Learning chords is the most exciting time in learning to play the guitar. Unfortunately it can also be the most frustrating. In contrast to playing individual notes on a single string you’re suddenly having to use more then one finger at a time on several strings and frets.

This lesson is going to introduce you to three easy to learn beginner guitar chords. Two of them only require you to use one finger to make the chord while the third one will challenge your fretting hand. Take your time learning these and try not to get frustrated, especially when you’re strumming and trying to switch between them. Practice makes perfect when it comes to chords and the guitar.

Just before I introduce you to the first chord I want to explain the tablature notation I’ve used below. The X’s represent strings which you do not strum, the number represent the frets you press on and the 0’s represent strings that are to be played open.

Three String C Chord

E — 0 —
B — 1 —
G — 0 —
D — X —
A — X —
E — X —

To play this beginner C chord place your first finger on the first fret of the B string and strum the bottom three strings from G to E.

Three String G Chord

E — 3 —
B — 0 —
G — 0 —
D — X —
A — X —
E — X —

The G chord, like the C chord above, only uses one finger. Place your third finger on the 3rd fret of the E string and play the bottom three strings in a smooth strum.

Three String D7 Chord

E — 1 —
B — 2 —
G — 1 —
D — X —
A — X —
E — X —

Unlike the previous two chords this one uses three fingers at once so it will be more challenging. To make the D7 chord use your second finger on the 1st fret of the E string, your third finger on the 2nd fret of the B string and your first finger on the 1st fret of the D string.

When you practice these chords first aim to make them sound crisp and clean on your own. Focus on using just your finger tips to press the frets down. Once you have them mastered on their own start strumming on and switching between them. Watch the video lesson below to see more about what I mean.

Want to learn more guitar chords and improve your skills? Why not try learning at home using a learn to play guitar dvd? Home study courses on dvd are becoming the private guitar lessons of the 21st centruy. With online integration where you can ask questions and get feedback it’s a great method of learning on your own terms.

Guest Blogger and Guitarist Ian Fraser

“Easy Guitar Tuning Without the Need for an Electric Tuner”

If you’ve been playing guitar for any length of time then you’ve likely used or own an electric tuner. They’re pretty straight forward to use and what most people think of as the easiest method of tuning their guitar, but what if you don’t have an electric tuner around? Can you still tune your guitar? Of course you can, what did they do before we had electric tuners? Everyone certainly didn’t play out of tune that’s for sure.

In this post I’m going to explain how you can get your guitar in tune quickly without the need for any electronic devices. All you’ll need to remember are a couple of simple rules and train your ear to hear when your string(s) is out of tune.

Let’s get started…

Here are the two rules you must memorize for tuning your guitar by ear.

1.)Any given string should be the same note as the 5th fret on the string above it
2.)One exception to rule one is the G and B string where it’s the 4th fret of the G string that should match the B string.

EXAMPLE: If your D string is sounding a little out of pitch you can quickly check to see if it’s in tune by first playing the 5th Fret of the A string then the D string. Compare the sound and if the D string sounds lower or higher then the 5th fret on the D string simply tune it up or down using the tuning peg.

This method takes a little practice to train your ear to hear the sounds and know if a particular string is higher or lower then the other. I suggest you practice this technique each time you sit down to play. By practicing it consistently you’ll quickly realize when a string is out of tune and know if it’s higher or lower then it should be.

Below is a quick video that explains this concept in detail. I suggest you take the time to watch it and the example tuning of all 6 strings. Then go grab your own guitar and give this exercise a try.

For more tips like these and to improve your guitar playing why not consider taking some guitar lessons for beginners. Thanks to dvds, online videos and ebooks you can improve your guitar playing studying completely at home on your own time and for less money then private lessons.

Featured Article By Guest Blogger Ian Fraser:

“Learning the Guitar Fretboard Notes“

Knowing the guitar fretboard notes is the most important foundational thing you can learn as a beginner guitar player. Chords and scales are both of course made up of many notes so knowing your way around the fret board will allow you to understand where different chords are located, how to start different scales and more.

