Part I: The Basics (15 minutes)
The basics were covered in detail during the SML course. In fact, these fundamentals of guitar playing can be found at many free guitar learning websites. Here, I have provided a few links for each item for further reading.
a) types of guitar (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Guitar)
Although I have put a link to an article on Wikipedia, I do not recommend reading too much into it. While it is good to know the types of guitar, parts of a guitar etc, you might be too confused after a lot of heavy reading to even want to play anymore. Just as how you don’t need to know everything about a car to drive it, you really don’t need to know every little detail about the guitar to play it!
b) hand position (http://www.cyberfret.com/first-fret/left-hand-position/index.php) and sitting position (http://www.learnplayguitar.net/positions/sitting.html)
c) tuning
Use an electronic tuner for now. There are other ways to tune a guitar but you can do without them for now.
d) using fingers (http://www.guitarforbeginners.com/fingerpick.html) vs using picks (http://www.cyberfret.com/first-fret/using-a-pick/index.php)
Strumming and plucking/fingerpicking (covered more later in the course) can be done using a pick or using your fingers. For now, you may either strum with your thumb, thumb + index finger or with a pick.
Part II: Fitness (10 minutes)
We will practise a simple exercise. (Listen)
This diagram is called tablature, or tab, for short. The 6 horizontal lines represent the 6 guitar strings, from the thinnest string on the top, to the thickest strings at the bottom. It is as if you are holding the guitar horizontally upside-down facing yourself.
The numbers represent the frets you need to hold. If the number 1 appears on the 1st string (top), you press down the 1st fret on the guitar with your left hand, and play the thinnest string on the guitar with your right hand.
For this exercise, always hold the 1st fret with your 1st finger (index finger), the 2nd fret with your 2nd finger (middle finger), 3rd fret with your 3rd finger (ring finger) and 4th fret with your 4th finger (little finger/pinky)
Part III: Chords (10 minutes)
We will use some new chords, or rather new variants of chords you already know, namely, the G, D, C and Em chords. Different ways of holding a the same chord are called voicings. As you grow as a guitarist, you will learn as many as 10 different ways to hold a G chord!
These diagrams correspond to your guitar fretboard if let your guitar stand vertically upright facing yourself. The 6 vertical lines correspond to the six guitar strings, and the spaces between the horizontal lines correspond to frets. To hold the G chord, put your first finger (index) over the 3rd fret, 6th string (thickest). The X over the 5th string tells you not to play it, i.e. to mute it. Hence, you position your 1st finger to lightly touch the 5th string as well to block the sound. The O over the 4th and 3rd string means in this chord, the strings are played openly, i.e. you don’t have to fret them. Lastly, put your 3rd and 4th fingers on the 2nd and 1st strings respectively, on the 3rd fret.
Notice that these chord diagrams do not tell you which fingers to use for fretting any particular string. You usually choose the most comfortable positioning of fingers.
Part IV: Rhythm & Dynamics (15 minutes)
Exercise 1(Listen)
In the diagram above, you will notice that the chords are shown in different ways from the chord diagrams you have seen earlier. The top half of the diagram (5 horizontal lines) shows the chords in standard musical notation. If you do not know musical theory, you can ignore this. The bottom half of the diagram (6 horizontal lines) shows the chords in tablature or in short, tab. Now this is important for all guitarists to know.
Now, compare the chord diagrams to the corresponding chords in the tab. Can you figure out how to read chords on the tab?
We will first strum each chord down twice, using the progression shown above. Then, we will try making the 2nd strum of each chord heavier than the 1st.
When you are strumming, do take note:
1. You should not hear any unpleasant buzzing that happens because you are not holding the chords correctly with your left hands
2. The chords are quite similar, and mostly differ in terms of the bass notes, so make sure when you strum with your right hand you attack the bass notes harder.
Exercise 2(Listen)
Here, we will strum each chord down 4x, using the progression shown above. Then, we will try making the 3rd strum of each chord heavier than all the rest.
Homework
Practise exercises 1 & 2 regularly.
