Anybody here play the Guitar?

[Leon Roskilly]

Norfolkdan:

Hey Emz. I found this a useful site too learn chords:

 

http://www.chordfind.com

 

Also, getting a few books may help    

I like that site, it shows fully barred chords.

 

So many beginners are taught easy chords, with the top strings open ,and that gives them real problems if they want to move onto more advanced playing later.

 

The other problem, related to barring, is the positioning of the hand which is why many people have a problem with wide necked guitars.

 

Even people with small hands should be able to achieve fully barred chords with a wide necked instrument if held correctly (the thumb should be around the centre of the back of the neck with the wrist well forward), though it is more difficult to learn initially and does take more practice in the early days.

 

But it's much, much easier to get it right from the start, than to try and relearn later, which many people give up on.

 

Tight Lines - leon

[DavyR]

Originally posted by Leon Roskilly:

 

Even people with small hands should be able to achieve fully barred chords with a wide necked instrument if held correctly (the thumb should be around the centre of the back of the neck with the wrist well forward), though it is more difficult to learn initially and does take more practice in the early days.

 

Problem with guitar is there's so many styles. I would guess that Leon's a classical guitarist. You won't find too many folk or rock guitarists who use the "classical" grip. Nylon strings are certainly easier on the fingers than steel, but might not be as suitable for the sort of music you want to play. Tanglewood or Yamaha both do reasonably-priced steel-strung acoustics, so if you don't intend to play classical stuff, it might be worth going for one of those and ration the practice to begin with until the fingertips harden up.

[Leon Roskilly]

DavyR:

 I would guess that Leon's a classical guitarist.

I wish!

 

 

Dad played banjo, but with guitar tuning, so when I got a guitar I was taught my first chords using just the first four strings.

 

(I'd been in a skiffle group playing washboard and T-chest bass, so a few chords went a long way!)

 

 

The Shadows and Duane Eddy were my inspiration and I bought a Hofner Club 60 electric guitar (but didn't have an amp!).

 

Ended up playing folk guitar in Australia, semi-professionally. (Did a lot of charity gigs and even a couple of TV programmes, and I helped to run the Cairns Folk & Jazz Centre).

 

Bought a 12 string and went through a number of nylon strung folk guitars.

 

I taught beginners guitar for a while at The Centre in London, and helped to run The Crypt Folk Club at St Martins-in-the-fields.

 

And yes, I did play a pseudo flamenco to impress!

 

But I don't play these days.

 

Tight Lines - leon

 

ps I sometimes express myself artistically

see: http://yourpoem.blogspot.com/

[Leon Roskilly]

ps I'm often listening in here

 

http://www.folkalley.com/

 

Tight Lines - leon

[Leon Roskilly]

Oh!

 

And if you think that I'm wierd, look at what Tony Urwin gets up to!!

 

http://www.gundulfs.pwp.blueyonder.co.uk/

 

Tight Lines - leon

[Emz]

lol

 

Wow, very interesting read and like one person has already pointed out, you are a man of hidden talents

 

I'm just wondering now, am I best to go straight to a steel strung guitar or stick with Nylon first rather then face the change later on?

 

I would say that my hands are naturally a bit harder than what the average woman's would be because of my past anyway.

 

(I used to be a gymnast that did a lot of bar work as well as beam and floor work. The bars did toughen ones hands up etc )

[Leon Roskilly]

Emz,

 

It's the tips of the fingers that suffer.

 

But don't worry, they soon develop callouses!

 

And eventually 'harden' (not that anyone else will notice).

 

 

And even nylon strings will hurt at the beginning, not as you are playing maybe, but when you pick up the guitar to play again later.

 

(Avoid all-night parties when your senses are numbed by alcohol and people keep asking you to play something else - bleeding fingers should be a warning sign!)

 

After a short while, when your fingertips have had a chance to become 'hardened' you won't have any problem at all!

 

Tight Lines - leon

[Emz]

Ah I see, well I'll start off with a Nylon one as advised then once I got the hang of that move onto the steel ones.

 

Can I ask tho, can't you get metal things that some people put on their fingers to play the guitar? Can't think what they're called, but I have seen them :confused:

[Leon Roskilly]

Hi Emz,

 

The painful bit comes on the fingers that hold the strings down (don't get too worried about it, you'll quite quickly pass that stage).

 

I think that what you are thinking of are finger picks, which go on the hand that plucks the strings.

 

These can be made of plastic or metal (for a heavier sound on metal strings), and are used when playing 'finger style' (rather than simply strumming or picking with a plectrum.

 

Really they are unnecesary when playing with nylon strings, and I'd encourage you to learn 'finger style' (used mainly for folk and classical guitar playing).

 

Again, doing it right will need someone to show you and initially take lots of hours of 'exercises'.

 

To begin with just concentrate on learning some chords and songs, and picking a tune with a plectrum.

 

You'll have plenty of time to get clever later

 

Tight Lines - leon

[Emma]

Hi Emz,

 

Bit late to this. I'm a dodgy bass player, rather than a guitarist, but I'll just echo some of the things already said...

 

Practice, practice, practice. Most of my musician friends reckoned playing well was 95% application and 5% talent.

 

Get some lessons - even if it's just a few. Unlearning bad habits in posture, finger position and picking/finger style is much harder than learning them properly first off (painful experience here!).

 

Back in the day when I used to know about these things Tanglewood were an extremely good make for the money. I still have their version of a Hofner bass which sounds great.

 

I reckon learning on an acoustic is a great idea, cheaper to start out and if you learn to play on its wide neck, when you pick up an electric guitar you'll feel it much easier.