http://www.guitarbeginners.com Guitar & music lessons for absolute beginners and beyond Mon, 23 Aug 2010 09:15:04 +0000 en hourly 1 http://wordpress.org/?v=abc http://www.guitarbeginners.com/absolute-beginners/the-fingers-of-the-right-hand-preparation-for-arpeggios/ http://www.guitarbeginners.com/absolute-beginners/the-fingers-of-the-right-hand-preparation-for-arpeggios/#comments Mon, 23 Aug 2010 08:42:13 +0000 Amar Guerfi http://www.guitarbeginners.com/?p=13 Playing with the fingers of the right hand gives the song a softer sound and makes it possible to chain chord progressions more easily using arpeggios. This technique will eventually allow you to play the melody and bass simultaneously. To allow you to understand and learn what you are doing, the left hand will not play during these exercises.]]> http://www.guitarbeginners.com/absolute-beginners/the-fingers-of-the-right-hand-preparation-for-arpeggios/feed/ 0 http://www.guitarbeginners.com/absolute-beginners/sight-reading-rhythm-definition-of-rhythm-representation/ http://www.guitarbeginners.com/absolute-beginners/sight-reading-rhythm-definition-of-rhythm-representation/#comments Sat, 21 Aug 2010 09:12:07 +0000 Amar Guerfi http://www.guitarbeginners.com/?p=14 Rhythm is something relative. The duration of the notes exists only compared to one basic pulsation which one calls the beat (or tempo). This flow can be of various degrees speed or slowness, but it is always regular (example: tick-tock of a watch, beats of a metronome, etc.) You will begin your rhythm training in an original way, by appealing to the less theoretical or intellectual data. Certain rhythms will be even approached through examples drawn from popular songs which prove to be excellent mnemonic supports: who has never heard “Twinkle little star”, “Jingle Bells” or “Happy birthday”...?]]> http://www.guitarbeginners.com/absolute-beginners/sight-reading-rhythm-definition-of-rhythm-representation/feed/ 0 http://www.guitarbeginners.com/intermediate/barre-chord-7-exercises-to-master-the-barre-chord/ http://www.guitarbeginners.com/intermediate/barre-chord-7-exercises-to-master-the-barre-chord/#comments Fri, 20 Aug 2010 23:00:19 +0000 Amar Guerfi http://www.guitarbeginners.com/?p=15 To bar means to press several strings, on a single fret, with only one finger. Barre chords will always be indicated by the letter C followed by a Roman numeral to indicate the fret where the bar occurs (ie C III represents a bar on the 3rd fret). These exercises are graded by order of difficulty. Start with the first exercise and do not pass onto the next one until you play it correctly. The mastering of the barre chord requires a little perseverance...]]> http://www.guitarbeginners.com/intermediate/barre-chord-7-exercises-to-master-the-barre-chord/feed/ 0 http://www.guitarbeginners.com/absolute-beginners/the-guitarist-right-hand-how-to-use-a-pick-also-called-a-plectrum/ http://www.guitarbeginners.com/absolute-beginners/the-guitarist-right-hand-how-to-use-a-pick-also-called-a-plectrum/#comments Mon, 16 Aug 2010 14:43:12 +0000 Amar Guerfi http://www.guitarbeginners.com/?p=12 The pick (also called plectrum) is held between the thumb and the index finger of the right hand. It can play the guitar string(s) in two different ways: either down-stroke, from top to bottom (noted ^ at the top of the tablature), or upwards, up-stroke (noted v at the top of the tablature). It is necessary to alternate these two picking directions, although certain guitar parts are played only with down-strokes.]]> http://www.guitarbeginners.com/absolute-beginners/the-guitarist-right-hand-how-to-use-a-pick-also-called-a-plectrum/feed/ 0 http://www.guitarbeginners.com/absolute-beginners/how-to-learn-guitar-tablature-or-standard-musical-notation/ http://www.guitarbeginners.com/absolute-beginners/how-to-learn-guitar-tablature-or-standard-musical-notation/#comments Mon, 16 Aug 2010 14:24:33 +0000 Amar Guerfi http://www.guitarbeginners.com/?p=11 Guitar tablature enables those who do not know any (or little) musical theory or the position of the notes on their instrument, to learn the guitar all the same. It is often provided as a substitute for (or a supplement to) standard musical notation. The tablature is represented by six lines (each one corresponding to a string) with the TAB indication at the beginning. The principle is simple and makes it possible to play the guitar parts quickly, without the help of music theory.]]> http://www.guitarbeginners.com/absolute-beginners/how-to-learn-guitar-tablature-or-standard-musical-notation/feed/ 0 http://www.guitarbeginners.com/miscellaneous/tuning-the-guitar-various-methods/ http://www.guitarbeginners.com/miscellaneous/tuning-the-guitar-various-methods/#comments Mon, 16 Aug 2010 13:24:19 +0000 Amar Guerfi http://www.guitarbeginners.com/?p=10 Tuning your guitar is extremely important. It is rather depressing to play with an untuned guitar. For in this case, even the most beautiful pieces are unpleasant to hear. On the contrary, it is a real pleasure to play on a well tuned instrument. There are several ways to tune your guitar, we will study three of them: [1] with an electronic tuner, [2] with a tuning fork and [3] with a telephone.]]