Deciding to play any musical instrument is a great choice and will enhance your
life more than you can imagine. The sense of pride you will feel once you can play
your first song is amazing. And being able to impress your family and friends is
an added bonus.

The first step in learning is to get yourself a guitar you can practice on. You
may want to buy your own, or you can ask anyone you know if they have one you can
borrow. The down side to borrowing a guitar is that you get used to playing that
guitar, then eventually have to give it back. If you can afford to buy a new
guitar, you can find second hand guitars online or at a pawn shop. The great thing
about second hand guitars is that you don’t have to worry about scratching it.
Usually older guitars are already “Weathered” and have the “authentic” look
already.

The next decision you have to make is what style of guitar you want to learn to
play. Do you want electric or acoustic? To decide this, you need to consider the
style of music you want to play on your guitar. Are you into heavy rock music? If
you are then an electric guitar would probably suit your style better. If you are
more into John Meyer then an acoustic would probably be more for you. This is not
always the case, so you can always try both styles to see what you are more
comfortable playing. The one great benefit from playing an acoustic guitar is that
you can bring it with you anywhere you go. You don’t have to plug it in like and
electric, and you don’t need an amp to be able to hear what you are playing.

The final element on learning and mastering the guitar is to find yourself an
audience. If you know someone that can actually play the guitar, then ask them if
you can play to them once or twice a week. Have them critique you. Tell you the
good points of your playing, and also the things you need to work on. Its good to
have someone who has already mastered the guitar as they will be able to see your
mistakes that a “non-guitar player” wont see. But if you don’t know anyone that can
play, ask a friend or someone in your family that you know will be honest with you.

Now you have the main components that will help you while learning the guitar,
next you need to actually start playing. You now have the guitar that you are
going to learn on. Your next step is to make sure you are holding your guitar
correctly. Sitting is the most common position to be in when playing the guitar,
but some may find standing easier. You decide which is best for you. If you are
choosing the sitting position, you will need to rest the body of the guitar on your
leg. Your right hand will be your strumming hand (if you are a right handed
player, and opposite if you are left handed) and your left will the hand that will
move to play the notes. Make sure you have a good posture while playing so you
don’t strain any muscles.

Weather you have decided to learn through books, DVD’s or online courses, make
sure you are following all the steps that are given to you. Don’t skip ahead. They
are written that way for a reason. If you practice you can master the guitar in no
time, just take your time and do it right the first time.

Once you know the basic chords, choose one or two EASY songs that you want to learn
to play. Don’t start off by choosing a hard song. This will only disappoint you
when you have a hard time mastering them. Choose a song that has only a few
chords. Many songs are written with a variation of 3 or 4 basic chords. Start
with these then work your way to more challenging ones.

If you are an OK singer you should practice doing so while you play. This will
assist you in timing and knowing when chord changes are needed.

Never give up. You made the choice to learn to play the guitar and no-one said it
would be easy. Now only you can decide if you are going to follow through on that.
Your fingers will be sore at first, but that’s a sign of determination and great
practice. Eventually they will build up callouses and no longer be painful.

If you follow all these elements on learning and mastering the guitar, in no time
you will be challenging yourself with more and more difficult songs.

Guitar teachers, although very effective and a great way to learn how to play, can
be very expensive and time consuming. Trying to find time in your busy schedule to
go to guitar lessons can be impossible. But you don’t have to worry about that if
you learn guitar online. You can fit your lessons in whenever YOU have time.

It may take you a little “Surfing the net” to find a site that you want to use to
learn guitar. But the great thing about it is if you search hard enough you can
come across online guitar lessons that are very inexpensive, and sometimes free.

The great thing about online lessons is you can go at your own pace. If you are a
slow learner, you don’t have to worry about paying hourly for lessons. This can be
frustrating along with expensive. With online lessons, you don’t have to worry
about that. The resources are there when you want them, and don’t have to be
squeezed into an hour lesson. If you want to learn for 2 hours or only a half
hour, that’s your call.

When using online lessons, there are many resources available to help you. There
are images, videos tutorials, audio tutorials and many other tools for you to use.
The great thing is that the resources are available to you at the click of a
button. And you can learn as quickly or slowly as you wish.

Whether you are looking to play to your family members or want to be on the big
stage in front of millions, once you begin to learn guitar online, you will have a
great start. There are so many options for you to choose from, that there has to be
one out there that can suit you needs and style.

A great technique that is taught to many beginners when they want to learn guitar
online is to listen first and play later. Knowing the songs ins and outs before
you try to play it is a great tool. Online lessons provide you with the
instructions that will help you master this skill.

For most beginners, you already have 3 skills you were born with that will make
learning online much easier; Sight, Hearing and Touch. Being able to visualize
what you need to play is a great benefit and there are so many images available.
Hearing what your guitar should sound like is also a huge benefit. The video and
audio sounds are a great tool for this. And of course, touch is used when actually
playing your guitar. Feel the positions of your fingers, and knowing your guitar!

