A question for guitar players


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justme27 is offline justme27 Post #11  January 21,2010, 10:31pm
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Thanks to all you wonderful guitarist who replied! After reading your posts I'm even more confident that I can learn guitar. Something I just realized is that I have to develop three things--please tell me if I'm wrong:
1) finger strength.
2) Callouses on fingers
3) Not palm the guitar neck, in other words support my playing fingers with my thumb to get a better reach of the strings.

I was unfortunately unable to get into the beginner class of Guitar at my school. However, I'm moving forward with teaching myself guitar. I'm learning primarily by starting off with Grunge Rock, which is quite elegant, and than moving up to Classic Rock, which is quite challenging. So far I can almost play one song!

Here is a question I have for you musicians. As I indicated before I played clarinet for several years, I believe it was ten. So I know how to read music. However, I have a friend who can play anything--Metallica, Eagles...etc. But the problem he has is that he cannot in anyway write music.

Do any of you know why that is, that he cannot write music? To me it's almost like when you learn a new language you can understand the words someone tells you but you fail to think up the words to say in response. There is a term in verbal psychology for it, but I cannot remember why it is. So does anyone know how I can avoid this trap? Thanks to anyone who can respond.
 
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Well_Spoken_Man1 is offline Well_Spoken_Man1 Post #12  January 22,2010, 9:32pm
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My Top Five.... not necessarily in this order, and there should
top twenty, cause I'm leavin to many out.
1. Leo Kotke

2. Chet Atkins

3. Stevie Ray Vaughn

4. Jimmy Page

5. Steve Vai

A few amazing guitar songs.....

Riviera Paradise- Stevie Ray Vaughn
Local Hero-Mark Knopfler (Dire Straits)
Stairway To Heaven-Rodrigo y Gabriella (no,not led zep)
Since I Been Lovin you-Led Zeppelin (you tube those)
 
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justme27 is offline justme27 Post #13  January 30,2010, 3:12pm
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I just had the chance to play my first electric guitar tonight and man was it awesome. The guitar was nothing special, neither was the amp. I just felt I had so much more control over the music and the guitar with the electric. In my humble opinion a nylon six string is tougher to play than an electric guitar.

The nylon six string I have has a very thick neck and the strings are very close together. The electric guitar was a much thinner neck and the strings were further apart.

On another note, I saw Tom Morello play the solo of Bulls on Parade. I always thought that section was mixed with some DJ device, but no he does the whole song on guitar.

YouTube - Bulls On Parade - Rage Against The Machine

It is awe inspiring for the creativity and the amount of equipment required to supplement the guitar to make those sounds.
 
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glengac is offline glengac Post #14  February 9,2010, 12:32pm
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I'll add one thing to this discussion that I don't think has been mentioned. Make sure your guitar's action is set up properly. An improperly set up guitar has frustrated many beginning guitarists because it can be very difficult to play and it is virtually impossible to get a good sound. The internet is full of very useful how-to guides on acoustic guitar set up leading you through adjusting the neck curvature, saddle height, and nut slots. It's not difficult and will be time well spent.

Oh, and if you bought it new from a music store don't assume the action is set correctly. Most are not.

Hope that helps

glengac
 
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727 is offline 727 Post #15  February 10,2010, 4:23pm
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hi i also play guitar self taught. i am a female and if you don't have long skinny fingers you'll always hit other strings. the acoustic is the best sounding without plugging in.
 
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That_Guy is offline That_Guy Post #16  February 12,2010, 5:07pm
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When you really look at them, there are very few differences between steel and nyon (cat-gut). The tuning pegs on the head are not perpendicular but in a cutout. I would never string a nylon with steel, or vice versa. Nylon strings are a heavier gauge. Also, from what I remember they (nylons) span maybe 1.5 octaves at the most. It's very hard to reach beyond the 14th fret or so on most I've played, and really, that's IT. All other construction is essentially the same. The necks may be fatter to allow for the string thickness, I don't remember. It's not a big deal though. The best thing by far (to me) is you can play the holy *&%# out of it as hard as you can and it will stay in tune. They are simply amazing like that. Typically these are used in classical performances as they are more comfortable to finger pick (using long fingernails as per the style) and you are typically playing apreggiated (sp?) chords.. and that's just what they are made for. They also stress the funky traditional stance too, where you support the guitar on your left leg which is propped up. I already knew how to play when I took the class in HS, so I don't know if it's any easier to learn on. I doubt it. I learned on an acoustic and later an electric.. a Fender which I still have.

String spacing will vary by maker and things like string tension depends on the length from nut to bridge (the scale). This is why electrics like Les Pauls and Gibson SG's feel 'easier' or 'slinkier' to play than, say, a Fender.. they have a shorter neck and thus a lower tension needed to produce the same note.. something you might be interested in if strength is an issue. They are also great for small hands with limited reach since the frets are spaced closer. While I'm on the subject of construction, nothing beats the warmth of an acoustic except a 12 string acoustic, and all purchases should be made wisely. Bring mirrors, straight edge, flashlight.. Know what you are looking at or bring somebody that really does if you are spending more than 100 bucks and intend on keeping it for life - which I highly reccommend.

