5 Tips For Beginning Guitarists

1. Practice, Practice, Practice: Yes, it’s cliche, but the simple fact is that the only way to truly get better at playing guitar (or anything in life) is to practice your pants off. It doesn’t matter how far along you are in your playing, this will always remain true. It’s especially important as a beginner, because this is when you are developing finger strength, dexterity, and those oh-so-beautiful fingertip calluses. In the beginning, guitar playing is not that fun. Let’s face it, you get tired of switching between G and D chords to no end. But trust me, the more you practice, the quicker you will improve, and the better you get, the more fun it is. So PRACTICE!!!

2. Find a Mentor: It is infinitely important that you seek out someone who is already a good guitarist to play with. It doesn’t matter what style they play or how long they’ve been playing, as long as they’re better than you. However, it is preferable that they’ve been playing seriously for at least a year. Why should you do this? First of all, the quickest way to get better at something is to play with someone who has been doing it for a while. They will have great advice for you, and seeing how good they are may provide some inspiration. If you have friends or relatives who play the guitar, call them up! Secondly, playing with someone better than you will give you confidence in yourself. You have nothing to fear. Realize that all great guitarists were beginners at some point, and chances are, they will remember the struggles they went through when they were just starting out.

Also: Even if you just started playing, it is still a good idea to find at least one mentor right from the start. Here’s how you play with an experienced guitarist: Using Tip #1 (Practice,) learn the most common major and minor open chords. These include G, D, Am, C, E, and Em. If you can master these basic chords, and can switch between them without having to stop strumming, you can play rhythm! With that, you can play a chord progression with another person, and they can maybe solo if they so choose. Now you’re jamming!

3. Learn As Much As Possible: This means picking up guitar books and publications (like Guitar Player.) Learning more about the guitar will give you new ideas and insights, as well as make you sound a lot smarter when talking with your mentor (see Tip #2.)

4. Get Inspired:It’s hard to practice every day without a goal in mind. Therefore, it’s imperative that you listen to great guitar players. If you have a specific genre that you really are interested in, then pick some heroes from that genre. Of course, it’s also a good idea to listen to other genres as well, as it will expand your horizons and enrich your playing style. But for now, if you’re interested in playing the blues, listen to guys like Stevie Ray Vaughan and Buddy Guy. If you want to play rock, listen to Jimi Hendrix, Jimmy Page and John Frusciante (the Red Hot Chili Peppers.) If you like folk music, it doesn’t get much better than Doc Watson. These are just a few examples, and you can pick whomever you like from your favorite styles of music.

5. Have Fun!: This is the most important part of playing any instrument. You must enjoy it, or else you’ll quit. Remember all those piano lessons your parents forced you to take when you were a kid? The point is, the whole reason you started playing guitar is to have fun, express yourself, and get more out of life. Therefore, don’t ever forget this key point.