It is very difficult to find anything of value for free. The old saying, “There is no such thing as a free lunch” is quite true. Unfortunately in today’s marketplace, whether online or on Main Street, the word free is usually an enticement that means you are going to have to somehow spend money to get whatever it is that is advertised as free. This is not a bad thing, just a basic marketing technique.There are many online guitar courses available today, some of them are very good, and there are some that not so good. I have found that most of the better online programs do offer free lessons to introduce you to the course in hopes that you will, after trying out their free guitar lessons, buy the course. The free guitar lessons are usually quite basic and contain just enough information to whet your appetite and introduce you to the training methods that will be used in the paid version of the course. Supplying an option for an introductory free guitar course or lessons is a pretty good incentive and will probably entice the serious consumer who is on the fence about which course or program to buy. I know this because I recently purchased an online program that offered free guitar lessons, and that played a part in my decision.As I mentioned earlier, I found three very good programs online, and each one offered free guitar lessons. Although all three programs were top notch, I considered each of these courses unique because they each had different formats as far as the delivery of instruction was concerned. The first program, which is actually the one that I purchased, is called Jamorama and is a downloadable course that includes instructional e-books and videos. It is very affordable, quite well done and the best course of this type that I have seen. It was a great choice and has been a great program for my daughter.The other two courses were similar in many respects. They are both, in my opinion, aimed at the more serious guitar players that realize that learning guitar is a lifelong pursuit.One program offers 24 free guitar lessons with no other commitment required. This program is called Guitar Tricks and it is a membership site offering very good instruction by many accomplished guitar instructors. Their content and lessons are fresh and updated almost daily. They charge a small monthly fee for a good product and you can cancel at anytime.Learn and Master Guitar is the third program and is definitely not for the casual guitar player. This is an award winning program that is well organized and covers all aspects of guitar instruction. The course is physically huge. You will receive a complete lesson book, up to 20 instructional “session” DVDs, and 5 play along CDs, and there is also more material available online. They have a member forum, very good support and a can be contacted easily by telephone. Their staff is courteous and knowledgeable.Perhaps you are just looking for free guitar lessons, or you already have some experience and want seriously improve your guitar playing. Whatever your reasons, one of these programs will definitely fit your needs and budget.
My main objective in writing, is to cover topics of personal interests and to share any knowledge that may be helpful.
all-inclusive cruises
There are many people who wish to learn guitar but because of lack of time or because of financial constraints are unable to fulfill their wish. In addition there are some people who get opportunity to take out their precious time to learn guitar but because of poor quality of learning provided by incapable guitarists are unable to acquire expertise.
If you also want to learn guitar and if you want to acquire expertise in it that too without paying a single penny then Youguitarist is the website you must opt for. The main purpose of founding Youguitarist was to enable guitar learners get the free guitar lessons to help them play guitar in the best manner. In order to help learners know what it takes to start playing guitar and what are the techniques and tips to be followed to learn guitar easily in no time, it offers best guitar lessons for beginners.
With the help of these guitar lessons for beginners, the beginners can not only know about the starting tips for playing guitar rather they also learn guitar licks and guitar scales from the top in the industry. So if you also want to learn guitar and if you want to get free guitar lessons, then there is no better option than Youguitarist. If you want to know more about the wonderful features of this website, then it is best to have a look on some of its extraordinary features. Some of the most important features of Youguitarist are as under:
1. Offers free guitar video lessons: the first and the most important feature of Youguitarist is that it offers free guitar video lessons to help guitar learners learn how to play guitar in the best manner. With the help of these free guitar lessons, you can not only know how to play guitar easily in no time but you can also make yourself perfect in this field.
2. Offers updated videos on weekly basis: The second most important feature of Youguitarist is that it offers updated videos with free guitar lessons for beginners on regular basis. By signing up with this site you can get weekly updates with more videos and training courses.
3. Offers best selection of various guitar courses: The third most important feature of Youguitarist is that it offers the best collection of guitar courses to choose from. With such good collection of guitar courses at one place, it really becomes very easy for the learner to choose the best course that suits perfectly to his requirements.
