About.com Beginner Guitar Lesson Eight

Part 1

In lesson one of this special feature on learning the guitar, we were introduced to the parts of the guitar, learned to tune the instrument, learned a chromatic scale, and learned Gmajor, Cmajor, and Dmajor chords. Guitar lesson two taught us to play Eminor, Aminor, and Dminor chords, an E phrygian scale, a few basic strumming patterns, and the names of the open strings. In guitar lesson three, we learned how to play a blues scale, Emajor, Amajor, and Fmajor chords, and a new strumming pattern. Lesson four introduced us to power chords, basic note names on the sixth and fifth string, and new strumming patterns. In lesson five, we studied sharps and flats, were introduced to barre chords, learned to read tab, and learned a basic 12 bar blues. Then, in lesson six, we tackled 7th chords, more barre chords, a new strumming pattern, and a movable chromatic scale pattern. We learned the basics of fingerpicking, another barre chord, hammer-ons, and pull-offs in lesson seven. If you are not familiar with any of these concepts, it is advised that you revisit these lessons before proceeding.

What You'll Learn in Lesson Eight

We'll tackle a more complex fingerpicking pattern, a new strum with an alternating bass, learning about slash chords, sliding, string bends, plus our usual assortment of new songs to learn. Are you ready? Good, let's start guitar lesson eight.

Part 2 - More Advanced Finger Picking



More of this Feature
• Part 1: overview
• Part 2: fingerpicking
• Part 3: strumming patterns
• Part 4: slash chords
• Part 5: slides
• Part 6: string bending
• Part 7: learning songs
• Part 8: practice schedule

Related Content
• Index of Guitar Lessons
• Buying Your First Guitar
• How to Read Guitar Tab
• Easy to Play Songs
• Guitar Chord Library

In lesson seven, we learned the basics of fingerpicking. In lesson eight, we'll expand on the concepts learned in that lesson. So, if you're not comfortable with this technique, it is strongly suggested you practice that first lesson before continuing.

NOTE: The following exercises use guitar tablature for illustration. If you are unfamiliar with this, take a moment to learn how to read guitar tablature.

New Picking Pattern advanced fingerpicking guitar lesson 8 free fingernails picking pattern tablature Listen to clip in RealAudio or MP3.

When playing the above exercise, it is important to hold down the chord shape in your fretting hand. For the first bar, hold down the Dmajor chord (xx0232), then move to Cadd9 (x30030), then finally to G6/B (x20030). The concept of the above pattern is the same as in the previous lesson - fingers one, two, and three play the top three strings, while the thumb "floats" to play notes on the fourth and fifth strings. The picking pattern has changed somewhat though - we're no longer playing the strings in order. Play the exercise slowly, making sure your hand position is good, and you're always using the correct finger to play the correct string.

Another New Picking Pattern
advanced fingerpicking guitar lesson 8 free fingernails picking pattern tablature Listen to clip in RealAudio or MP3.

This one shouldn't be too tough... your thumb doesn't need to move to cover other strings. Plus the only thing that changes from the Amin to the Fmaj7 chord is the note on the fourth string moves up a fret. To make switching chords as easy as possible, I suggest fretting the Aminor chord so your third finger is on the fourth string, your second finger is on the third string, and your first finger is on the second string. Again, practice this pattern slowly, and listen to the audio clip to make sure you're playing it correctly.

Things to Know:

* Keeping your picking hand fingers curled is extremely important. If your fingers are even somewhat straight when fingerpicking, you need to adjust your technique. Your palm should move very little in the fingerpicking process. All movement should be done with fingers.
* If you are serious about wanting to fingerpick well, you might want to consider growing the nails on your picking hand slightly. This will give you a "brighter" sound.

Now, let's move on to learning new strumming patterns.

Part 3 - Strumming Patterns

We've explored various strumming patterns in previous lessons, but up until this point, we always played the exact same strings with each strum. In lesson eight, we'll explore playing single notes combined with a full strum.

NOTE: The following exercises use guitar tablature for illustration. If you are unfamiliar with this, take a moment to learn how to read guitar tablature

Simple G Major Strum

guitar strumming pattern single notes chords exercises technique tablature lesson free strum alternating bass pattern Listen to clip in RealAudio or MP3.

