Guitar Lessons - Reading Tabs

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Intro

You will need to know how to read music if you want to play music that other people have written or if you want to write your own music. There are two types of music you can learn, tablature or notation. GLI will have examples that have both types but you should know how to read both of them.

The downfall to tab is that guitarists don’t get to see chord shapes like they would in regular notation music (the black dots). Also, since only guitar and bass players use tabs it is hard for a guitar player that has only used tabs to communicate with someone like a piano or horn player that uses notation.

Reading TAB

The good thing about tablature is that it is really easy to read. There are six lines, one for each string and there are numbers placed on the lines to show which frets to push down to play the piece at hand. The bottom line represents the lowest string on the guitar. The top line represents the highest string. If the numbers are on the bottom string it means the note is played on the lowest string of the guitar. When the numbers are stacked on top of each other it means to play a chord. Sometimes you will see that there are X’s stacked on top of each other instead of numbers, this means to mute the strings so that the notes do not sound and then strum them.

Time Signatures

Music can be divided up into small sections called measures. The examples in GLI will have measure numbers above the examples in red lettering. Measures are a way to organize music and show time signature. Each measure contains a certain amount of beats according to the time signature. Knowing what time signature we are in will help us to play the music at hand.

Time signature tells us how many notes we can fit into a measure before we have to start another one. If we didn’t have measures and time signature musicians would have a hard time playing together without getting lost in the music. Time signature gives us a predictable route within the music. Tab doesn’t have a real way of showing the time signature that the music is in, but in GLI there will be notation examples along with the tab so you can peer at the notation to see the time signature. Time sigs are shown as a fraction, like 4/4. This is the most common type of time signature. The number on top shows how many notes are in a measure and the number on the bottom will show how long those notes are. In the case of 4/4 there are 4 quarter notes in each measure. You will not have to know a lot of time signatures for now. Just stick with 4/4 until later.

In tab there are a lot of different symbols to know. Aside from lines and numbers there may be slanted lines between two numbers, this means to slide your finger on the fret board between frets instead of just fretting the next note. You can slide down and up depending on what the arrangement of notes is. There are also curved lines between notes that mean to play two notes but only pick the first one, this is called slurring, or hammer ons and pull offs.

At first this should feel like a ton of information. There are still a lot of different symbols, these will get you started on playing though. Like any new hobby or skill you learn, everything you read at first will seem very confusing and complicated.

Good luck!

For more Free Electric Guitar Lessons, please visit our site for Free Guitar Lessons
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David Coates has been playing guitar his whole life, and is presently a team member of a Free Guitar Lessons site. The site features free tools, lessons and resources for guitarists of all ages and stages. So if you are interested in learning to play guitar there will be an enormous variety of tip, tools and tutorials for you.

Learn Acoustic Guitar - The 13 Most Important Open Chords Explained

Learn Acoustic Guitar - The 13 Most Important Open Chords Explained
By Dave Long

Open chords are one of the first things you learn on acoustic guitar.

The open chords consist of most of the very basic chords used in music, and while not every style makes as much use of them, it is still an important fundamental even to those kinds of music.

What differentiates the open chords from other chords is the use of the open strings within the chord shapes. This feature gives a little more play to some of the chords by allowing the guitarist to fret and unfret strings to form the sustained versions of several chords (chords where the third is replaced by a major second or perfect fourth).

Using sustained chords in the middle of progressions can make bars that really are just one basic chord sound much more interesting than just strumming the chord for the entire time. A very good example of this is the Dsus4,D,Dsus2,D chord riff in the chorus lead in of The Beatles ‘You’ve got to hide your love away”.

E and Em Chords

E: 0-2-2-1-0-0
Em: 0-2-2-0-0-0

The above are the notes of the E and Em open chords. The two chords are fairly easy to switch between, only requiring the lifting of the index finger. However, swapping between the major and minor versions of a chord is a pretty infrequent chord change, but it does make learning both the chords fairly easy.

A, Am, and Asus2 Chords
A: X-0-2-2-2-0 or X-0-2-2-2-X

The open A chord has two common ways it is held.

The first shows a variant that leaves the open high e string in the chord, while the second has the first four strings barred (which means that high e is not played in the second version).

Someone having difficulty holding the first chord shape may want to use the second version instead, since the first can be somewhat difficult to hold without bumping into the open A and open high e strings. The second version also can be much easier to get into and out of in some progressions (particularly ones using moveable bar chords), and may be a better choice even for guitarists who can hold the first fingering of the chord.

Am: X-0-2-2-1-0
Asus2: X-0-2-2-0-0
The above shows the Am chord, as well as the Asus2 chord. The Asus2 chord can be moved into by lifting the third finger in the first version of the A chord or by lifting the index finger on the Am chord. It can be used to add a little more interest to progressions using either the A or Am chord.