4. Other features: There are various other important features available in Youguitarist that are not available elsewhere. For example it offers various crucial tips from guitar experts to know how to gain more proficiency in playing guitar. Also in order to help all guitar lovers come together and express their views it offers the unique option of joining Guitarists Community that too absolutely free of cost. Etc.
So for what are you waiting for? If you are a true guitar lover or if you have passion to learn guitar from experts then the most prudent option that is chosen by thousands of other guitar lovers as well is to join Youguitarist. Sign up now and feel the difference!
How to choose the right guitar teacher for you
by Justin Sours
http://www.guitarmadeez.com
Teaching yourself is not a bad idea
The journey of teaching yourself is very exciting and also very interesting and if you do choose to teach yourself, you’ll definitely appreciate the guitar more. For the most part I have taught myself. I started playing completely on my own for about 6 or 7 years, then I had felt that I had reached a plateau. Everyone recommended that I take lessons to overcome the plateau but I was very reluctant. I was extremely low on money and I didn’t have a very good feeling about the places in my area that were offering lessons.
Choosing a guitar teacher can be an extremely complicated task
So many guitar stores, music stores and general places offer lessons however the quality of the lessons definitely varies. Today, guitar lessons can be anywhere from $20-100 and up per hour which will definitely hit your pocket pretty hard. I found some places only gave 30 minute lessons for 20$-$50 which is absolutely ridiculous. 30 minutes is barely enough time to tune a guitar let alone give an eventful lesson. Also, due to contrary belief there are allot of weirdo guitar teachers out there, believe me…I know!! One of my teachers for a 30 minute lessons showed up 5 minutes late then had the nerve to ask me if he could go smoke a cigarette outside. That was the last time I had lessons with that guy…. I’ve had allot of guitar teacher horror stories and I’ve definitely learned the “hard way” in choosing guitar teachers. I now would like to share with you what I’ve learned about choosing guitar teachers and hope you won’t make the same mistakes I had made.
Always schedule a minimum of 1 hour for a guitar lesson
I’ve seen guitar lessons that are anywhere from 20 minutes to two hours, however a vast majority of guitar teachers only teach 30 minute guitar lessons…. 30 minutes is nothing! Do not be fooled into thinking you’ll get better from one 30 minute a week lessons. If you do decide to take guitar lessons, you must take a minimum of one hour in order to get better. I learned this the hard way. I scheduled to take 30 minute guitar lessons at a guitar shop near my house. I was 10 minutes early; my teacher was 5 minutes late. He then fed me the sales pitch on supplies I needed from that very shop and then kicked me out after about 20 minutes of nothing and said that he had to prepare for the next lesson. This is unacceptable! Be smart; schedule a minimum of one hour for a guitar lesson.
Beware of getting guitar lessons from a guitar shop
I’ve noticed that taking guitar lessons at a guitar shop are usually half-assed. This is not always the situation. Just be knowledgeable enough to understand the quality of lessons that you deserve.
Try to find a teacher that a friend recommends
Friends that are good at playing guitar are the perfect byproducts for good teachers. If you have a friend who’s amazing at guitar, ask him who his teacher is. If your friend sucks at guitar, know not to take guitar lessons from his teacher. It’s as easy as that.
Never take guitar lessons from a teacher who is not passionate about playing
I took guitar lessons once from a teacher who seemed to know everything in the world about the guitar, equipment, effects, theory, etc., yet he had never played anything in front of me and “let loose”. I had finally asked him to play something and it seemed pretty half assed and inhabited no “soul” to the music. I felt pretty let down. Some people may know what their talking about when it comes to guitar lessons/theory and whatnot, however find a teacher that gets excited while teaching you. Learning guitar is an adventure and your teacher must be able to excite you.
Never take guitar lessons from a teacher who doesn’t impress you while playing
This goes back to what I was talking about earlier. Would you take Spanish lessons from a person with a bad Spanish accent and who has never been to Mexico? No! Take lessons from the Spanish teacher who’s been to Mexico hundreds of times and that knows something about the culture and that most of all impresses you while teaching you. Model yourself after what impresses you and the people that impress you, not only in guitar but everyday life.