This first pattern uses a strumming rhythm we've learned before: down, down up, up down up. The only difference is now, on the first strum of the pattern, we're only hitting the sixth string.

Important: When playing this single note, it is important to keep the same strumming motion you use when playing a full chord. Your pick should still pass across all six strings - but should only play the sixth. You can accomplish this by slightly pulling the pick away from the strings after you've struck the sixth string on the first strum. Practice this technique - you'll find it gets easier and easier to master.

Alternate Bass Note Strum

This is a pattern you commonly find in old folk songs, traditional country and western, polka music, and other styles. You might find this strum a little bit tricky to play accurately at first, but soon you'll be able to play it with ease. guitar strumming pattern single notes chords exercises technique tablature lesson free strum alternating bass pattern Listen to clip in RealAudio or MP3.

Play the above chord by first fretting a Cmajor chord. Now, move your third finger to the third fret of the sixth string, and put your fourth (pinky) finger on the third fret of the fifth string. Hold this shape throughout the pattern. The strumming pattern for the above tablature is a simple one: down, down up, down, down up. As in the previous strum, we will be playing some single notes, followed by full chord strums. The main difference with this strum being we are alternating between two bass notes. Strike the fifth string with a down strum, then strum the full chord: down up. Now, play the sixth string with a down strum, then again play the full chord with a down up strumming pattern. This, of course, will get easier and easier with practice.

Remember:

* It is extremely important, when playing the above patterns, to keep your strumming motion constant, whether you're playing the single notes or the full chords. You might find that at first you accidentally play several strings when trying to strum one string. Don't get upset, just try to remedy the problem.

* Be sure to master the above strums, because we'll get into much more complex variations of these in future lessons.

Now, let's move on to learning about slash chords.

Part 4 - Slash Chords

The chord example in part three uses a C/G (pronounced "C over G") chord. This is just one of the hundreds of these types of chords you'll find in popular music, and is referred to as a "slash chord".

Understanding how to read these chords is simple - the letter to the left of the slash is the type of chord - so in this case it is "C" chord (aka a C major chord). The note to the right of the slash is the bass note in the chord - a "G" in this circumstance. So, a C/G chord is a C major chord with the note G in the bass. If you study the chord in part three, you can clearly see the C major chord, with the G on the third fret of the sixth string also being fretted in the bass.

Here are a few of the many common slash chords:

D/F# - (pronounced "D over F#") - a standard Dmajor chord with an F# in the bass, usually played by wrapping the thumb around the neck of the guitar, and fretting the second fret of the sixth string.

A/C# - (pronounced "A over C#") - An Amajor chord with a C# in the bass, usually played by barring the second fret of the fourth, third, and second strings with your first finger, and playing the fourth fret of the fifth string (the C#) with either the third finger, or the pinky finger.

C/E - (pronounced "C over E") - A Cmajor chord with an E in the bass, usually played by simply fretting a Cmajor chord, and including the open low E string in the strum.

Amin/G - (pronounced "A minor over G") - An Aminor chord, with a G in the bass, usually played by fretting an Aminor chord, and using the pinky finger play the third fret of the sixth string (the "G").

Things to Try:

* Invent slash chords, by simply thinking of a chord type, then picking a random note to play in the bass. Next, try and figure out how to play these chords. They may not sound wonderful, but you may stumble upon some that you like. And, it's great practice for learning note names on the fretboard.

* Try making up some chord progressions that use the above, or other slash chords. Here are a couple to get you started: Amin - Amin/G - Fmaj, or Gmaj - D/F# - Emin, or Dmin - Dmin/C - G/B - Cmaj .

Now, let's move on to learning how to slide.

Part 5 - Sliding

This is another guitar technique that is extremely popular, and one that needs to be mastered by all budding guitar players. As with all other techniques, learning to slide well will take a bit of practice, but you should get the hang of it almost immediately.

slide Guitar Lesson 8 technique finger string fret sliding tutorial lesson learn how do I play slide guitar Listen to clip in RealAudio or MP3.