In this article I’ll be covering what exactly a half and whole step is and how to measure them on the guitar neck, how half and whole steps tie into spacing between musical notes and lastly how to use this information to find the different notes on the guitar neck. After reading this article and watching the video at the end of the post you’ll be able to find different notes on any string of the guitar and begin memorizing what notes are where.

Steps Between Notes

The concept of half and whole steps between notes originates on the piano, but since we’re playing the guitar we need to understand what denotes a half step and what denotes a full step on the guitar neck. Thankfully this is very easy. The guitar neck is divided up into many half steps. Each fret is actually one half step, so two frets equals on whole step.

With this new concept of whole and half steps we can understand the spacing between all 7 musical notes in terms of frets. Most notes have one whole step between them although there are two exceptions. Between the B and C notes there is only a half step as well as between the E and F notes. Below is an explanation of the spacing in terms of steps and frets between each note.

A to B : Full Step or Two Frets
B to C : Half step or One Fret
C to D : Full Step or Two Frets
D to E : Full Step or Two Frets
E to F : Half Step or One Fret
F to G : Full Step or Two Frets

Now that we know the spacing between each note on the guitar neck we can begin to locate the different notes at different positions one each string.

Starting from Open Strings.

The easiest way to start when you’re a beginner is to first learn all 6 string names. I’m going to assume you know those already, a quick refresher starting at the top: E, A, D, G, B and E. Since we know when we pluck each string it plays the corresponding note of it’s name we can use the spacing and step information listed above to find different notes.

Let’s look at a quick example: Starting with the D string what note comes after D? That’s right it’s an E and there is one full step from D (the open string) to an E or two frets. So the 2nd fret of the D string is an E. What note comes next? It’s an F, and from the information above we know that E to F is one of the exceptions where there is only one half step. So if the 2nd fret is an E the one half step up (only one fret remember) is an F. Finally if we look at what comes next it’s a G, we move up one full step, or two frets, to the 5th fret on the D string and that note is a G.

Starting from the open string and working your way up is the easiest method to being with. Once you feel comfortable about each note up to the 5th fret on each string (the 4th fret on the G string) you can start picking out notes other places on the guitar neck.

Below is a short video that explains the concept of steps, spacing between notes and the notes on the top three strings. Take some time to watch it and then grab your own guitar and give this exercise a try.

Want to learn some more great beginner information like this? Why not try some guitar lessons dvd programs? You get access to the same great beginner guitar information a private teacher would share with the benefit of watching and learning from home on your own time.

This book/audio method explores the basic fundamentals of slide guitar: from selecting a slide and proper setup of the guitar, to open and standard tuning. Plenty of music examples are presented showing sample licks as well as backup/rhythm slide work. Each section also examines techniques and solos in the style of the best slide guitarists, including Duane Allman, Dave Hole, Ry Cooder, Bonnie Raitt, Muddy Waters, Johnny Winter and Elmore James.

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The Legendary Guitar of James Burton James Burton is highly regarded in the industry with a roll call of famous names who have sought his contribution to their music: Randy Newman, Gram Parsons, and Emmylou Harris among them. On this DVD he covers vibrato, stringbending, pick & finger techniques, solo construction, slides steel effects and his trademark “chicken pickin’” style.

User Ratings and Reviews

5 Stars James Burton Style Guitar
James plays over chords and his chording style is different, which gives him a pretty unique sound. If you want some rockabilly licks, this is probably the best place to get them… and he’s got everything in slow motion at the end of the DVD. I’m having a ball picking up on this stuff.

Great!

5 Stars Insight into an Original
This guy developed a style and technique that not only has been a foundation for generations of guitar slingers that followed but is still an inspiration today. The cat can just play! The next best thing to a few private lessons. Highly recommended.

4 Stars James Burton – DVD Review
This one is for musicians and I enjoyed every minute of it. James demonstrates some of his more famous riffs and, for many of them, it was interesting (depressing)that for all these years, I have not been playing them properly.

What a great sound from the guitar and his style is unmistakable – there are some really great licks to be had from this if you like country rock.

One dissapointment – he did not demonstrate Johnny B Goode, which is one my all time favorites.

4 Stars Good
I remember Burton playing for Ricky Nelson and always liked his style.

This DVD does a good job.