> http://www.guitarbeginners.com/miscellaneous/tuning-the-guitar-various-methods/feed/ 0 http://www.guitarbeginners.com/resources/free-piano-tutorials/ http://www.guitarbeginners.com/resources/free-piano-tutorials/#comments Wed, 10 Mar 2010 23:30:00 +0000 Amar Guerfi http://www.guitarbeginners.com/?p=23 For those who want to take their piano playing skills to the next level. www.LearnPianoTips.com will help you get there by ensuring that you get the most out of your piano practice and learning experience. The lessons are designed by Yoke Wong, an accomplished pianist and music educator, who specializes in piano improvisation. The course comes with 11 hours of video instruction, 2 CD’s and a 142-page binder.]]> http://www.guitarbeginners.com/resources/free-piano-tutorials/feed/ 0 http://www.guitarbeginners.com/intermediate/e-blues-3-hammering-on-pulling-off-3-and-4-sound-chords/ http://www.guitarbeginners.com/intermediate/e-blues-3-hammering-on-pulling-off-3-and-4-sound-chords/#comments Fri, 16 Jan 2009 18:15:22 +0000 Amar Guerfi http://www.guitarbeginners.com/intermediate/e-blues-3-hammering-on-pulling-off-3-and-4-sound-chords/ SCHEDULING YOUR WORK: As usual, to begin with, practise the first measure: Practise the fingerings of the left hand without the rhythm. Introduce the correct picking directions (be careful the strokes are not systematically alternated). Then, play the whole song with the indicated rhythm. Having done this, train yourself to play the pattern in measure [...]]]> http://www.guitarbeginners.com/intermediate/e-blues-3-hammering-on-pulling-off-3-and-4-sound-chords/feed/ 0 http://www.guitarbeginners.com/intermediate/shuffle-boogie-to-be-played-with-a-pick-or-the-fingers-pima/ http://www.guitarbeginners.com/intermediate/shuffle-boogie-to-be-played-with-a-pick-or-the-fingers-pima/#comments Fri, 26 Dec 2008 12:19:07 +0000 Amar Guerfi http://www.guitarbeginners.com/?p=17 There are two possibilities with regard to the technique used for the right hand: you can either use your thumb for the bass and your fore finger and middle finger for the treble strings, OR you can use the pick to play down strokes on the bass and up strokes on the treble. For the [...]]]> http://www.guitarbeginners.com/intermediate/shuffle-boogie-to-be-played-with-a-pick-or-the-fingers-pima/feed/ 0 http://www.guitarbeginners.com/absolute-beginners/rhythm-of-the-blues-difference-between-straight-and-shuffle-beat/ http://www.guitarbeginners.com/absolute-beginners/rhythm-of-the-blues-difference-between-straight-and-shuffle-beat/#comments Sun, 21 Dec 2008 18:36:29 +0000 Amar Guerfi http://www.guitarbeginners.com/?p=21 THEORY: The eighth notes (straight by definition) divide time into two equal parts, i.e. you play two notes, of EQUAL duration, per beat. The shuffle eighth notes divide time into three equal parts. The first note occupies the first two thirds and the second note occupies the last third. See figure I. EXAMPLE: Here are [...]]]> http://www.guitarbeginners.com/absolute-beginners/rhythm-of-the-blues-difference-between-straight-and-shuffle-beat/feed/ 0 http://www.guitarbeginners.com/advanced/e-picking-blues-4-recap-of-the-previous-finger-picking-techniques/ http://www.guitarbeginners.com/advanced/e-picking-blues-4-recap-of-the-previous-finger-picking-techniques/#comments Sat, 20 Dec 2008 21:59:21 +0000 Amar Guerfi http://www.guitarbeginners.com/?p=18 This fourth finger picking Blues song, the most complex of the series, mixes the system of alternated bass from the first song and the techniques of the two others (h.o., p.o. and slide). Practise measure after measure, initially without rhythm in order to memorize the fingerings, then in time. Don’t forget to strictly follow the [...]]]> http://www.guitarbeginners.com/advanced/e-picking-blues-4-recap-of-the-previous-finger-picking-techniques/feed/ 0 http://www.guitarbeginners.com/intermediate/classical-pieces-teleman-a-major-sonata-second-guitar/ http://www.guitarbeginners.com/intermediate/classical-pieces-teleman-a-major-sonata-second-guitar/#comments Wed, 13 Feb 2008 10:45:16 +0000 Amar Guerfi http://www.guitarbeginners.com/?p=20 If you want to listen to the duet, download “Classical pieces for guitar – Vol I”. This is the second guitar. Click here to see the first guitar.]]> http://www.guitarbeginners.com/intermediate/classical-pieces-teleman-a-major-sonata-second-guitar/feed/ 0 http://www.guitarbeginners.com/intermediate/classical-duet-teleman-a-major-sonata-first-guitar/ http://www.guitarbeginners.com/intermediate/classical-duet-teleman-a-major-sonata-first-guitar/#comments Wed, 30 Jan 2008 00:41:12 +0000 Amar Guerfi http://www.guitarbeginners.com/?p=19 If you want to listen to the duet, download “Classical pieces for guitar – Vol I”. This is the first guitar. Click here to see the second guitar.]]> http://www.guitarbeginners.com/intermediate/classical-duet-teleman-a-major-sonata-first-guitar/feed/ 0