Fretting sloppy chords will simply get better and you can't avoid the callouses. I've set my guitars down for months at a time (which I'd never reccommend to a beginner) and they are back very quickly. A guitarist can always be spotted by their fingertips alone. Once you get the muscle memory you will be able to snap to and from any chord easily. Same with something I skimmed about not palming the neck. I do that all the time, depending on what I'm playing. I use my thumb to fret the low E sometimes. When you are standing, it's kinda hard to keep your thumb on the back of the neck, so my advice here is to play however the hell you wanna! Comfort is key. A blues guitarist named Jeff Healey is blind and plays with the guitar face up on his lap, plaing with his hands entirely over the guitar because that's just how he naturally started playing it and you'd never know it if you didn't see it.

Get yourself a gripmaster hand excerciser. Heavy for strength (you'll need it for that 12 string), light for speed training. Medium is obviously a blend.

When I learned to play I was still in Jr. High, so I could easily play 4-6 hours a day, every day. And I did. It was probably 3-4 years of that before I felt comfortable with it. I remember reading somewhere that things like this take on average about 10,000 hours of practice to be really good.

Tom Morrello employes a variety of effects. He often uses a full on effects processor and has always tried to push the envelope and show people that you don't need to sample. He uses that along with things like octave pedals and allen wrenches. Not nearly as difficult as something like a talk box though. =)

Go to the music store and buy some album tablature for something you think you can play. You mentioned grunge, get Nevermind. SLTS can be learned in a matter of minutes. Playing along with the record helps with your timing as well. Tabs are very easy to follow when they are done right. Internet tab is horrible, and usually at least 50% wrong. Pay for it, along with a scales and chord book.

Writing.. well. Is simply not for everyone. I'm not alone in believing that everyone has one good song in them though.

Wow, that was a long post.
Last edited by That_Guy; February 12,2010 at 5:12pm.
 
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justme27 is offline justme27 Post #17  February 13,2010, 7:52pm
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Thanks for the reply That_Guy. Man, you definitely know what you are talking about. I'm saving up for a Les Paul at the moment. I figure by the time I have the money to buy one, I will be able to play it properly. I rely on the advice of the guys at the Guitar Center and they are real friendly with me--especially since I make sure to buy something every time I ask for advice. My nylon six string is not very good though. It has a special place in my heart because I bought it while I was living in London. However, the guys and gals at the guitar center recommend a steel string Yamaha acoustic as an affordable guitar to buy when I'm read for steal string.

I do disagree with you though, I do believe electric is easier to play than acoustic. I play my nephews electric and I get the chords perfectly, but with my nylon it's tough because you really have to get the finger spacing correct to or you won't get a good sound. I'm not an expert, like yourself, but just as a beginner I find that electric is more my style.

Man, you are too freakin' cool! Thank you for responding. You answered a lot of my questions. I do believe I have one good song in me and I'm just working on writing it out. Great recommendation for the tablature, grunge is relatively easy to play. I will definitely by the Nirvana tab. Thanks again!
 
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justme27 is offline justme27 Post #18  February 13,2010, 8:20pm
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Oh that guy, something that I am learning right now is that strumming patterns make a song what it is in many cases!
 
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That_Guy is offline That_Guy Post #19  February 18,2010, 4:57pm
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haha! Very true. A funny example is a particular Hole song (forget which) that has the exact same chord progression as a Nirvana song. Imagine that.

Some of my personal favorite songs to play are nothing more than standard, basic chords. Songs like Wish You Were Here by Pink Floyd.. Just simple elegance. I can actually sing while I play that one, which is my weak point.

I really hope you stick with it. I decided to buckle down over 15 years ago now and I can't imagine my life without it. Even today my playing is most often just for me.
 
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justme27 is offline justme27 Post #20  February 21,2010, 1:35pm
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That_Guy wrote :
haha! Very true. A funny example is a particular Hole song (forget which) that has the exact same chord progression as a Nirvana song. Imagine that.

Some of my personal favorite songs to play are nothing more than standard, basic chords. Songs like Wish You Were Here by Pink Floyd.. Just simple elegance. I can actually sing while I play that one, which is my weak point.

I really hope you stick with it. I decided to buckle down over 15 years ago now and I can't imagine my life without it. Even today my playing is most often just for me.
Hey That_Guy, I'm going to write something blasphemous so please do not get offended. The problem I have with Pink Floyd, is that I feel like almost every song they ever wrote there is something missing. Don't get me wrong it's brilliant stuff, but every song I listen to I feel like there is a guitar missing if that makes sense. This is not the case with bands like the Eagles or Led Zeppelin or the Beatles. There is just something missing in their sound and I'm not certain what it is yet.

In the case of Wish You Were Here, I want more lyrics and a fuller solo. Don't get me wrong I love this song but still I think they could have done better for their level of talent. I feel like we are getting the rough drafts of the real song, if that makes any sense.
 
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