Just started

[JON]

Hello, Im a 19 yo guy that started playing acoustic guitar in january but i cant afford any classes so just self taught from youtube, i posted my first cover on youtube 2 days ago and I would appreciate any kind of tips to improve my guitar/singing skills. Thank you for your patience, rock on. 

 

[Richard Watashi]

Hey there. Welcome to the forum.

 

I had a guitar for a few years, but i am not a guitarist and i don't sing so, somebody else? Just watching the cover, you have some time of practicing precision ahead of you, but since you started in January - you are good!  

 

 

[JON]

Thank you so much for your time, do you have any tips on how I can improve my guitar skills? Ive just been learning from random videos on youtube

[Peggy]

Hi Pinto,

 

Welcome to Songstuff.  Thanks for the introduction. Let's see if we can get some guitar basics for you and some guitar players on the board that could help.  Congrats on getting started in January and jumping right in there trying to learn. 

Peggy

[john]

Hey Pinto, welcome to the Songstuff family!

 

Your chord changes are generally pretty clean. The notes sound pretty clear. So well done for that. Nicely done for such a new player.

 

A few things:

 

relax your right arm

your left hand thumb should not be sticking up. Some players, including Hendrix, use their thumb differently but it can cause problems s. It only worked for Hendrix because he had large hands. For good technique your thumb should be running  parallel to the frets, but at the back of the neck. Exactly where depends on the chord/scale, but the pad of your thumb would be just above the center line for say a D chord, and almost at the bottom of the neck, between fret 1 and fret 2 (nearer fret 1) for an E chord. It’s almost like your left hand creates a giant letter C, so that as your fingers reach towards the top of the fret board onto the low E string, your thumb slides towards the bottom edge of the neck, and as your fingers sit on the High E string, your thumb slides above the Center line of neck, where the heel of the thumb pad is on the center line. Try and keep a gap of a finger’s width between your fingers and the fret board, with your fingers pressing into the fret board at as close to a right angle as possible.

 

You need to practice scales. I suggest the major scale, the minor scales and the pentatonic scale, also called the blues pentatonic.

 

Try practising everything 3 ways.

 

1. Slow, accurate and clear. (You can look at your left hand While you play)

2. As fast as you can play, mistakes and all (You can look at your left hand while you play)

3. As quickly as you can play WITHOUT making any mistakes, up to the actual speed it is meant to be played. (You are not allowed to look at your left hand. Pick a point to look at and keep looking at it.

 

A maxim to live by:

 

An amateur practices until they get it right.

A professional practices until they can’t get it wrong

 

There’s loads more but that is some distilled brilliance right there  lol

[Danidog]

Enough can't be said about practicing scales. Early on spend the majority of your time on the mechanics of playing and less time playing songs. Sure, reward yourself with a little fun at the end of your session, but ya hafta learn to crawl, then walk and then you can run with it. 

It takes time and a lot of work to develop the muscle memory and coordination to play well.

I set myself back five years early on by wanting to jump right to learning new songs versus learning the basics.

Good luck with it, remember to have fun.

 

[Cody]

Best advice I ever received about playing, and works for life in general too

 

Make the simple sound extraordinary 

The extraordinary sound simple

 

I'm pretty unorthodox.....I still dont know my scales...20+ or - years of guitar now..  I just learned to tune to taste

 

I had played for two or three years before I would let anyone show me a standard "open" chord, we all learn in different ways...just keep on playing you'll pick something up

 

of course I've never considered myself a "guitar player" either, just love music, and I've gotten attached just seemed to be the instrument that would do the most while still portable, and they've been around since I have memories.......probably my aversion to "right way" to learn......First hand knowledge how pompous some can get when they learn a song or three haha.

 

 

[Cody]

Chimed in before I even watched your video  had a chance to now.

 

Being comfortable is a big key....nobody ever said you have to use a pick, personally I'm more comfortable strumming chords without one, doesn't project as much and does change the tone, but I'm selfish, I'm usually just playing for myself anyway  

 

Wanna write songs?....well I know you know at least one good chord progression(see above.....lots of good advice there ) change the rhythm a touch, or not....start humming along words may or may not come  its noticeable if forced