Here's the basic concept - we're going to fret a note, play it, then slide the note to another one on the same string, without re-picking. In the above example, we're starting on the third string, second fret. Play the note, then briskly slide your finger up to the fourth fret on the same string.
Done? Chances are, the note died as soon as you started to slide it. The key is to keep exerting downward pressure on the string with our finger while sliding the note. Try it again, making sure you keep pressing the note down as you slide.

slide Guitar Lesson 8 technique finger string fret sliding tutorial lesson learn how do I play slide guitar Listen to clip in RealAudio or MP3.

This second example is almost the same as the first - it just adds another step. This time, try sliding on the third fret from the second fret to the fourth fret, then back to the second fret, all without re-picking the string.

Sliding Practice

It's important to try and use all the guitar techniques we learn to play many different things. For example, try playing the A blues scale using the sliding technique, hitting each string only once (listen to what that sounds like via RealAudio or MP3). To play it this way, you'll need to use only one finger to play the entire scale. You can also try something similar using hammer-ons and pull-offs, and also utilize all these techniques on different scales we've learned.

You Should Know:

* You'll commonly hear a squeeking sound when sliding on the lower strings. Notice that this doesn't happen as much on the thinner (unwound) strings.

* When sliding, only press down as hard as you need to in order for the note to keep ringing. Pressing too hard will slow your finger down too much, and the slide won't sound smooth.

* When sliding to another fret, focus your eyes on the fret you're aiming to slide to, and your finger will naturally slide to that fret.

Now, let's learn how to bend strings.

Part 6 - String Bending



More of this Feature
• Part 1: overview
• Part 2: fingerpicking
• Part 3: strumming patterns
• Part 4: slash chords
• Part 5: slides
• Part 6: string bending
• Part 7: learning songs
• Part 8: practice schedule


Related Content
• Index of Guitar Lessons
• Buying Your First Guitar
• How to Read Guitar Tab
• Easy to Play Songs
• Guitar Chord Library

We've learned some interesting new techniques in the past few lessons, but none that will give you as much trouble in the beginning as string bending. Bending strings is a technique used, when playing single note riffs and solos, to give the guitar a more "vocal" quality. Although it's a technique used mostly by lead guitar players, even three chord folk guitarists will call upon string bends from time to time.

Bending Technique

Bending the strings far enough to get the pitch to change (which is what we're trying to do) takes a good deal of effort. The key is to use three of your fingers to bend the string, instead of just the finger on the fret you're trying to bend. You accomplish this by placing your third finger on the fret you're trying to bend. Place your first and second fingers on the frets behind it, and exert pressure with all three fingers. Let's look at the first exercise. bending strings Guitar Lesson 8 technique finger string fret string bending tutorial lesson learn how do I bend strings on guitar
Listen to clip in RealAudio or MP3.

Start by fretting the note on the tenth fret of the second string, with your third finger. Your second finger should rest on the second string, ninth fret. Your first finger should rest on the second string, eighth fret. Our goal is to bend this note up one semi-tone (called a "half step"), and then return the note to it's original pitch. Play the tenth fret, then the 11th fret, so you can hear the proper pitch of the note you're trying to bend to. Then pick the note, and exert force in an upwards motion (towards you), while still putting some pressure on the string so it keeps ringing. Try and use all three fingers to bend the string, not just the third finger. Then, return the note to it's original pitch.
Chances are, when you first attempt this, you won't get the pitch to change much. This will be especially true if you try bending on an acoustic guitar - they are much harder to bend strings on. Be extremely patient... chances are you haven't used these muscles before, and they'll take time to strengthen. Keep practicing, and you'll get the hang of it eventually. Be sure and listen to the audio clip to hear what the bend should sound like.

A Harder Bending Technique
bending strings Guitar Lesson 8 technique finger string fret string bending tutorial lesson learn how do I bend strings on guitar
Listen to clip in RealAudio or MP3.