3 Stars Fun to watch, not really an instructional video
This is really more of a demonstration video than an instructional video. Like many great players, Mr. Burton is not a guitar teacher, so you have to be ready to capture what you can from what he shows on the video. This DVD was originally released as VHS. The hot licks people added sections that slow down the examples so you’ll have a chance to figure out what James is doing. I consider it a good resource that I will go back to over time, but not really a how-to guide. I recommend viewing this in a player or on a computer that will allow you to do your own slow-down and repeats.

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In Level 5, everything you need to know about theory to be a good player is included in this guitar lesson. People get bogged down trying to learn too much of the technical stuff about playing and lose sight of the music. This is what you need to know and nothing more. If you’ve been playing a few years, can play well but still don’t understand scales, modes and progressions, this lesson was written with you in mind. Level 5 will quickly teach what you’ve been missing. The chord scales and formulas explain how to match chord progressions to lead modes. The equipment section deals with guitar truss rod adjustments. If your guitar always sounds out of tune, this may be the intonation adjustment you’ve been missing. In level 6,if you have an earlier version of the course, which divided the lessons up into Metal Gear, Primer, Progressions, Tricks, Licks and Theory, you’ll find that this video covers material not taught in the original course. It primarily deals with techniques like sweep & circular picking, Yngwie style six string sweep arpeggios, and three notes to a string speed triplets.
There are also two leads analyzed & taught with bass and drum tracks included. Harmonic, melodic, and diminished minor scales are covered. The equipment section explains adjusting bridge intonation. The motivation section explains how to impress an audience. The DVD version of this guitar lesson utilizes a menu for easy navigation. You can find and repeat each exercise at the touch of a button. Level 5 & Level 6 are on One DVD, and one tab booklet is included for each level.

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First Lessons Rock Guitar Book/CD Set gets you started on the essentials of the guitar while focusing on the material every rock guitarist should know. Subjects include power chords, rock scales, rock soloing, reading tab and standard notation, open chords, accompaniment strum patterns, and rock licks. Designed to educate you about guitar essentials, this lesson makes the learning fun. Chord progressions and melodies similar to rock classics make this text a must for aspiring rock guitarists. The accompanying CD gives you the opportunity to hear and play along with the pros. Author – Mike Christiansen & Corey Christiansen Publisher – Mel Bay Publications, Inc. Date Published – 1/23/2002 Difficulty – Beginning Page Count – 40 Contents – Introduction, Parts of the Guitar, Care of the Guitar, Holding Position, Tuning, Reading the Music Diagrams, Music Fundamentals, Strum Bars, Open Chords, Chord Exercises 1-7, Strum Patterns, How to Read Standard Notation, Standard Notation in First Position, Any Time (Notes on the First String), Choices (Notes on the Second String), Think It Over (Notes on the Third String), Under the Arch, Eighth Notes, So Smooth, Sharps/Flats/Naturals, Waiting for You, Loss for Words, Freezing Point, Send Help, Fourth Gear (Notes on the Fourth String), Fifth Gear (Notes on the Fifth String), Overdrive (Notes on the Sixth String), E Shuffle, Power Chords, Power Chord Variation, Tablature, Minor Pentatonic and Blues Scales, The Watchtower, Flying High, Moveable Minor Pentatonic Scale, Summer Blues, Summer Not, Licks (#1-#5), You Know What I Mean, Moveable Power Chords, Fifth String Roots Unit Dimensions – 8.75 x 11.75 inches

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A supplement to the FastTrack instruction books, this great songbook/CD pack features 8 great songs: All Day and All of the Night – Best of My Love – Day Tripper – Hey Joe – I Shot the Sheriff – Miss You – Smoke on the Water – Surfin’ U.S.A.. Perfect for playing with a band, or solo with the CD.

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In this in-depth instructional DVD, funk/fusion guitar master and GIT instructor Dean Brown explains and demonstrates: two-hand rhythmic independence; developing rhythm patterns over a variety of grooves; creating rhythmic variety & texture; improv tools and concepts; and more. Includes a lesson book, embedded play-along tracks, and bonus live performances featuring an all-star band.

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