At the start learning how to play guitar can be exceedingly intimidating. You not only have to learn how to play chords but you also have to learn scales so as to be a decent guitarist.
And those first few chords can be hard. Your hand doesn't go into the positions needed very naturally. It requires practice and time to build the muscle memory to be well placed to get your hands into those chord positions. But over time you can do it. It just takes a little bit of perseverance.
For most learning scales is a bit less complicated. You are principally handling one finger on one place on the guitar fretboard, so it is a little easier to do. And when you know 1 or 2 scales you can start playing along along with some of your favorite punk or folk songs.
So learning scales is a neat place to begin to learn guitar and get your fingers in shape at the exact same time. Till you have some calluses on the end of your fingers it'll be hard to hold down those strings. And the only real way to get those calluses is to play a lot. You know what they say... No pain no gain!
Scales Are Actually Pretty Easy - It Is Actually About Shapes
Learning scales to the point at which you are decent at it is not that tough. There are "shapes" on that fretboard that you follow to grasp where to play the notes of any particular key. And when you learn these shapes you can just slide your hand horizontally on the guitar neck to play the scale in different keys. It's essentially kind of cool how it functions.
And there's different shapes for different scales. A major scale and a minor scale have different shapes... But only a bit. It's actually something that you can pick up quickly. A major scale "shape" and a minor scale "shape" for a similar key are really precisely the same. They are just played on different parts of the neck. After you have learned one you have learned them all.
What's The Best Way To Learn These Shapes
After you see the shape it's pretty simple to understand. Describing them with words is a bit more difficult. When you see a picture of the shape, or perhaps better, watch a video of someone playing the shape, it's something you will pick up quickly and never forget.
And again these shapes can be applied to nearly any type of music. They are employed in rock'n'roll, country music, and blues music all of the time. In reality a blues guitar scale is just about the same as a heavy metal scale that could be played in a punk band. That's the reason why you see many older punk rockers getting into the blues later in life. They begin to realize that the music is very similar. It's just a matter of attitude... And maybe a little volume.
And there's a thing by the name of a pentatonic scale that's even less complicated. It's called pentatonic because there's only 5 notes in the scale (penta means five). You don't need to use as many fingers in the scale and it's pretty fast to pickup (no pun intended). And these pentatonic minor and major scales are the basis for rock, blues, country, death metal, funk, and virtually every kind of well-liked music.
So get going learning those scales and start having some fun with whatever kind of music you like. Take a look at my web site where I have some free guitar lessons and show you those shapes.
And those first few chords can be hard. Your hand doesn't go into the positions needed very naturally. It requires practice and time to build the muscle memory to be well placed to get your hands into those chord positions. But over time you can do it. It just takes a little bit of perseverance.
For most learning scales is a bit less complicated. You are principally handling one finger on one place on the guitar fretboard, so it is a little easier to do. And when you know 1 or 2 scales you can start playing along along with some of your favorite punk or folk songs.
So learning scales is a neat place to begin to learn guitar and get your fingers in shape at the exact same time. Till you have some calluses on the end of your fingers it'll be hard to hold down those strings. And the only real way to get those calluses is to play a lot. You know what they say... No pain no gain!
Scales Are Actually Pretty Easy - It Is Actually About Shapes
Learning scales to the point at which you are decent at it is not that tough. There are "shapes" on that fretboard that you follow to grasp where to play the notes of any particular key. And when you learn these shapes you can just slide your hand horizontally on the guitar neck to play the scale in different keys. It's essentially kind of cool how it functions.
And there's different shapes for different scales. A major scale and a minor scale have different shapes... But only a bit. It's actually something that you can pick up quickly. A major scale "shape" and a minor scale "shape" for a similar key are really precisely the same. They are just played on different parts of the neck. After you have learned one you have learned them all.
What's The Best Way To Learn These Shapes
After you see the shape it's pretty simple to understand. Describing them with words is a bit more difficult. When you see a picture of the shape, or perhaps better, watch a video of someone playing the shape, it's something you will pick up quickly and never forget.
And again these shapes can be applied to nearly any type of music. They are employed in rock'n'roll, country music, and blues music all of the time. In reality a blues guitar scale is just about the same as a heavy metal scale that could be played in a punk band. That's the reason why you see many older punk rockers getting into the blues later in life. They begin to realize that the music is very similar. It's just a matter of attitude... And maybe a little volume.
And there's a thing by the name of a pentatonic scale that's even less complicated. It's called pentatonic because there's only 5 notes in the scale (penta means five). You don't need to use as many fingers in the scale and it's pretty fast to pickup (no pun intended). And these pentatonic minor and major scales are the basis for rock, blues, country, death metal, funk, and virtually every kind of well-liked music.
So get going learning those scales and start having some fun with whatever kind of music you like. Take a look at my web site where I have some free guitar lessons and show you those shapes.
About the Author:
Rick Honeyboy Hart has played the guitar for many years and is a seasoned blues guitar strummer. He's played in several bands over the years and now helps others learn blues guitar scales on his website www.BluesGuitarInsider.com
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