Girls will easily fall for a guy who plays well, sings well and is a bit romantic. Our girls can also learn to play the guitar to relieve stress and fatigue. Actually, playing the guitar is not too difficult. However, you need to persevere and persevere every day. Let’s learn the steps below with NgonAZ to soon play your favorite song for your crush.
What is a guitar?
The guitar is a popular and diverse string instrument in different music genres. Made up of main components including the body and neck, the guitar usually has 6 musical strings set at different frequencies. Players will use their fingers or a picking hammer to make sounds when stroking and hitting the strings.
Classification of guitars
Guitars are classified based on many factors such as size, style, number of strings, neck structure, and intended use. Here are some simple classifications:
Classical Guitar: A type of guitar with a traditional structure with 6 nylon or metal-woven nylon strings. Used mainly in classical and folk music.
Acoustic Guitar (Guitar without electricity): This is a type of guitar with a large soundboard, usually 6 metal strings. Used freely and commonly in many music genres.
Electric Guitar: A type of guitar with a thin soundboard, usually with 6 or 7 metal strings. Comes with a microphone and pickup system to create electronic sounds. Used mainly in rock, blues and jazz music.
Bass Guitar: A larger version of the electric guitar, has a low tone and is especially used for playing rhythm and rock music.
12-String Guitar: A type of guitar with 12 metal strings that create a rich sound.
Resonator Guitar: A guitar with a body made from metal or solid wood and used in folk and blues music.
Dobro Guitar: A metal guitar with a D-shaped soundboard and played with a slide. Often appears in bluegrass and country music.
Archtop Guitar: A guitar with a concave shape that provides a distinctive sound, often used in jazz music.
The most correct way to hold the guitar
First, you learn how to hold a guitar fluently. There are 3 ways to hold the guitar: conventional method, classical method and standing with strap.
– Conventional method
If you are right-handed, place the guitar on your right foot. Then use the footrest. The price of a footrest is about 300 – 500,000 VND at musical instrument stores. This helps elevate your legs, bringing the guitar to a more comfortable position, especially when playing for long periods of time.
Also remember not to tilt the guitar inward towards them to see the fingers. This is not a good position because it easily causes fatigue. Instead, place the guitar straight up. Another thing is to wrap your dominant hand around the guitar to keep it close to your body, prevent it from tilting, and fix it in the best position.
– Classic method
If you’re right-handed, place your left foot on the base, then place the guitar on your left foot. From there, the guitar neck will be moved more to the left, raised higher. This means you can easily reach the notes on the face of the neck. However, playing for long periods of time will be a bit difficult, unless you use a strap to keep the guitar in a high position.
– Use a strap
You can also use a strap at a cost of about 150,000 VND to several million if it is an expensive type.
Instructions on basic fingers and keys
Fingers
When playing the guitar, the fingers are represented as follows:
- The index finger is the first finger
- The middle finger is the second finger
- The ring finger is the third finger
- The little finger is your fourth finger
Remember clearly so that when you learn chord diagrams and scales later, you will know which fingers you need to use.
Keys
Frets on a guitar are metal strips placed along the fretboard. The first fret is the metal strip closest to the headstock of the neck and starts counting from there.
Guitar string
Many people think that the string closest to them, the thickest string, is also the first string of the guitar. However, the opposite is correct. The wire closest to the floor, the thinnest wire is the first wire. Then there are the second, third strings, etc. Just note that the thinnest string of the guitar is the first string, and the thickest string is the sixth string.
Structure of the guitar
There are 2 main parts of a guitar. These are the neck and the body. Acoustic guitars and guitars have many similar parts. However, there are still some differences.
- Headstock: Located at the end of the neck, divided into many more parts.
- Tuning keys: Used to adjust the pitch of the guitar strings.
- Nut: The white plastic bar located below the head of the guitar. The strings are placed into the fretboard before being tied to the string courses.
- Frets: These are thin metal bars placed along the neck, perpendicular to the strings.
* Guitar body
– Acoustic Guitar
- Pickguard: Is the plastic part that protects the guitar from scratches when you play the guitar.
- Soundhole: Most acoustic guitars have a soundhole in the middle of the body.
- Bridge: The black plastic part at the opposite end of the bridge. When you pluck the strings, vibrations run along the neck from the bridge to the headstock.
– Electric Guitar
- Pickups: Like the guitar’s microphone, it picks up the vibrations of the strings and sends them into the sound amplifier.
- Volume & tone knobs: There may be one, two, three, or four knobs depending on the type of electric guitar you have.
- Pickup switch: The second type of control on an electric guitar is the pickup switch. Most electric guitars have a 3-way switch. It decides which pickup is active. If you pull the switch down, the bridge pickup will activate, making the guitar have a higher treble tone because it’s closer to the end of the string. If you leave the switch in the middle, both pickups will operate, giving you a medium tone. If you pull the switch up, the pickup on the neck will work, and the guitar will have a deep voice.
The basics of guitar strings
Names of strings
The name of the thickest string, the sixth string, is Mi (E). Next down, the fifth string is La (A), the fourth is Re (D), the third is Sol (G), the second is Si (B), and the first string is also Mi (E). An easier way to remember is that the two outermost strings are both Mi (E) strings. And you try to name the 4 internal wires. This is very important for the following steps.
