Welcome To Guitar Notes For Beginners HQ…

Guitar notes for beginners imageThanks for visiting!  As a beginner guitarist I’m sure you have a ton of questions about getting started.  You want to learn where the notes go on the guitar, how to read music, how play different chords and scales, and of course, songs, songs, songs!

If you feel like a total beginner or have tried to learn before and didn’t stay with it, have no fear.  I’ll show you where the notes are on the fretboard, and plenty more, in the easiest ways possible.  The biggest trick is learning a few great brain hacks and having a good practice strategy.  I’ll give you those too.

Be sure to jump into The 30-Day Guitar Challenge to get started quick!

I’ll be writing for both acoustic and electric guitarists.  At the beginning it’s all the same.  Feel free to leave a comment on any of the posts if you have a question and I’ll answer them asap.

One last thing before you dive in… Continue reading

The 30-Day Guitar Challenge

30 Day Guitar ChallengeWhich of these describes you?

  • Total beginner. I’ve never touched a guitar before.
  • I play another instrument or sing and I want to pick up guitar.
  • I’ve played on and off over the years, but never could really put the skills together or make a habit of playing regularly.
    I’ve got something cool for you that will help immensely.

The 30-Day Guitar Challenge

Now’s your chance to start playing guitar or shore up the skills you already have in the 30-Day Guitar Challenge starting on January 16th.  It’s totally free to sign up and participate.

You’ll learn 3 full songs in 30 days with just 5 minutes of playing time each day.  It’s such a small amount of time that it’s dumb NOT to do it.  It’s like having a goal of brushing one tooth or walking ten steps.

Which songs will you learn?  Check out the FAQ here to see.  The songs themselves really don’t matter.  What you’ll get is the confidence of being able to learn a whole song and the good habit of playing guitar daily.

 

Who’s it for?

– Total beginners who have never touched an instrument before
– People who play other instruments, but would like to learn guitar and add it to their arsenal.  Especially singers who want to learn to accompany themselves
– People who have attempted to learn guitar in the past but had trouble sticking with it and making progress that seems usable in real playing situations.

If you’re already an intermediate or advanced player you won’t get much out of the 30-Day Challenge.  You might still get something out of Less Is More Guitar when that’s released, but it’s designed for beginners.  It’s also geared for teen and adult students.  Kids need a little more hands on from a live teacher.

All that said, the 30-Day Guitar Challenge starts on January 16th and it’s totally free to participate.  If the thought of picking up a guitar and rocking your cares away excites you, sign up for free right here.

 

 

 

Easy Pentatonic Scale Tricks for Guitar

Easy pentatonic scale guitar tricks

Does playing the same old pentatonic licks make you want to do this?

The Pentatonic Scale is an elegant weapon for a more civilized age. Or maybe that’s a lightsaber.  But pentatonics are kind of a lightsaber for guitarists.  They cut through anything.  Although there are only five forms instead of seven.  Ok, never mind.  Geeking out too much…

The minor pentatonic scale is one of the first scales every guitarist learns.  If you’re not familiar with them yet, please read this lesson first. That will give you the overview and basic patterns.

This lesson is going to show you how to take that simple little box pattern and create some crazy, off the wall sounds with it.  All without learning a bunch of new patterns or jargon. Continue reading

How Long Will It Take Me To Get Good At Guitar?

How long will it take me to get good at guitar?
Ok, you can get good at air guitar pretty quick.

Over the last 20 years of teaching guitar, I’ve been asked this question exactly 1.6 billion (give or take a billion) times.  “How long will it take me to get good at guitar?”  And my answer is the same every time.  “No good teacher will give you an answer to that question.”

There are a few reasons for this… Continue reading

How To Learn Intervals By Ear

dual-head-mounted-listening-device
This device totally won’t help you learn intervals by ear.

Ear training is, of course, an important part of learning any instrument.  But without guidance it can be tough to know where to start.  That’s where me and my college degree come in.  Lucky you!

We’re going to concentrate on learning how to hear different intervals today.  If you need a refresher on how intervals work and how they lay out on your guitar fretboard, check out this article.  When I was first learning music I never could understand why intervals where important.  Turns out, they are.  Who knew? Continue reading