Insturment Question - Guitar

[The_OG_Nelta]

How many people taught themselves how to play Guitar? I use to play Trumpet, so notes are not a problem, but I am really looking to take up guitar or Piano. Any suggestion? sites? tips?

[Maguspk]

1. Get a cheap acoutstic
2. Teach yourself some chords
3. Go to local campus with college chicks
4. ???
5. Profit

Really though, if you want to learn guitar find a friend who has one and mess around a bit see if you like it or it really appeals to you, don't just get one because you think it looks fun/cool. If you find further interest after getting your hands on one, buy a cheap acoustic and look up Tabs for some songs you like, that should provide good learning material and motivation since it'll be songs you enjoy listening to already and learning to reproduce them is always fun. After awhile you'll just naturally get better, it comes with time. Taking lessons or having a friend who knows how to play speeds shit up drastically but without that luxury you're going to learn pretty slowly.

[Siegtaru]

I taught and have been teaching myself how to play guitar. A good way to get started is to get a book if you can already read Sheet Music, and it'll teach you the notes on each string then go into chords. A book of chords also helps to start learning the chords. Most people like to specialize in either single notes or chords. For example, my friend loves playing chords and making songs with them, but hates to play single notes lol. I'm the other way around. Another easy way is to look up some guitar tabs on the internet. You can find almost any song's guitar tabs online. They're very easy to read, but I'm not sure how much they "teach" you about playing, other than teaching you how to play song. it's much easier to remember how to play tabs off the top of your head once you've learned them as opposed to the sheet music, I find. I also play Piano, but I don't really like it. Easiest way to learn it is to get a book with lessons in it (tells you hand positions, each note, finger placement, etc.) and it'll teach you lots of simple songs (Gogo Jingle Bells). It depends on what path you want to take when it comes to guitar, really. I prefer playing the tabs over the sheet music as it's easier to read and follow, and less complex for most people.

[Guitarman]

Pretty much agree with the above poster. I've been playing guitar for 14 years now. If it's something you really enjoy, and not just a slight interest spurred by playing guitar hero, then go for it. You can teach yourself, but i do recommend at least a few months of lessons. They'll help teach you chord progression, where the notes are and the like. It should give you a solid foundation for you to learn from. Sites like mxtabs.net and tabcrawler.com have all the tablature you could ever need, and learning your favorite songs, playing them for the first time and hearing it sound like the record will send chills up your spine, it's a really unique experience.

[The_OG_Nelta]

I see.. Thank you for your help ^_^

help is still appreciated !

[Nystul]

Tablature (which is not the notes, it's the fingerings) makes learning guitar pretty easy. I'm self-taught, though I had lessons on bass guitar before I picked up a 6 string.

I did take piano lessons for a while but I didn't stick with it, and as I got more into music, that was a decision I regretted a lot. No instrument will give you a better education in music theory (keys, chord structures, etc). If that is something that is important to you then I'd suggest piano.

Both are fun though...the advantage guitar has is it's portability and relative cheapness.

[nope]

I learned by playing shitty Bling-182 songs lol, really basic and easy to read those tabs, Oasis are good for learning chords, also would say the Eagles also.
Have fun and keep at it, shit comes with time.

[Kooldac]

I've taught myself bass guitar for about 6 months now. Try out some Tom Petty. Usually only a few chords and sound good

[sephir]

I took lessons for a while, after that I taught for a while. Best advice I can give is this:

1) buy a cheap guitar if your starting
2) buy a Metronome with a tuner
3) buy a program such as Guitar Pro or Power Tab as they will help with timing and make it easy to learn songs
4) Learn Cream/Eric Clapton songs. Seriously, I don't know what it is about them but if you bother learning them you will drastically see an improvement in your playing. I gave tabs to Sunshine of your love and White Room to many of my students and within 2 weeks I could hear a huge improvement. It just works.

[Boyiee]

for all that is holy, please, oh god please don't learn through tabs.

You can read music, don't throw that away or ignore it like millions of pretend-musicians do. Most of your friends probably just play tabs, find a music teacher with his masters and really take the time to learn your instrument... You should really take up piano though, lots more brain involved unless you decide to get into classical.

[Kurp]

I agree with Boyiee about not learning with tabs if you can already read music.

I'd definitely look into getting lessons. You don't need to keep taking them for years, but even a couple months would be a huge help in getting started.

[Guitarman]

I too will third the notion that you should learn to read notes.

However, I also think that tabs should not be neglected. There is much more to guitar than simply reading the notes. While it is very important that you learn notes, most professional musicians will give you a dirty look if you dont know how to; just as important is being able to play them. Tabs are the quick and easy way of getting a song down, which leaves you free to focus on hand position, rhythm, speed, and coordination. Plus, honestly, there are times you just want to learn the song, and to my eyes notes meld together after a few hours of staring at them.

[Nystul]

Tab is a great help for a transition- it helps you have fun with the instrument while you are learning the notes etc. Sucks to pick up an instrument and just do scales for the first few months...being able to learn the notes while still learning that solo or intro bit or whatever part of your favorite song at the same time is a nice way to maintain interest. Just don't get lazy and never bother with the notes like I did.

[Alleya]

You should really take up piano though, lots more brain involved unless you decide to get into classical.

WTF?????

You're telling me Norah Jones takes more brain than Ravel?

[Nystul]

You should really take up piano though, lots more brain involved unless you decide to get into classical.

WTF?????

You're telling me Norah Jones takes more brain than Ravel?

I thought that was odd too, I just assumed he meant "more brain involved unless you decide to get into classical guitar" which makes more sense.

[Dezzimal]

for all that is holy, please, oh god please don't learn through tabs.

You can read music, don't throw that away or ignore it like millions of pretend-musicians do. Most of your friends probably just play tabs, find a music teacher with his masters and really take the time to learn your instrument... You should really take up piano though, lots more brain involved unless you decide to get into classical.

Lessons are very valuable, and if money is a problem you can find them really cheap anyway. If you live near a college campus, go there and locate the guitar instructor and ask to get hooked up with one of the guitar students.

[Lindstrom]

Get the Robot Devil's hands

[Suburbanelite]

I've been a guitarist for about 5 and a half years now, and I can say that learning through tabs is actually not a problem if you're planning on practicing at least every day. I learned through tabs, because at first I didn't know if I wanted to make music into my career. After a while I grew so attached to the guitar that I was playing maybe 6 or 7 hours each day. Through the tabs of my favorite songs I actually learned scales, hand positions, timing, and most importantly pick patterns.

If I really want to learn a song, I can figure it out by ear or read a tab. These are both much quicker than sitting down with sheet music and playing something by note names rather than locations. Location of frets is key in playing the guitar, and sheet music doesn't provide this.

Oh, and Every Good Boy Dies First - Lines
FACE - Spaces

If you wanted some acronyms for sheet music. Those are what I use.

[Dmitry]

I have a friend who is self-taught at guitar. He's not bad at it, but I just attribute it to him being a lazy fuck who sits around and does nothing but learn songs from tabs. You definitely want to practice reading notes and chord progression while you're still learning. I mostly stick to tabs when I just want to learn to play something for fun.

[Darus Grey]

Since you want to play guitar OR piano.

I say have the best of both.

Keytar...

You'll thank me later.