D, Dm, Dsus2, and Dsus4 Chords

D: X-X-0-2-3-2
Dm: X-X-0-2-3-1
The D and Dm chords do seem very similar, but due to the position on the neck, the fingering is slightly different for the two. It is one of the easier chords to learn because it does not really require the same amount of strength or dexterity to hold as some of the other chords.

Dsus2: X-X-0-2-3-0
Dsus4: X-X-0-2-3-3
D and Dm are probably the two nicest open chords for swapping to the sustained versions of the chords. Despite the different fingering, both work pretty much exactly the same for these chord shifts. To reach Dsus4, both chords simply require placing the pinky onto the fretboard. Dsus2 is reached by lifting the finger on the high e string to let the open string ring. There are quite a number of songs based fairly heavily around these types of switches because they sound good and are quite easy to perform.

C, C7M, and Cadd9 Chords

C: X-3-2-0-1-0

C can be a bit awkward at first, but it is still a good chord to get down well.
C7M: X-3-2-0-0-0
Cadd9: X-3-2-0-3-0
C has a few easy variants to move in and out of without too much effort. The index finger is just lifted off the B string. The Cadd9 variant is not quite as easy to do as Dsus4, but can sound quite nice in some progressions. For that variant, the pinky is brought on the B string to fret the third fret.

G Chord
G: 3-2-0-0-0-3 or 3-2-0-0-3-3

G is a useful chord for many songs, but there is not really all that much play to it besides the basic chord. There are two variants, but most guitarists just pick one. The second variant does have the advantage of being easily shifted into Cadd9, but that is about it (X-3-2-0-3-3 is also a valid way to hold Cadd9).

Learn more free acoustic guitar tips: Learn Acoustic Guitar

Dave Long is the owner of http://www.LearningAcousticGuitar.net where he provides acoustic guitar tips and advice.

Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Dave_Long
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Jazz Up Your Blues Guitar

 This series will show you a few ways of adding a little jazz flavour to your blues playing. Starting with this lesson on 9th chords. Taught by Justin Sandercoe. Support notes at www.justinguitar.com

Free Online Acoustic Guitar Lessons For The Beginner…

Looking for free online acoustic guitar lessons? What beginner isn’t?

There is certainly no shortage of free lessons online, but many of the lessons you will find are not of the best quality.

I came across a real gem on YouTube today. Chances are you are already familiar with this guy. If not, I highly recommend you stop what you are doing and check out the following free video lessons below.

The following acoustic guitar lessons are from a gentleman by the name of Justin Sandercoe. Justin is a very talented London based guitarist, songwriter, performer, producer and educator.

You can listen to some of his original music over at his myspace page. He is currently in the process of recording his first solo record which features vocal songs as well as instrumental guitar pieces.

I have learned a great deal by watching Justin’s videos and I know you will as well.

Enjoy the free online acoustic guitar lessons below and be sure to also check out Justin’s website here.

10 Free Acoustic Guitar Lessons That Will Bring Out the Creative Guitar Player In You

If you are a beginner in search of free online acoustic guitar lessons, then you are sure to learn a lot from the lessons below. Below are 10  free acoustic guitar lessons from the folks who created Next Level Guitar.

What is Next Level Guitar?

Next Level Guitar is one of the best guitar courses available online today.

It contains Over 100 individual videos starting with Guitar chords and progressing to playing full songs.

Next Level Guitar does not use old tired methods that will leave you frustrated. You will learn the fundamentals of guitar playing that will build a solid foundation and enable you to progress faster. You will learn rock solid principles and techniques and how to avoid developing bad habits.

Next Level Guitar includes methods that are often overlooked in other programs, like – STRUCTURE – so you know exactly what to practice. Included are easy to follow practice routines to ensure you are practicing the right things and not wasting your time. Next Level Guitar uses popular songs as vehicles to learn strumming, new chords, rhythm, timing, and chord changing.

So practice is no longer like practice, but rather a fun and enjoyable way to learn guitar. This teaching methodology has helped hundreds and hundreds of guitar players all over the world. These methods work. They are fun and will have you playing the guitar fast!

I really like the teaching style of the folks over at Next Level Guitar and I know you will as well.

Click here now to learn more about Next Level Guitar!

Now onto some awesome beginner acoustic guitar lessons:

Online Acoustic Guitar Lesson 1 - Beginner Guitar Lesson on Percussive Chucking

Online Acoustic Guitar Lesson 2 - Learn a New Acoustic Guitar Strum Pattern

Online Acoustic Guitar Lesson 3 - Another New Acoustic Guitar Strum Pattern

Online Acoustic Guitar Lesson 4 - Learn About Timing & Rhythm and How To Use A Metronome

Online Acoustic Guitar Lesson 5 - Tips To Help Choose The Best Acoustic Guitar

Online Acoustic Guitar Lesson 6 - Another Cool Strum Pattern

Acoustic Guitar Lesson 7 - Learn All About Octaves

Acoustic Guitar Lesson 8 - Learn About Hammer-On’s

Acoustic Guitar Lesson 9 - Learn How To Write Your Own Songs

Acoustic Guitar Lesson 10 - Learn How To Write Your Own Songs Part 2

Guitar Lesson: Help Yourself To Practice - By Peter Edvinsson

By Peter Edvinsson

What can you do to make it easy for yourself to practice on your guitar? In order to continue to learn to play guitar and not give up you have to create an atmosphere of joy and fun around this activity. Let’s see what you can do to make it as easy as possible to play guitar.

