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Question: I just can't seem to play the guitar!. At all!?
I have a couple of acoustic guitars at home!. My dad plays, but is too busy to teach me!. I try to learn it myself, so I print out tabs of song I want to play!. I have my chords poster in front of me!. I try to play it, then I can't play it!
The chords are too hard (I find myself stretching my fingers in weird positions) and my sounds come out really muffled!. I can pick, but it's a really slow process for me and I can't get it right sometimes!
It's so frustrating because my girlfriend can play the guitar so well and I just want to play with her sometimes!.Www@QuestionHome@Com
Best Answer - Chosen by Asker:
There is no easy way to learn guitar!.
Chord fingerings are really hard because you're not used to stretching your fingers into those positions!. Until you develop callouses on your fretting fingers, its going to hurt like hell to press the strings down!. If you don't press the strings down hard enough, your sounds are going to come out muffled!. Picking requires careful coordination of your picking hand with your fretting hand and that doesn't come overnight either!.
The only solution to all this is PRACTICE, PRACTICE and more PRACTICE!.
You need to develop muscle memory in your hands, so that all you have to do is think "G chord" or whatever, and your fretting hand fingers automatically know exactly where to go without you having to think about it, and so that all you have to do is think of the picking pattern you want and your picking hand fingers automatically know where to find the correct strings in the correct order without you having to think about each finger movement or look at your picking hand!.
How do you develop this muscle memory!? You guessed it -- PRACTICE!. There are no shortcuts or substitutes!. Www@QuestionHome@Com
The chords are definetly not too hard, you just need to practice!. You need to practice the right things everyday for at least 20 minutes, not just every few days!. Forget the tabs, just try and learn the basic chords and shapes to start!. Practice holding them, then slowly switching them!. Gradually build speed!. After a couple months of practice and patience you will switch chords quickly and perfectly withoutout much thought!. You will strum and consistently hit the right strings!. JUST BE PATIENT AND PRACTICE!!!! It will happen in no time and you will feel great!. Here is a great site with lessons (its free) that teach you the chords and other techniques and ways to practice them!. Remember, be patient, its fun and not supposed to be so frustrating!.
http://guitar!.about!.com/library/blguitar!.!.!.Www@QuestionHome@Com
Try watching some YouTube videos on how to play the guitar!. look for songs that you're familiar with so that you know the melody of the song and it comes more naturally to you!. Don't give up! The guitar is one of the easiest things to learn!. Once you get the hang of the fingering!. Www@QuestionHome@Com
I believe you need to have aa teacher at least for the first 3 or 4 years!. After learning the basics, and the proper approach you may be able to continue on your own!. However, most of the greatest Guitarists were self instructed, but it would make the life much easier for you if you start with a teacher!. One of my friends is a Guitar teacher and started to learn it by 6 - 10 hrs a day and after less than 2 years he was teaching!. But the fact was that for his first 3 years he had a teacher and still he attends the master classes of famous Guitarists!.
Another lesson that I have learned from practicing music (I play piano myself" is that BE PERSISTENT!. If you are, weather or not having a musical talent you will achieve what you want, if not even you have talent, you won't progress!. Just as an exampleyouu may notice the below:
Eric Clapton: " !.!.!.Clapton received an acoustic Spanish Hoya guitar for his 13th birthday, but found learning the instrument very difficult and nearly gave up!. Despite his frustrations, he was influenced by the blues from an early age and practiced long hours to learn chords and copy the music of blues artists that he listened to on his Grundig Cub tape recorder!.!.!."
Good luck!.Www@QuestionHome@Com