How to Learn to Play Guitar in One Day
Like any art form, playing guitar is a skill that can always be improved. Great guitar players have devoted years, even lifetimes, to the art. Popular wisdom holds that it takes 1,000 hours of practice to become an expert at anything, but strumming a few basic chords is not rocket science. If you want to warble a love song or impress your friends at a campfire, you can learn how to play the guitar in one day.
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Instructions
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Tune your guitar using a standard tuning. The notes of the open strings should be E-A-D-G-B-E, starting from the thickest to the thinnest string. Tune one string at a time, starting with the thickest, which is low E. Pluck the string and keep your eyes on the guitar tuner. Turn the tuning knob that corresponds to that string until the desired tone is registered on the tuner. Repeat this for all six strings until the guitar is in tune.
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Learn some chords. You can buy a book of guitar chords at any music shop, or you can check out a website like All Guitar Chords. Learn the basic chords like E, G, C and A first. Follow the diagrams, position your fingers and press down on the guitar frets as hard as you can. Strum the guitar slowly, listening for the sound of each distinctive string. Once you can clearly hear each individual string, you have the chord played correctly.
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Switch from chord to chord. Once you can play individual chords, practice moving from chord to chord as quickly as possible. Strum a simple chord, like the C chord, C-E-G. Try moving quickly to another simple chord, like the G chord, then back to the C chord. This takes some practice, but once you get it down, incorporate a third chord, like the D. Move as quickly as you can between these chords while maintaining a clear sound from each string.
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Play a song. Most songs are made up of progressions of chords like the ones you have just learned, and many can be played using just three chords. Creedence Clearwater Revival's "Bad Moon Risin'," for example, can be played using just D, A and G. Most songs that you want to learn can be easily found on guitar tab websites, such as Ultimate Guitar Tab. Listen to the song to figure out where the chord changes should occur. Then try playing along with the song. Websites such as Guitar Place and Three Chord Guitar are good places to find songs that can be played using just three simple chords.
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Tips & Warnings
New guitar strings need to be stretched out before they will stay in tune.
Check your guitar's tuning frequently. Beginners often get discouraged when the song doesn't sound quite right. This is usually the result of an improperly tuned guitar.
Your fingers will hurt at first and could develop blisters if you play too much in one day. Back down on your practice a bit to heal the blisters, and then play for moderate amounts of time through this discomfort as your fingers develop calluses.
References
Resources
- Photo Credit guitar image by cherie from Fotolia.com
