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All tagged Tips For New Guitar Players
Song writing, like guitar playing, is a skill that takes time to learn but brings great benefits. Once you have the ability to play a few chords, you should try writing songs. You don’t need to be a great player or singer to write songs. Start with a simple three-chord progression, or a cool guitar riff, and try coming up with a melody line.
Basically, tone is the audio quality and musical characteristics of sound. Some guitars are said to have good tone, and without a doubt some guitars (and amplifiers, effects, etc.) sound “better” than others. The trick is to know your instrument and play it in a way that brings out its best tone for each song. If you own an electric guitar, learn what each pickup sounds like and use the correct pickup or combination of pickups for the song you are playing.
They don’t call it “playing” guitar for nothing. Practicing is essential if you want to improve, but practicing is just repetition. Anything you want to learn will eventually come with repetition. But don’t spend all your playing time just practicing. Every time you pick up your guitar you should play at least one thing for pure enjoyment.
You should try to memorize songs you like. Memorizing is just a matter of playing the same thing over and over (repetition) until you can remember it. It is a great skill to develop, and every musician should have numerous songs they can play without the aid of written music.
People often have very rigid views of what “good” music is. While there is nothing wrong with only liking one style of music, you should try listening to styles of music you aren’t familiar with. Listen to the guitar players in other styles of music. You may not care for that particular style of music, but you should be able to appreciate good guitar playing.
Record your playing regularly. It doesn’t matter what you use to record, just make recordings. Computers today are powerful enough to be virtual recording studios, so get an audio interface and get started. Or use a tablet or a phone. Recording can help you remember ideas. Many times in my life I had a great song idea and didn’t record it. Then the next day I couldn’t remember it. Recording the ideas prevents them from getting forgotten.
Many new guitar players spend most of their time practicing while seated. However, you will rarely play live sitting down — unless you are doing an acoustic guitar set on a stool, or playing classical guitar. It is a good idea to start spending time practicing the guitar while standing. Buy a strap if you don’t have one and adjust it until the guitar is in a comfortable position (not too high or low) similar to where it would be sitting down.
Nothing will improve your guitar playing quite like playing with other musicians. Whether it’s a guitar teacher, a friend who also plays guitar, starting a band with friends, being part of a jam session, playing at church, playing at school, or anything that involves playing with other real live musicians, it is good for you. You will invariably pick up ideas, riffs, chords, techniques, or just experience that will improve your playing and make you a better musician.
You should get into the habit of playing every day. If you play every day, you will improve faster. Becoming a good guitar player is a mix of desire and spending time actually playing. Repetition is the key to learning anything.
