How to Play a Guitar for Beginners

Guitar is one of the most popular musical instruments that can be used to play almost any type of music, including folk, rock, jazz and several other styles. If you learn to play guitar, you can easily play and perform your favorite songs and even produce your own notes. However, just like other musical instruments, learning guitar demands perseverance, patience and practice.

For beginners, playing guitar may seem to be a tricky task. But with proper guidance and practice anyone can master the art. If you are a beginner who wants to learn to play guitar, then following guidelines can be of some help to you:

Guidelines

To learn guitar, it is always better to have a teacher or someone who is expert at playing guitar. Right guidance can definitely help you to learn the art faster and better.

Basic terminology

To begin with, familiarize yourself with the basic terminology of this musical instrument. Some of the most commonly used terms are:

Strings: A normal guitar has six strings; each string has different size and note value.
Fret: Frets are metal strips that divide the guitar into sections from top to bottom.
Bridge: It is a small piece of hardware that is used to anchor the strings at the base of the body.
Body: Main portion of the guitar.
Neck: It is the long portion of the guitar that holds frets and strings. It is the part where you place your fingers to play notes and create chords.
Tuning Pegs (Keys): They hold the strings in place and allow the user to adjust the pitch of the string by simply turning the pegs.

Beginning exercise

1. Take your pick. Start with the first string, go up and down as fast as you can. Keep practicing the move in order to pick up speed
2. Now place your fingers on different frets and try to play a note. For instance, place your finger on the 5th fret of the 6th string and play the note.
3. Play the 5th string “Open”(playing a string without fretting any of the notes is known as playing it “Open).” Make sure that when in tune, these two notes must sound similar.
4. Now adjust the tuning peg for the 5th string to ensure when played open, it makes similar sound as the 5th fretted 6th string.
5. Continue to place your finger on the 5th fret of the 5th string and then repeat the process with the 4th string “Open.”
6. Repeat this process for the 4th as well as the 3rd strings.
7. Continue the process by alternating the strings and frets.

Playing notes

By now you must have noticed that making noises come out of the guitar is easy. However, the trick lies in creating noises that actually sound good. For this, start by playing the string open, then with your finger on the first fret, and then again with your finger on the second fret.
If the notes sound muffled or off-key, take a look at your fretting finger to ensure you are holding down the note firmly and the finger is placed directly in the center of the fret. Continue this until you are comfortable making individual notes.
It is very important that you keep your finger directly in between the frets, to create a “truer” sound. Make sure you do not let your finger slide very close to either fret.

Playing chords

Chord is a combination of at least two notes that are played simultaneously. Chords produce fuller and richer sound that can be attained by playing each note individually. Usually chords involve at least three notes the D chord, the E chord, and the C chord.

Make a D chord. Strum up and down for four beats.
Move to the E chord and then to C.
Though at the beginning, you may take some time to move your fingers but with practice you will definitely achieve desired speed. Press down on the strings hard, in order to ensure there is no buzzing noise.

Watch a video instruction on how to play a guitar for beginners

See also

How to Play Spanish Guitar

How to Play Acoustic Guitar for Beginners

How to Read Tabs on a Guitar

How to Read Guitar Notes