How to have a good technique on the guitar
Whatever your style of music is, you have to know the basics of the guitar to learn to play it. Learn to place your fingers to make certain chords or arpeggios. Each style has its own techniques, but it is impossible to advance if you do not know them. If there is one thing that all styles have in common, it is technique.
So, what do you have to do to play well? How do you develop your technique? By understanding technique as the ability to obtain the right sound and finish that we want. This, on the one hand, will help you gain confidence in yourself and your ability. On the other hand, it will allow you to better master your instrument to play what you want.
Other advantages of having a good technique:
- A real fluidity in the movement of fingers.
- An increase in speed.
- A better way to place the chords so that they are not abrupt
- Greater body comfort
- A good stimulation of the muscles so as not to have them in tension
Being at ease
To develop your guitar technique, whatever it is, you have to be comfortable playing. Find a comfortable chair in which you can hold your guitar properly. Your goal is to get a good finish and not to hurt your back unnecessarily.
Always warm-up
Just as if you were going to do sport, you must remember to warm up. Sit down in a comfortable area, do some exercises to warm up your fingers, play some simple scale notes... Any exercise that can be repeated will serve as a warm-up.
Hold the guitar well
It is essential that you learn to hold the guitar well if you want to improve your technique with the six strings. If you are right-handed, hold the guitar so that your right hand is halfway between the rosette and the bridge. The left hand will have to hold the neck.
Learn good guitar playing habits
Hold the guitar against you and orient it so that the thinnest (sharpest) string is down. Try to make the guitar touch your belly and your torso. It should rest on the leg that corresponds to the hand with which you play the strings (right hand, right leg, for example).
- Learn something new every day
- Acquires the ability to visualize scales and chords mentally
- Apply everything you learn
- Record yourself
- Keep studying and taking classes
- Optimizes guitar practice time
- Record your progress
Tuning the guitar
Before each session, before starting a class or playing in public, you cannot forget to tune the guitar to get the right and precise sound. Playing an untuned guitar can make learning sessions extremely frustrating.
Working with a metronome
To guarantee a perfect regularity and rhythm, use a good metronome; that will be your perfect guitar accessory. It will force you to play in time and to keep the sense of rhythm with the instrument.
Train chord linking
To play fluently, try chaining the chords together until each string sounds the same way and with the same intensity. You can start with the first position chords.
There are C, G, F, E, D, and A chords, but there are also minor chords.
Regular training
To improve your guitar technique, you must play regularly. In fact, it is preferable that you dedicate 10 or 15 minutes to your guitar every day, instead of 3 hours once a week. You will develop a better resistance, and you will also improve your muscular memory, necessary to play fluently. If you can, practice 4 or 5 times a week to gain greater skill, and try to set a regular schedule.
Enjoy the guitar
Alternate the "mandatory" sessions, such as exercises or scales, with other moments of relaxation to get a better perspective during your learning. This way, you can pay attention to how you place your fingers to make certain chords or arpeggios.
Working on the scales
If you want to know how to learn guitar scales, you should start by practicing the major, minor, and seventh scales. Then, don't forget to learn the pentatonic scale, very well known among rock and blues musicians, which consists of 5 notes and is also called the "blues scale". There are other important scales on the guitar, such as the harmonic minor scale, melodic minor scale, and diminished scale guitar.
If you practice the scales well, you will improve your skill with the instrument.
Set yourself a challenge
To improve your guitar technique, you must set yourself a goal (achievable, of course).
Set yourself a small weekly challenge and try to reach it progressively. Write down your progress and look at all the work you have done.
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