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Angered Roach

Registered: 05/11/07
Posts: 419
Last seen: 5 years, 10 months
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Those of you who can play the guitar
#8024504 - 02/14/08 08:56 PM (15 years, 11 months ago) |
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How did you learn? I've had my guitar for a few months now, since just before december, and I've hardly made any progress at all. I can play the opening notes to a few Pink Floyd and Johnny cash songs, but I really can't play anything at all coherently, except perhaps Folsom Prison Blues (Easiest song in the world, aside from the solo).
The main thing i'm having problems with is all those nice little chord changes that actually make a song...a song. I find myself having to stop and look over at the fretboard to get my fingers into place.
Any tips? Advice?
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zSDMF
Stranger


Registered: 09/07/04
Posts: 10,562
Loc: lost in nothing
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Re: Those of you who can play the guitar [Re: Angered Roach]
#8024540 - 02/14/08 09:08 PM (15 years, 11 months ago) |
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uh yeah, play it a few thousand times until your muscles remember the changes. there is no magic cure, you have to practice. posting about it is frankly the last thing you should be doing lol. if you haven't learned the basics yet go to maybe cyberfret.com and work through all that stuff. being real though, go play
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citricacidx
FunGuy




Registered: 07/23/07
Posts: 9,027
Loc: GA
Last seen: 10 years, 6 months
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Re: Those of you who can play the guitar [Re: zSDMF]
#8024583 - 02/14/08 09:17 PM (15 years, 11 months ago) |
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you have to start out with Smoke on the Water, then go from there.
PowerTab is a good program. You can download files for songs that will show you both the music notes and tablature. I recommend trying to learn to read music.
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vitadura
Dream Seeker


Registered: 03/11/07
Posts: 451
Loc: Here, Now
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Re: Those of you who can play the guitar [Re: citricacidx]
#8024612 - 02/14/08 09:22 PM (15 years, 11 months ago) |
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Yea, definitely learn how to read music. I'm no pro, but I'm working on it, too. It's good to have a book of all the different chords and it's good to memorize them. (Easier said than done.)
Just keep working on it, and feel free to post about your frustrations. But you're not going to get any better unless you keep at it. And do, definitely, keep at it, keep practicing. Being able to play an instrument is so worth the effort.
Best of luck
-------------------- "You are a child of the universe, no less than the trees and the stars; you have a right to be here." -Max Ehrmann, Desiderata
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PinballWizard
Naive and Gullible as usual

Registered: 03/20/04
Posts: 2,804
Last seen: 9 years, 9 months
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Re: Those of you who can play the guitar [Re: Angered Roach]
#8024617 - 02/14/08 09:23 PM (15 years, 11 months ago) |
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Lessons are your only real answer. They force you to play even though you undoubtedly suck. Depending on the size of your town, it should cost between $6-15 per lesson.
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dill705
Amazed



Registered: 12/10/07
Posts: 3,779
Loc: The Cat's Cradle
Last seen: 6 years, 3 months
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Re: Those of you who can play the guitar [Re: Angered Roach]
#8024635 - 02/14/08 09:27 PM (15 years, 11 months ago) |
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Totally, you need to take one of the songs you're working on and take each chord and strum it, pick each note one at a time, listen for dead notes (notes not properly fingered sound unmusical), fix your fingers, strum some more. Then look at the next chord and repeat.
Now, holding the first chord, practice moving your fingers to the next chord. As you improve, speed this process up until you can keep pace with the song. 
Then, start listening to the blues on mushrooms and think about how to bend strings, slide from note to note, rock the string back and forth for vibrato, etc. etc...
Keep on rockin' man. It helps if you like the sound you make, too. Keeps you interested, so buy new stuff, experiment with the different sounds you can make. It's an amazing instrument.
-------------------- My advice is to find those things that give pleasure and do them often without too much attachment and relax and wait for the show to end. -Icelander- I like free markets and all. Truly I do, at least in general, but there needs to be some kind of oversight in recognition of sustainability. Life works the same way, on a bunch of sustainable systems. Why not honor what made us what we are and take some lessons? Nature FTW! ~dill705~
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razmablues
Biologist




Registered: 12/16/06
Posts: 2,403
Loc: OrangeCounty
Last seen: 14 years, 5 months
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Re: Those of you who can play the guitar [Re: Angered Roach]
#8024665 - 02/14/08 09:34 PM (15 years, 11 months ago) |
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here is the exact process i went through.
started learning chords, then just random sound riffs and what not. basically i was getting good at coordinating my picking hand with my fretting hand and just getting the overall muscle mechanics at a good level. then i learned the major scale, wholeheartedly. look it up in all its different shapes up and down the fretboard, not just in one position. thats one thing i wasn't aware of, that these scales go all over the fretboard, not just in one position. anyway after i learned my major scale i started messing around with songs. listening real quick spending tons of time trying to match notes up. naturally i started learning notes through jamming with songs, like i knew that this song goes G-C so i'd end up learning where all the g's and c's are, and that eventually led to me knowing most notes on the fretboard. while doing that i started messing around with chords up and down the fretboard, not just the open string on top. look up the "CAGED" system, there's tons of useful information on it to get you playing. and then i went on to learn some blues and random cool techniques, but my playing really took off from there and i've been focusing on gypsy guitar since.
anyway, i bet thats a little long, but if you need any help pm me i'll help you out with whatever i know. good luck and keep jamming!!
-------------------- soft silly music is meaningful, magical
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Cubenisseur
Mad Props