In conclusion, if you want to learn guitar and don’t want to pay the expensive costs
of a private tutor, learn guitar online – Its the easiest way. Don’t waste anymore
time. Get searching online sites. Look for tutorials that have had positive
comments from previous users. Practice often, stay positive. Play to family
members and friends. Even the simplest songs will impress them, and this will also
show them just how far you have come!

Now you are familiar with what the acoustic guitar looks like, its time to begin
making some beautiful music with it! Here are some pointers in taking easy lessons with an acoustic guitar.

Step 1. First and most importantly you need an acoustic guitar. If you don’t have
your own, ask around to family and friends to see if anyone has one you can borrow.

Step 2. Find your source of education. The Internet is full of useful websites
on how to play guitar. Finding one that suits your style is a good start. Many
sites provide you with online lessons for free.

Step 3. Who do you want to sound like? There are so many different styles of
acoustic out there and choosing one you want to emulate is a good place to start.
Artists such as Dave Matthews band and John Mayer are popular artists when making
this decision. The style doesn’t have to be mellow when it comes to acoustic
guitars. That’s up to you.

Step 4. Know your guitar. Know how it works and what each part of the guitar is
for. Knowing why certain sounds are made helps to understand why some sounds don’t
come out quite like you want them to. Knowing this fact is very important.

Step 5. Next step in taking easy lessons with an acoustic guitar is to learn the
basic chords. There are many resources on line that will show you how to play the
basic chords. The better you know and practice these chords, the easier it will be
for your hands to move from chord to chord.

Step 6. Once you know these chords, try to master them without actually looking at
your hands. Another method is to actually practice playing the chords with your
fingers without actually having your guitar. This is something you can practice
while at the store or talking to friends, helping you to both multitask and
remember chord positioning.

Step 7. It is important to practice as often as you can. The best results are
usually shown in people who practice about 5 times a week. The more you practice,
the easier it will be and you will be playing full songs in no time.

Step 8. Although it is painful at first to play the guitar, your finger tips
become stronger the more you play. And when you play enough, you will begin to
build up calluses on the tips of your fingers. The good thing is that once you
have calluses on your fingers, you will be able to play for longer due to no pain.

Step 9. Once you know your basic chords, its time to move on to the more difficult
ones. Bar chords (also spelt barre chords) are probably thought of for most as
the hardest chords to play. These are when you use your index finger to “bar” a
whole fret (across all the strings) so you can play n a higher tone. Although
these are very difficult to master, keep practicing!

Step 10. Lastly and also equally as important is to get plenty of rest. Don’t
overdo it. You are here to have fun, not do so much that it’s more along the lines
of work. It’s your choice to play acoustic guitar. Go at your own pace, just don’t
give up!!

There are two common ways that most people use to learn to play the guitar when they don’t want to pay for lessons. The first way is look around you. Is there anyone you know that plays the guitar? Maybe a close friend, colleague, someone in your class or even your significant other? When trying to find someone you know to help you, make sure they are someone who is patient and willing to spend a good amount of time working with you. After all Rome wasn’t built in a day, and you wont learn to play guitar in one either!

Another method to finding basic guitar lessons for free is to use the resources available to you. There are many tools online that can help you to learn to play the guitar. The advantage with doing online learning is that you can practice at will. No one else’s schedule to work around, but your own. When you feel you need more work on certain things, you can take the time to practice those skills and not feel a burden to anyone else. And if you want to learn for multiple hours a day, or rest if you need to, then that’s your call. You are your own tutor.

I have outlined 5 steps below to get you well on your way to learning guitar.

1. The first thing is essential in learning to play guitar. You actually NEED a guitar. If you can’t afford your own, ask friends and family to see if anyone has one you can borrow until you decide if you want to buy your own. Also you will need a pick (or you can strum with your fingers, that’s your call), a stool or chair (whatever you are comfortable on), and mostly dedication and time. Once you have all these things, learn the different parts of your guitar.

2. If you have never played the guitar before, chances are your fingers will be a little tense. So move your fingers. Do what ever you think will help them not feel “stiff”. If your fingers are tense, your notes will not flow correctly. The more you practice, the easier it will get.

3. Once you are comfortable with your guitar, learning the chords is your next step. Start off with the basic chords. Probably the easiest chords to begin with are C, Cm, and C7. D, Dm, D7. E, Em, E7. F, Fm, F7. G, Gm, G7. A, Am, A7. B, Bm, B7. You can find the finger placements for these chords online for free. Once you master these chords you will have a great start in playing many songs as these are some of the easier chords that are widely used by many musicians.

4. Once you are more familiar with the chords, you need to practice strumming. Listen to the song you are trying to play and how they strum. Play along with the radio until you get the hang of it, and then try it alone. It is alot easier to strum than to pluck, so don’t jump ahead of yourself. You can try the strumming pattern of “down, down, up, up, down, up…” to help you when you start.

5. Finally the last and most important step is to practice. You are not going to become a famous musician over night, but if you practice enough, you will get better. Have a personal goal you want to reach and try to stick to that (like playing your favorite song within the next 6 months). Don’t set your expectations too high. And have fun! That’s why you wanted to play in the first place right?

In conclusion, there are several resources around you that will help you get basic guitar lessons for free. Now the rest is up to you.