Guitar for Beginners

A guide to the guitar for beginners. Here is a step by step guide for those interested on learning how to play the guitar. The links will take you through the basics of guitar playing. Resources are arranged in a chronological order to guide you accordingly. Here we go:

Parts of the Guitar

- You have to familiarize yourself with the different parts of your guitar, the names and the particular function of each part. Here are some resources to help you:

Guitar Anatomy

Parts of an Acoustic Guitar

Tuning your Guitar

- Learning to tune your guitar is an important tool. Here are some resources that will teach you how:

Guitar Basics

Gibson Interactive Guitar Tuner

Holding the Pick

- There is a proper way of using a guitar pick. Here are some links to show you the correct way:

The Basics of Using a Pick

How to Hold A Guitar and Other Basics

Learn the Fretboard

- Acquaint yourself with the different notes that make up the guitar. Here is our own About.Com Guitar Guide to help you:

Learning the Fretboard

Notation and Tablature Reading

- Learn to read tabs, familiarize yourself with the different notes and rests. Here are some articles to guide you:

How to Read Guitar Tab

Standard Notation

Reading Tablature

Scale and Chord Charts

- Learning the scales and chords and how to form them is your next step. Here are some illustrated guitar chord guides:

Guitar Chord Library

Guitar Scales (Flash Movie)

Guitar Playing Techniques

- There are different playing techniques you should learn to become a seasoned pro. Here are the different guitar playing techniques and links to relevant resources:

Beginner Strumming Patterns

Bends

Vibrato

Hammer Ons and Pull Offs