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Pretty Tough

Play Guitar

  • Completed Project: Play Guitar Picture #1

From zero to guitar hero? Sure, why not.

I know that this is not a crafty project as such, but I though it fairly relevant, and still a 'project' as such :)

I'm no guitar expert (I'm not even very good) but these are the steps I've taken to teach myself guitar, without paying for lessons, or buying those stupid teach-yourself books. This how-to is at least a start :)

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  1. Step 1

    The very first thing, I suppose would be to get a guitar. You can buy new one, a second-hand one, or steal it from your grandma's house, like I did.
    (You could even buy a ukulele, which is smaller, cheaper, lighter, and easier to play.)

    Next, make sure your guitar is in tune. There are plenty of videos on youtube explaining how to do this, so just search and you will find :)

  2. Step 2

    Step 2

    I'd start off learning tabs from sites like ultimateguitar.com; doing this first will help your fingers learn the shape of your guitar, the frets, and get you used to wiggling them around in a certain way.

    Each 'line' if you like, represents a string, and the numbers refer to wich fret to plonk your fingers in.
    It's pretty simple to understand, but the hardest thing is getting your fingers to move in the right places at the right times. As ever, practise makes perfect.


  3. Step 3

    Step 3

    The next thing you could do, is to make your very own chord chart. You can find various ones on the internet, but they're not always exactly what you want, and besides, copying out the tables will help you learn.
    Practise each chord, starting with the simple ones (A, C, D, etc) and getting harder as you get better.

  4. Step 4

    Step 4

    Next, find the chords for a song you know and like. Print it out or copy it onto paper.

    Go through each line, slowly getting used to the changes between chords and such. With practise, you'll soon be belting out tunes.

    ("I'm a Believer" is one of my favourites, and the chords are pretty simple- a steady starter)


  5. Step 5

    Step 5

    As you get better, you can learn more songs, perhaps buy an electric guitar and amp, join a band and become a world-wide superstar.

    Just make sure I get a credit in the album cover! (Only joshing)

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spooky little girl

spooky little girl

07 Jul 16:16

very cool! i want to be a world wide superstar!! :o)

Green Liquid Soap▄

Green Liquid Soap▄

07 Jul 17:24

i really,really wanted to learn how to play guitar but didn't have a clue on where to start and no one could (or didn't want) to halp me..but now i can tech myself! YAY! ^-^
thanks! <3

ragdoll--

ragdoll--

07 Jul 17:41

my brother tried to teach me guitar and i sucked!
haha
you just inspired me to try again!

DIS.AR.RAY

DIS.AR.RAY

07 Jul 20:41

I do play guitar, pretty well, but I think this is a GREAT idea to put onto here, and the way you explained it will be really easy for non-geetar-players to understand.

Now, I don't have to teach my friends little brother how to play, I'll just give him this link :D

Hank

Hank

08 Jul 19:47

Aw, thanks you guys :'D

kirky carrott

kirky carrott

09 Jul 01:34

how cool, i hadn't logged on for ages, n spur of the moment thing bought a guitar yesterday not knowing how to play it, u have saved hours of internet searching :) kudos to the easy peasy guide :) xxx thanx

M.a.r.i.s.o.l.

M.a.r.i.s.o.l.

11 Jul 17:53

i play guitar too and i find it hard to explain to people how to do it...you did a great job explaining it

Cat Morley

Cat Morley

12 Jul 11:02

Cute how-to :D

corrie w

corrie w

19 Jul 12:50

kick ass

NutMeg

NutMeg

01 Aug 17:24

This is a good idea, but you said someone could just buy a ukulele. Only problem is that ukuleles only have four strings whereas guitars have 6. that would probably confuse someone trying to learn to play it from this.

Hank

Hank

15 Aug 19:42

Well, I guess so.
The chords are fairly similar (from the little experience I have).
But I meant that instead of a guitar.
Uke's are super cool on their own (y)

Chelsea

Chelsea

01 Dec 10:01

Good tips! Anyone who wants to learn guitar remember, you don't have to be the next jimi hendrix just as long as you love playing thats all that matters! I've been playing almost 2 years with weekly guitar lessons and still suck but I love it!

Alexa S.

Alexa S.

09 Dec 11:38

I don't play guitar, but I play a uke. I LOVE ukulele. it has a lighter more laid back feel and it's tons easier than the guitar. I got my first uke for $20. So if any of you get frustrated with the guitar, try uke... promise you, you won't regret it. lol.

Alice W.

Alice W.

09 Feb 23:55

This was a great tutorial; I play a little guitar already, having taken lessons for a couple of years in the past, but it was really slow learning that way.
I recently started learning tabs off ultimate guitar - the site that you mentioned - and it's so much quicker to learn that way, especially if you play a youtube video of the song whilst looking at the tab to help you work out how to play it.
I'm so glad someone had the good sense to post this; I think a lot of people are put off by guitar at first because it seems really difficult when you first start off. You've helped show people that with practise, it's actually super-easy ^o^
One question though; are there any good sites that you recommend to find chords for songs? I looked around but I couldn't find any. :(

Emilie K.

Emilie K.

10 Feb 20:48

to alice:
If you search for a song on ultimate guitar, you can choose between tabs and chords :) There is a lot of people who also post chords ^^

Angie A.

Angie A.

25 Jun 16:31

That's awesome, i didn't think it was so easy!

Hank Posted By:
Hank »
July 07, 2008 15:49
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