If you hear someone that is an amazing guitarist at a concert, party, bar, wherever… That should be your teacher
Many successful people model themselves after previously successful people, just as great guitarists model themselves after previous great guitarists. If you ever see someone playing and they inspire you to learn guitar, or to play like them someday, don’t be afraid to ask them where they learned or even if they could possibly teach you guitar lessons. Guitar Center, random guitar shops, bars, coffee shops and many other places are perfect for finding an amazing guitar teacher.
23 year old guitarist from AZ. Playing guitar for 10 + years
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20 easy tips that will put you on the path to being a guitar hero
By Justin Sours
http://www.guitarmadeez.com
Practice how you play
When you practice guitar chords, scales, songs, etc., make sure that you focus on quality and not quantity. The guitar sounds a lot better if all the notes in a chord ring or you hit every note in that scale with perfect timing instead of rushing through a scale or playing a chord and having some notes be muffled. Just remember to focus on playing things slow and with good technique (This is Key!). Learn whatever you are trying to learn slow and then increase the speed little by little until you get where you want to be. That’s how you guitarists learn to shred or solo extremely fast. They start playing a scale or riff slow and then gradually speed it up with a metronome.
Keep your guitar out of the closet or storage
This is probably one of the biggest mistakes that a person learning guitar could make. KEEP YOUR GUITAR OUT IN THE OPEN!!! Keep it next to your bed or in your family room on a stand or anywhere where it is out of the closet or out from under the bed. If it’s out in the open, this will force you to play it and force you to mess around and practice.
Memorize the fret board of the guitar
Memorizing the fret board of the guitar can turn out to be an interesting task. There are little tips and tricks that allow you to find notes really fast. The reason why all guitarist who would like to get good should memorize the fret board is because it allows you to play create chords in different shapes, find notes in different areas of the neck and allows the guitarist to familiarize and open up to playing in different parts of the neck. Memorization of the fret board is also very beneficial in soloing and improvising.
Jam with other people with different styles and techniques
You will not believe how much your guitar playing will improve when you jam with other people. If you ever feel like you are reaching a “plateau” (you feel like you’re not getting any better) in your playing, jamming with other people will definitely open you up to new tips and tricks. There’s always something to learn from someone else that plays guitar no matter how good or bad they are. Also, everyone’s individual style is different and the more open minded you are to other styles, the better player you will become.
Listen to new types music and try to play it
I know it’s hard, just force yourself to do it. When all else fails go back to the basics of music. A great way to do this is to listen to some classical music for inspiration. Elton John is an amazing musician and he says whenever he reaches a dull moment or block in his playing, he refers back to church hymns that he learned when he was younger.
Read guitar magazines
Guitar magazines have allot of cool stuff, but they also have allot of filler. The one thing I hate about guitar mags is that they are extremely complex (not for beginners). The articles, stories and advice are cool but some of the lessons are intense! The advanced guitar lingo having to do with intervals of certain modes and technical guitar talk gets to me sometimes. It’s nice to know that stuff but ehhhhhhh….. It can be boring.
Go to concerts
Nothings more inspiring then going to a concert and seeing someone rock out on stage and totally impress the crowd. I remember a couple of years ago; I went to Vans Warped Tour. Immediately after the show, as soon as I got home, I ran to my room and tried learning allot of the songs I had heard. When I saw The Eagles back in October of 06′, I couldn’t stop learning all their songs. It’s amazing to be extremely inspired and motivated once again about playing guitar and going to concerts definitely rejuvenates my interest in playing guitar.
Buy concert DVDs
If you’ve never seen any ACDC music video or concert DVD…. then we definitely need to talk. Angus Young is an amazing guitarist and It’s just amazing to see that this scrawny little Australian guy can play like he does and with such attitude and soul. Seeing that guy rip up the fret board definitely shows us that anyone can play guitar… all it takes is practice, discipline, motivation and commitment. Concert DVDs are great because they show you up close and in really good quality what exactly a guitarist is playing, unlike music videos where bands just dance around and they add in the music later. Concert DVDs are filled with raw footage of guitar playing at its best.
Always use your guitar strap
This is another biggie. When first learning how to play guitar, I never wore my guitar strap. I ended up paying for it later and basically having to relearn guitar standing up instead of sitting down. If you always play with your guitar strap on, there will be no difference to you while playing either sitting or standing. Playing with your guitar strap will also allow you to get to the “show-off” level so you can impress all your friends earlier.