As a you boy I had a lot of interests at the same time. Reading, sporting, playing piano, playing chess, a lot of more things and, of course, playing guitar.

I developed a habit to always have my guitar laying on my bed. Always as I walked into my room my guitar was laying there waiting for me. It was very easy to sit down on my bed starting to play because of two facts:

1. I could see the guitar as I walked into my room which immediately reminded me of how fun it is to play.

2. The guitar was easily accessible. The only thing I had to do in order to play the guitar was to grab it and start playing.

This made it possible for me to play a lot on my guitar in spite of all other activities. All other things I did was interwoven with my guitar playing and my musical experiences connected with it.

This way of working with my guitar was not a conscious plan to maintain energy and motivation to practice. It just happened to be that way. These moments with my guitar became a part of my personal development.

When I sat there playing guitar I also had time to digest life as it proceeded. It way a form of meditation because as I played on my guitar I allowed my mind at times to wander and I remember that some important decisions in life were made as I sat there playing.

Enough talk about myself! What can you learn from my experiences?

Let’s apply my experiences to the art of learning to play guitar and see if we can find principles that are applicable to all guitar players.

Here are some thoughts and suggestions:

1. See to it that you have your guitar as accessible as you dare to. It will be a reminder for you that playing guitar is fun. I have sometimes reminded my guitar students to pull out the guitar from the hard case or gigbag as soon as they come home from the lesson and start to play something connected with their homework. Otherwise there is an imminent risk that they will not open the case until the next lesson is at hand.

This is how humans often react. If it is a little effort involved in starting to do something we want to do there is a risk that we will procrastinate the activity until it is too late.

2. If you have set goals or have homework to do on your guitar I recommend that you also have these sheets or written down goals handy. No use to have goals if you are not reminded of them on a daily basis.

To facilitate all things that can be facilitated is one way to accomplish more of the important things in life including playing guitar.

Peter Edvinsson invites you to download your free sheet music, guitar tabs, ebooks, music lessons and read his music blog at http://www.capotastomusic.com

Guitar Lesson: Fretboard Education - By Peter Edvinsson

By Peter Edvinsson

Do you really know the name of the notes on your guitar fretboard? You can learn the notes well and in a short time if you put a little energy into the project!

It will really help you as a guitarist if you know the names of the notes on your guitar. Let’s see some of the benefits you reap from learning to know your guitar:

1. It will be much easier to learn to play sheet music notation as you already know where to find the notes on your guitar. The only remaining task is to learn the names of the notes on the sheet music staff.

2. You will find it much easier to understand chords and remember chords as you easily can see where to put your fingers to play the required notes.

3. It will be easier for you to understand guitar lessons on the net or in guitar instructional books as you understand an important part of the language used in guitar instruction.

We will start with something you can learn as your first task if don’t already know this. It is to know the names of the notes on the open strings of your guitar. An open string is a string not pressed down by a left hand finger.

The first string with the highest pitch on your guitar is normally tuned to an E. If you press down the twelfth fret you will find an E one octave higher. I will now give you the names of the open strings beginning with the first string:

E B G D A E

You can practice the names of the strings by playing the strings from the sixt string down to the first and back at the same time saying the names of the strings aloud or in your mind.

An easy and effective exercise to use to learn the notes on the fretboard is to concentrate on one note at a time trying to find the note on all the strings beginning with the sixth string.

Let’s start with the note E. On the sixth string you will find it on the open string. Can you spot the E on the next string? This exercise will also help you develop your ear.

Listen to the E on the sixth string and press down a finger on the fifth string and slide it until you will find an E on this string. As this is not a test but an article I will tell you that you will find an E on fret 7.

On string four you will find an E on fret 2. On string three it’s on fret 8. On string 2 on fret 5 and on string one on the open string.

Now you can practice the E notes by playing one string at a time from the sixth string down to the first and back again until you can do it automatically.

Do the same with the note G for example trying to find the right fret by listening. On the sixth string you will fing G on fret three. Of course the notes will be found in different octaves and this will be a great exercise to hear the notes and recognize them by listening.

There are many more exercises you can use to learn the notes on the fretboard. The message is that you will learn the notes on the guitar fretboard in a short time if you make a conscious effort to learn them.

Peter Edvinsson invites you to download your free sheet music, guitar tabs, ebooks, music lessons and read his music blog at http://www.capotastomusic.com