How to tune the guitar to the correct pitch
Knowing how to tune a guitar is the first technique you need to know. Because if your guitar has the wrong strings, the sound it produces will not be good.
– String tuning theory
- The musical alphabet: You learned the name of the open string on the guitar is EADGBE. Next is memorizing the natural musical alphabet. They include the first seven letters of the regular alphabet, which is ABCDEFG.
- Flat symbol (b): The symbol that looks like a lowercase “b” is the flat symbol. When it is next to a note, it means that note has a pitch lower than ½ step. When we say the strings are flat when tuning the guitar, it means we need to adjust the pitch of the notes a little.
- Sharp symbol (#): This symbol, when next to a note, will increase the pitch of that note by ½ step. When you say the string is sharp when tuning the guitar, it means the note is a bit high and has to be lowered in pitch.
If you’re using an electronic tuner, there are a few ways to tell if a note is higher or lower than normal. That’s the signal light, if the note is flat to the left, it needs to be adjusted up a bit. If the light shifts to the right, the note is high and needs to be adjusted down.
Note:
- Please adjust the wire pin correctly. For example, if you want to tune the D string, trace along the D string up to the headstock where you can see the exact peg to tune that string. Do not turn to another bolt.
- If you can’t adjust it the first time, stop, turn the wire back to its original position and start again. The best way is to try playing any string with a tuner, finding out how much or how little you need to play to adjust the pitch.
How to play basic guitar
You will learn how to play the guitar, also known as “playing” the guitar, properly. Make sure this helps you practice while reducing the risk of injury.
Use a pick
You should use a pick. If you don’t have a pick, use your thumb and index finger to play.
+ How to hold a pick:
- Place it on the edge of your index finger so that the tip of the pick is facing the inside of your palm.
- Place your thumb on the pick and hold it as naturally as possible.
- Try different grips and choose the one that feels most comfortable.
+ Plectrum holding angle:
You can hold the pick facing down on the floor when playing. Or some to pick parallel to the strings. Grip angle doesn’t matter, as long as you take the time to experiment and choose the best angle.
Learn how to play the basic guitar
Basic “fan pat” technique: You should move from your wrist but your elbow should still move. Don’t lock your wrists and play with just your elbows as this will put pressure on your shoulders.
- Downstrokes technique: Use your left hand (if you play with your right hand) to gently place the strings on the neck. Practice playing the piano down through all 6 strings. Do this movement many times until you master it.
- Upstrokes technique: Is to stroke/stroke across the strings from the bottom up. You don’t have to go up through all the strings. Playing just 3 or 5 strings is enough and helps you shape your own guitar playing style.
- Combine “fan up” and “fan down”: Once you get used to it, try playing both up and down fans alternately.
If you use a pick and it often flies out of your hand, you need to hold the pick tightly so it doesn’t fall. However, you should not grip too tightly to avoid getting your hands tired too quickly. You need to constantly make small adjustments to your pick. Because the pick will always move a little when you continuously “fan the pick”.
Basic guitar chords
You need to learn 4 basic chords: A minor (A minor), C major (C major), D major (D major) and G major (G major). This is very useful because you will use it often throughout the process of learning to play the guitar.
How to read chord diagrams
Before you start playing, you need to know how to read a chord chart (Chord Chart/Diagram).
- Looking at a chord diagram, you will see 6 parallel vertical lines representing the 6 guitar strings. The leftmost line is the low E string and the rightmost line is the high E string.
- The horizontal lines on the diagram represent the keys. There’s a dash at the top that represents the fretboard so you can see which fret you’re on.
- The dots on the chord diagram show you where to place your fingers. If the dot has a number inside it, it indicates which finger to use when you create a hand position for that chord.
For example, with an A minor (A minor/Am) chord, you can see on the chord diagram a circle with the number ‘1’ in it on the first fret of the B string. This means you need to use your index finger to press the first fret on the Si string.
Another note: If an “X” appears above a string, it means you won’t have to play that string. With the A minor chord, you will ignore the low E string when playing the guitar.
Some tips on chord technique
To start, hold your chord hand out in front of you and pretend you’re holding an apple or a baseball. This is the best position. Then place your thumb behind the neck and play the guitar chord.
Keep your wrist straight. Because if your wrist twists too much forward, your hand can easily hurt. If you twist too far back, you won’t be able to reach the strings to form chords.
Things to keep in mind when learning to play the guitar
Learning to play the guitar is a process that requires perseverance and effort. To be able to play the piano fluently, you need to keep in mind a few things:
– Choose the right guitar: This is the first important step when starting to learn the guitar. You should choose the type of guitar that suits your interests and level. If you are a beginner, you should choose an acoustic or classical guitar.
– Learn basic techniques: Before learning songs, you need to learn basic techniques such as holding the guitar, playing chords, and strumming. These techniques can be found in books, instructional videos, or from guitar teachers.
– Practice regularly: To play the guitar well, you need to practice regularly. You should spend at least 30 minutes a day practicing.
– Seek help from a teacher: If you have difficulty learning, you should seek help from a guitar teacher. The teacher will help you correct your mistakes and guide you to study properly.
Epilogue
So you have learned the basics of playing the guitar for beginners above. If you want to play well and skillfully, you need a lot of practice time to become proficient.