A lot of people who use guitar straps find that they fall off very easy or tend to drop the guitar. There are many different types of locking mechanisms out there (I currently have two guitars that use the DiMarzio locking mechanism and it works very well)). Go to your local guitar shop and check all of them out and see which one fits you best.
Play with passion (slash)
Have you ever heard a guitar player who is a great player, but you feel that there is something missing…… THERE’S NO SOUL!!! Soul is the emotion, the love, the purpose behind guitar playing. Listen to that same talented yet boring guitar player and then compare him to Gun’s and Roses guitarist or Velvet Revolver guitarist Slash. Every solo that Slash plays has so much soul, so much emotion, and so much purpose. What I want you to do is Google “Slash – Godfather theme video” or get on Napster, iTunes, kazaa, etc. and download it. This video is nuts!! Slash plays with such a great amount of solo that it’s amazing. I really don’t know how to explain exactly how to add soul into your playing, however I will tell you that you will understand if you choose to stick with guitar and stay committed to the instrument. It’s basically playing to express yourself and not to just play because you have to or don’t want to but feel you should.
Watch the clips of legendary guitar scenes or solos
Here’s some instant inspiration…. Go to yahoo or Google and click on the “video” tab above the search bar and type in anything having to do with guitar solos. You will find some amazing solos along with amazing guitar tricks. One really cool guitar clip I remember is of this Asian guy playing the super Mario brothers theme for Nintendo. That guy can play that song like you wouldn’t believe. There’s so much inspiring guitar playing footage out there. It’s everywhere and anywhere you look, especially online. Also, checkout the movie with Ralph Maccio from the 1980′s called “Crossroads”… there’s some amazing guitar playing in it.
Try tabbing out songs by ear
This is extremely helpful. Tabbing songs by ear develops your musical ear very quickly. Choose one of your favorite songs and sit next to your cd player with a guitar and a piece of paper and try to figure out the chords in the song first, and then try to figure out the riffs within the chords. Once you find out the overall “key” of the song it’s easy to figure out all the riffs and chords.
Take a college music course (Beatles, history of rock and roll)
While I was at community college for two years studying to get my Associates Degree, I had taken a “History of Rock & Roll course”. This course was extremely interesting. There was so much music that this class opened my eyes up to. I gained so much more appreciation for the Beatles, Rolling Stones, The Who and many more bands of that era. Those bands really did change music forever. I definitely recommend taking a class like this anywhere you can; it will definitely open up your eyes to some great music out there and help you grow as a musician.
Read biographies of guitarists you appreciate
Some musicians out there have led incredible lives. The majority of them come from nothing and in the end, become legendary guitar gods. Look at Johnny Cash; he was a rural country boy that grew up almost penniless and turned into an amazing musician through inspiration and practice. There are so many interesting stories behind bands and musicians. Here’s some that I find interesting (off the top of my head): The Beach Boys, Def Leppard, Metallica, Van Halen, The Beatles and Thin Lizzy. Do some research online and try to mirror yourself with these artists. It will give you a whole new thought process to playing their songs and guitar in general.
“Steal” riffs and ideas from other guitarists
I know it sounds bad but every great guitarist does it. Clapton stole the “crossroad blues” from Robert Johnson and the Beatles used some of Elvis’ ideas and expanded upon them. Every musical generation steals ideas, riffs, chord progressions from the generation before and when it comes to music… its ok. I find this to help guitar players progress a lot, especially if you reach a plateau. One of the biggest things that helped me expand as a guitarist is to learn all my favorite solos by my favorite artists. Once I had learned them, I would play the same solo over different progressions in the same key and then play the same solos in different keys all around the neck and in different scale positions. Once I did this, I had “unlocked” all of the licks in the solo and I’m now able to use them in whatever I play. Just like how in video games you unlock new characters, levels and secrets throughout the game… you do the same in music. From there you can constantly expand upon your lick directory.