Registered: 12/04/05
Posts: 1,392
Loc: Indian Land
Last seen: 13 years, 10 months
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Re: Those of you who can play the guitar [Re: razmablues]
#8024771 - 02/14/08 09:55 PM (15 years, 11 months ago) |
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try, try, try, try, try, try, again.
Play with as many people as you can. You'll learn a little bit from each one.
Try, try, try, try, try again
repeat
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Cubenisseur
Mad Props


Registered: 12/04/05
Posts: 1,392
Loc: Indian Land
Last seen: 13 years, 10 months
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Re: Those of you who can play the guitar [Re: razmablues]
#8024798 - 02/14/08 10:00 PM (15 years, 11 months ago) |
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try, try, try, try, try, try, again.
Play with as many people as you can. You'll learn a little bit from each one.
Try, try, try, try, try again
repeat
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toastandjam
Tastes Grate, Lesh Philling




Registered: 05/07/06
Posts: 752
Last seen: 13 years, 2 months
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Re: Those of you who can play the guitar [Re: Cubenisseur]
#8024923 - 02/14/08 10:27 PM (15 years, 11 months ago) |
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Absolutely what everybody has already said. Learn music. Learn songs. Play long, play hard. Practice often.
But beware: Learning songs and music and practicing can become a formula, a recipe you follow as routine. That'll happen as part of your normal growth from time to time, but remember to just play your instrument. Make sounds. Play little grooves that you think are cool and see where they lead.
This will all become easier once you've developed the basic skills and its a big part of finding your own voice.
Don't just follow directions, don't just push the button, PLAY MUSIC!
-------------------- Q: We wanted to see if you had the ability to expand your mind and your horizons... and for one brief moment, you did. PICARD: When I realized the paradox... Q: Exactly. For that one fraction of a second, you were open to options you'd never considered. That's the exploration that awaits you...not mapping stars and studying nebulae... but charting the unknowable possibilities of existence. To carry yourself forward and experience myriad things is delusion. That myriad things come forth and experience themselves is awakening. -Dogen Zenji
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JonnyOnTheSpot
Sober Surfer


Registered: 01/27/02
Posts: 11,527
Loc: North Carolina
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Re: Those of you who can play the guitar [Re: Angered Roach]
#8024959 - 02/14/08 10:34 PM (15 years, 11 months ago) |
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the first thing you need to do when trying to learn guitar is all the open major and minor chords. then practice switching back and forth between them. once you can do that easily ten move on to barre chords. THEN start learning all your single note bullshit, such as scales.
you have to learn to crawl before you can walk.
take a lesson or something.
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JonnyOnTheSpot
Sober Surfer


Registered: 01/27/02
Posts: 11,527
Loc: North Carolina
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Re: Those of you who can play the guitar [Re: Cubenisseur]
#8024969 - 02/14/08 10:36 PM (15 years, 11 months ago) |
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Quote:
Cubenisseur said: try, try, try, try, try, try, again.
Play with as many people as you can. You'll learn a little bit from each one.
Try, try, try, try, try again
repeat
head first this time, jump right in?
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g00ru
lit pants tit licker



Registered: 08/09/07
Posts: 21,088
Loc: georgia, us
Last seen: 5 years, 1 month
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Re: Those of you who can play the guitar [Re: JonnyOnTheSpot]
#8025033 - 02/14/08 10:47 PM (15 years, 11 months ago) |
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There's a steep learning curve. You'll hit a point where it clicks and then you won't be able to stop playing. Since you've started, make sure you don't develop bad habits now. And I know it's annoying when people say this, but PLAY SLOW. Guitarists that really KNOW and HEAR what they are playing are so infinitely better than wankers.
If you want a good theory book I'd recommend fretboard logic.
In a few weeks you should be playing like this: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zAG-kX_IlUw
check out how big that bassist is lol!
-------------------- check out my music! drowse in prison and your waking will be but loss
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Syle
Kenai Sigh


Registered: 10/16/05
Posts: 6,678
Loc: WA
Last seen: 10 months, 26 days
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Re: Those of you who can play the guitar [Re: g00ru]
#8025040 - 02/14/08 10:49 PM (15 years, 11 months ago) |
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i learned all the metallica songs. lots of good riffage. simple power chords. but then, some of the other faster riffs and prettier stuff is a bit more complex.
Tool is fun to learn as well. it's in dropped tuning though.
-------------------- https://kenaisigh.bandcamp.com/ <- Just completed the 2021 RPM challenge for February - An EP in one month (5 songs or 20 minutes). Check it out!
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citricacidx
FunGuy




Registered: 07/23/07
Posts: 9,027
Loc: GA
Last seen: 10 years, 6 months
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Re: Those of you who can play the guitar [Re: Syle]
#8025052 - 02/14/08 10:51 PM (15 years, 11 months ago) |
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I have a sure fire way. Learn some basic chords. Hell, power chords even, but preferably standard chords. Then take some mushrooms, and pull out your guitar and just mess around with some chords and even try soloing. You should get a very intense connection and understanding of what is actually taking place.
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