This exercise is exactly the same as the one above, except this time, we're going to attempt to bend the note up two frets (a "tone", or a "full step"). Start by playing the tenth fret, then the 12th fret, to hear the pitch you're trying to bend the note to. Now, while fretting the note on the tenth fret of the second string with your third finger, pick the note, and try to bend it up to the 12th fret, then return it to it's original pitch. Remember: use all three fingers to help bend the note, or you'll never be able to push the note far enough.

Things to Remember:

* If the note is 'dying' before you've completed the bend, you've probably stopped exerting enough pressure against the fretboard to keep the note sounding. You HAVE to use all three fingers Make sure you're pushing the strings in the direction of the sky, not the ground. Bends are almost always done on the top three strings, as they are lighter, and are easier to bend. It's easier to bend strings on the higher frets on the guitar. Down near the headstock, it gets very hard to bend.

* It will take time to master this technique, so be patient.

Now, let's move on to learning some new songs.

Part 7 - Learning Songs

This week, we'll concentrate mostly on songs that use fingerpicking, and/or strumming patterns that include single notes. If you're looking for more songs to learn, I suggest you check out the easy song tabs archive.

In case you need a refresher, here are the pages to check open chords, power chords, and barre chords.

NOTE: A few of the following song transcriptions use tablature. If you are unfamiliar with this term, take a moment to learn how to read guitar tablature.

Please Refer to About.com for Music Downloads

The Weight (alternate site) - performed by The Band
NOTES: A great song to learn for playing with other people. Strum this one down, down, down, down up. The little instrumental part after the chorus should be strummed: bass note, down up. Play A/G# with your first finger barring the A chord and your ring finger playing the fourth fret on the sixth string (4x222x)
MP3: iTunes download

More Than a Feeling (alternate site) - performed by Boston
NOTES: It's the very first guitar part we're most interested in, for fingerpicking reasons. First three fingers remain by the first three strings, while the thumb "floats" to play notes on the 4th, 5th, and 6th strings. It should be somewhat similar to the first fingerpicking exercise we did in this lesson.
MP3: iTunes download

Brian Wilson - performed by The Barenaked Ladies
NOTES: Strum down, down up, up down up. For now, leave all the 7ths off the chords (eg. Bmin7 becomes Bmin ... Cmaj7 becomes Cmaj). There are a couple of slash chords - I'll let you figure out how to play them.
MP3: iTunes download

(there is some fancy fingerpicking that has been left out of the guitar tab. Just concentrate on the tricky chords for now.)

Is There Anybody Out There - performed by Pink Floyd

NOTES: this is a very nice instrumental guitar song from The Wall. It is very similar to the second fingerpicking exercise we did in this lesson. This will be a challenge, but you'll love the results.

MP3: iTunes download

Let's have a look at this week's practice schedule.

Part 8 - Practice Schedule

We've covered so much material, I can't emphasize enough the importance of going back over old lessons, to be sure you remember how to play everything we've learned. Here are some things you'll want to focus on:

* First, make sure your guitar is in tune.

* Warm up by playing a blues scale, making sure you're using alternate picking.

* Then, see if you can play it using a slide technique.

* Practice all barre chords we've covered, making sure you also review note names on the sixth and fifth strings. By this point, you should know these quite well. If not... review, review, review.

* Play the new strumming patterns using a combination of single notes and chords. We'll be building on these in future lessons, so get them sounding perfect!

* Every time you pick up the guitar, play a few string bends. You'll get the hang of them in time.

* Review slash chord theory, and make sure you understand it. Try playing a few slash chords of your own choosing.

* Try the fingerpicking patterns, and the two songs above that utilize fingerpicking.

* Try to play all of the songs above, plus keep playing those from previous lessons.

I sincerely hope you're enjoying these lessons, and are learning a few things. Please feel free to e-mail me with suggestions, compliments, or criticisms. If you're feeling confident with everything we've learned so far, I suggest trying to find a few songs you're interested in, and learn them on your own. You can use the easy song tabs archive, or the guitar tab area of the site to hunt down the music that you'd enjoy learning the most. Try memorizing some of these songs, rather than always looking at the music to play them.

In lesson nine, we tackle some more advanced strumming techniques, more advanced bending techniques, new chords, new songs, and much more.