download or print this Guitar Book. Follow the directions on how to play a C chord. Be sure to read the strings from Thickest on the left to Thinnest on the right.

• Be sure to 'claw' your fingers around the guitar so that they are not touching any other string but the one you want to hold.

• When you are ready, strum the strings with your opposite hand's thumb towards the floor.

Step 2. Switch between chords

• Changing chords fast enough is the toughest part of beginning guitar. So don't give up here.

• Begin by memorising another chord from Guitar Book. I recommend the G chord. 

• Muscle Memory (for faster chord switching) 

  • Hold the new chord

  • Strum to ensure it is correct (let it ring out)

  • Lift your fingers off the frets and hold for 5 seconds

    • Beginner Level: Keep them on the strings (release pressure)

    • Intermediate Level: Take them off by about a centimetre

    • Advanced Level: Straighten your fingers entirely

  • Please them back down TOGETHER. Avoid placing 1 finger down at a time.

  • Repeat on the same chord for 5 minutes

• Once you have memorised the FEEL of the chords, practice to a metronome or a drum beat

• Change chords after every 4 beat

  • Beginner Level: Strum once for every 4 beats/clicks

  • Intermediate Level: Strum once for every 2 beats/clicks

  • Advanced Level: Strum once for every beat/click.

Step 3. Learn 4 chords

• Continue learning the chords G, C, D and Em (E minor) from the book.

• When you have mastered these 4 chords, practice songs from the Song Book.

• Follow along to this video and perform and practice these songs. If you do not have a capo, mute the video.

Step 4. Strumming

• When learning a rhythm for any instrument, it is very useful to be able to sing it first. (Doesn't have to be out loud)

• Before advancing with strumming, be sure you have used the Muscle Memory technique described above to change between chords fast enough. Otherwise, it can be quite frustrating.

• Down / Up Strumming

  • Do not strum the strings yet.

  • Tap your foot to the beat of your song (Slow this down if needed)

  • Sing the rhythm you would like to strum (eg. Da / Da-Da / Da-Da-Da)

  • Pretend your foot and your hand are attached by a piece of string just like a puppet.

  • Watch the direction you're hand is travelling on the rhythm. (eg. Down / Down Up / Up Down Up)

  • Strum the strings with the Up / Down pattern you have found to a metronome or a drum beat

Step 5. Tabs

• Guitar tabs are a form of music notation that is very direct and easy to follow. It has no rhythm, but it is sometimes implied by space in the notation

• Lines are strings and numbers are frets. The lowest line on the tab in the LOW E string (The LOWEST sounding string). It is a common mistake to read tab upside down. Check carefully.

• Follow along to the video below for a more detailed explanation.

• Once you have mastered reading tabs, Google search for "Guitar Tabs <songname>", where songname is a song you would like to play. Click here for an example. Be sure to look at the tab rating (the stars) as they can be quite wrong sometimes.