Play in front of others
This is one of the hardest parts about performing music. Playing in front of others is something that just takes time. Remember to relax and don’t think about everyone watching you. Just focus on you and the instrument. The more you play in front of others, the better you will get. Everyone’s first time playing in front of others can be pretty gut wrenching. Just remember that it gets easier every time and that you’ll get through it just fine. What you can also do is videotape yourself playing and then put it on the internet. Lots of people including myself put videos on Youtube.com or other online video sites and its up to the viewers to judge. Some people will rip your playing apart but most will applaud you for trying and really like it. The way I look at it… “Led Zeppelin didn’t write songs that everyone liked… they left that to the Bee Gees” – Wayne Campbell (Wayne’s World)
“What if I screw up”? Who cares?! In music, everyone screws up while playing music. When big bands record in studios they spend days, sometimes even weeks recording tracks so that they turn out absolutely perfect. What really creative people do when they screw up is to elaborate on the screw up. If you hit a wrong note, maybe trying hitting the note again within the rhythm of the song and maybe it will sound good.
The Internet and Youtube are valuable tools…
Eric Clapton learned guitar by listening to old Robert Johnson, BB King and many other great blues records on a turntable and then trying to mimick the same sounds on guitar. Eddie Van Halen would be in his room with his door closed for days just messing around with different sounds that a guitar can make just by moving his fingers around in different shapes and seeing what they sound like. Alex Van Halen (Eddies brother and drummer for Van Halen) would go on dates and leave the house listening to Eddie whale away at 5:00pm and then come home to Eddie still whaling away at 2:00am. These artists didn’t have the internet! They had a cassette player or record player and plenty of time on their hands. We’re incredibly lucky today to have such great resources like youtube.com and the internet in general. Youtube.com is great for learning how to play guitar. You can find lessons, people covering songs, tips and tricks and just about anything that you need to get off on the right foot when it comes to playing guitar. The great thing about Youtube guitar lessons is that “they get to the point”. No BS. Each lesson is usually under 5 minutes and they give you great info very fast, because who wants to watch a 30 minute video. Guitarists attention spans aren’t that long, I know mine isn’t. And Finally, you have the internet. The internet has absolutely everything you could ever possibly need, including Youtube.com, lessons, information, ultimate-guitar.com (for tabs), guitars101.com (for any other type of help that you may need), etc. The possibilities are endless. The point is that learning guitar today is and should be way easier than learning guitar in the past due to the great resources we have.
You can learn any riff from any song no matter how crazy or how fast…. just slow it down
Any riff is learnable, you just have to slow it down to a pace that you feel comfortable with, learn it, and then gradually speed it up. There are numerous programs out there that allow you to do this. One very popular one is called Transcribe. You can import any .mp3 file and then control the speed of the song. Practice the riff over and over and gradually raise the speed. If you can’t play the at a given speed, then slow it down 1%, if you can play it and feel comfortable with how you played it, raise it by 2%. Doing this will allow you to master any riff, any song, anything!
Try learning the difficult songs or riffs that you’ve always wanted to learn, no matter what level you are at and no matter how hard the song is…
This is what makes guitar fun, seeing your improvement (ie. Quick Results). I remember trying to play songs that were at my level when I first started playing guitar. Stuff like : The Animals – House of the Rising Son, and Don Mclean – American Pie. I could play them ok, but they weren’t really songs that I had started playing guitar for. I wanted to play Metallica’s fade to black and Eric Clapton’s Crossroads. I put the other two songs aside and started working on the new ones that had inspired me to play guitar. I had spent weeks and months on them even though they were outside my playing level. I was determined to learn them. I kind of wanted to be one of those guys that can’t play anything else, just cover songs note for note. If I couldn’t play any other song aside from the super hard ones note for note, I’d be happy. So I spent so much time learning these songs, and I could play them…. ok… not great…. However, when I went back to playing House of the rising son and American Pie, I could play them 100 times better. I played them like a pro. Its kind of like…. as long as you challenge yourself, you’ll get better. You play with musicians that are better than you… you’ll get better. You lift more and more weight than your used to… you get stronger.
A great musician once said…..
A great musician once said that as soon as guitar becomes a chore and isn’t fun, that’s the moment that you should put your guitar down. Come back to it later. Now this doensn’t mean that when your first learning guitar and you get frustrated, you should put it down and forget it. Sorry, this rule only applies to guitar players who are advanced or who have been playing for a while. It sucks and is frustrating for everyone at first so you have to stick with it. The overall point is, guitar playing should be fun. Don’t turn it into a chore or a task.
