Learn How to Play the Guitar - Challenges and Solutions

By: Scott Brooks

In recent years the addition of so many musical styles has emerged and as a result, many people now want to learn how to play guitar. Unfortunately, most of these want-to-be guitar-playing hopefuls never make it past learning three chords. As a guitarists myself, I know the challenges of learning to play an instrument. I also know how to overcome most of these challenges. In this article I will be addressing a few challenges to learning how to play guitar and solutions for these challenges.

1. Learning to play guitar takes hard work.

The only place that success comes before hard work is in the dictionary. No matter how much God-given ability you have, you are not exempt from hard work. If you really want to learn how to play the guitar or any instrument for that matter, except for maybe the Kazoo, you must develop a habit of practicing. It takes the average person 21 days to develop a new habit. One thing that will help is to set aside a certain time everyday to practice and stick to this schedule even when you don't feel like it. Don't just plan on finding time to fit in a practice because it will never happen. You must schedule a 30 to 60 minute block of time each day. If you already have a full schedule, you may have to quit something else. It really just depends on how badly you desire to learn how to play and how much you are willing to sacrifice to accomplish this goal.

2. Learning to play guitar means sore fingers.

During the first few weeks of learning to play guitar, your fingers will be quite sore until you have developed calluses on your fingertips and develop coordination. This is an unavoidable reality of learning to play guitar and many people unfortunately quit due to soreness. The great news is that it's only temporary considering you are practicing regularly. The more you practice, the sooner your fingers will stop hurting.

3. Learning to play guitar requires playing songs and chord progressions you may not enjoy.

Most people want to learn guitar because they were inspired by someone or by some really cool riff. Unfortunately, most of the songs you love and desire to play are just out of your league in the beginning. You must first take the time to learn many basic fundamentals like chords, simple chord progressions and scales before you can tackle your favorite solos. Many people quit trying to learn guitar because they are so bored with the basics. Most worth-while endeavors in life will require the discipline necessary to endure the baby steps. One thing that will help you endure these baby steps is to keep the vision in front of you. Keep thinking about that really awesome riff that you will be able to play one day. Remember that you have to crawl before you can walk.

4. Learning guitar requires good teaching.

There are some good guitar instructors and some bad ones. Before spending your hard-earned money on just any person who claims that he or she can teach you to play guitar, check this person out. It's a good idea to ask for references. A good teacher should be able to provide these for you. Another option, and certainly a cheaper one, is to teach yourself via books and videos. Some of the best guitarists I know were self-taught. If you are a self-motivated type of person, I would highly recommend this latter option to you. There is a plethora of resources to help you learn how to play guitar.

Playing guitar is very fun and rewarding; however it will take hard work and patience. If you really desire to play, keep dreaming about playing your favorite song or riff and keep this vision in front of you. This goal will keep you motivated and determined on those days that you just don't feel like practicing. If you have been dreaming of playing the guitar, go for your dreams. There is no better time than the present.

Scott Brooks has been playing guitar for over 25 years. Do you want to get started learning to play guitar right away? You can get a great resource to help you learn to play guitar fast at: downloads-universe.com/learntoplayguitar.html

Learn to Play Guitar Free

Playing The Guitar Fast by Ian D. Major

Guitar Licks Blues Guitar Licks and Riffs Rock Guitar Licks Slide Guitar Licks and Riffs

While you're learning how to play the guitar, own up to one thing. Deep inside, you're hoping you can play those great sounding guitar licks.

Blues,rock even country style guitar playing is always better when you include guitar licks. So how do you go about learning to play those really fast rock guitar licks?

Here are a few ideas to get you started.

1. Master Those Scales

Sure, it sounds tedious, however all good musicians have to put in that grunt-work behind the scenes when they practice playing fast. It doesn't matter whether you're playing the violin in a band or pulling off wailing blues guitar licks, learning how to play any instrument takes practice. Becoming good with scales, keys, and even some note reading will enable you to play like a pro. Learn all you can about music.

2. Baby Steps

This principle goes by other names, such as "baby steps" or "How do you eat an elephant? One bite at a time!". If you will make an effort to practice the scales and tabs of your favorite songs even just for 15 minutes a day, those fast guitar licks will improve before you know it. Persistence is the answer. No one ever accomplished anything they gave up on.

3. Seek Assistance

A private teacher can be of great assistance for learning to play guitar licks and riffs. However, taking private lessons can get very expensive. On top of this is the fact that your mentor may not be to happy to help when you want to hammer out your riffs at 2 o'clock in the morning! However, there is a very simple answer to these problems. Get your guitar instruction via your computer, either through downloadable guitar instruction software or websites that relate to playing the guitar.

4. Download Software To Learn Guitar To Your Computer

When learning fast rock guitar riffs, guitar learning software provides many advantages. First off, you can see the lick, both as written music and as the more down to earth tabulature form. But the best part is that you can hear the lick, as well. Look for software that has infinite looping so that you can hear it several times and then jump in and play along with it. If the recording doesn't loop, you're sure to get frustrated because you'll just be getting ready to play when you'll have to click your mouse again. Perhaps most important of all is being able to vary the speed of the recording so you can learn the guitar licks slowly and then increase your speed until your fingers move like lightening!

About the Author

Hi. I'm Ian D. Major and I am the Web Editor for at www.Easy-Learn-Guitar.com

My goal is to provide a guitar learning experience second to none.

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Paul.