Best Guitar Lesson #1

The first guitar lesson for adults is very different than the kids. Eventually adults are ready to pay attention and really the older they are they make good students. They are all a little nervous but do it anyway. They are all experts so keeping this in mind I bring them down a little at a time and try to show them the proper way of playing. Eventually most of them will listen and do it right. The Seniors taught me we have all the time in the world.

At our first lesson I try to teach the first 2 strings and this teaches 6 notes. The first E string, notes E, F, and G. To play the notes on the second string play the B string open this will make the B note, C will be at the first fret, and the note D will be played at the 3 fret. If they have no problems we add the 3rd string as there are only 2 more notes in my lesson plan. I like to have my own lesson plan rather than just rely on the book we use, " Basic Guitar Lessons" by Happy Traum,The book is good but I like to add some of my own work.I just feel more confidant knowing what I want to accomplish in the time we have for this class.

In the first photo I made of the guitar fingerboard you can see where the nut on the guitar fret board is located at the top. On the headstock above the nut you will find the 6 tuning keys. To play these 8 notes we have to first do these six things.

1.You will need a pick to start your lesson. Picks come in light, medium, and heavy gauge. I prefer a 0.8mm pick. The pick is held between the thumb and the first index finger.

2. Cut the left hand fingernails. Your nails need to be cut in order to play pick guitar.

3. Take the clip on tuner and tune your guitar. There is no sense starting to play with a guitar out of tune.

4. Learn the 5 line notes and the 4 space notes. F, A, C, E. A good way to remember is every, good, boy, does, fine. E, G, B, D, F.

5. Learn the notation I made in the second photo. Know the eight notes on the guitar and how they are written in the 2nd photo.

6. When you first start the guitar remember that fingers and frets go together. Looking at your left hand fingers 1 is your index finger, 2 is the middle finger, 3 is your ring finger. 1st finger plays notes at the first fret, second finger plays notes at the 2nd fret, and the 3rd ring finger plays notes at the 3rd fret. Look at the note A on the 3rd string, notice that it has a 2 under the note meaning the second finger plays the note at the second fret.

Music that is written notes on a staff with line notes and space notes are called notation. This is what we call reading the notes or reading music. I think reading notes is better than tab. To me tab teaches nothing it's a bunch of numbers. It really is cold and does not really express the music. Tab really is not the way I believe music was to be played. I personally wished they never invented it.

Tab leaves you guessing in a lot of places, and I think its more difficult to work with timing, I really have no use for it.

1 What are the line notes?

2 What are the three notes on the first E string?

3 What are the four space notes?

4 What are the three notes on the second string?

5 What are the notes on the third G string?

6 Take the 8 notes you have learned and see if you can play Yankee Doodle starting on note C. See if you can use the eight notes and play more songs, there are many.

This is a summary of the first lesson and what you should have learned. Update Make sure you know this lesson before going on to the next. I used the lesson yesterday and it still is just as useful today. The First Lesson Is The Most Important.