There are a number of reasons for it becoming the first choice of young people, not least of which is the fact that it is relatively easy to learn how to play the guitar.It is also an extremely versatile musical instrument used by musicians of all genre.
Beginning from basics, everyone has to learn to perform two totally separate actions at the same time: one with the Left hand, and another with the Right. For most people, the notes of the Chord required is fingered by the Left hand, and the sound is produced by the Strumming action of the Right. You may be naturally Left-handed, and prefer to ‘reverse string’ your guitar so that you finger the chords with your Right hand and strum with your left. A famous example would be Sir Paul McCartney. If this applies to you, please note that the notes which follow are for Right-handed players and you may need to ‘reverse’ Right and Left references!
A beginner should start with a couple of ‘warm up’ exercises even before picking up a guitar. These take no more than five minutes but are extremely valuable.
To train the Left hand, use a small rubber ball, preferably solid rather than hollow. Squeeze it hard, and let go again. Repeat this, building up a regular rhythmic pattern or ‘beat’. Experiment with musical patterns such as three beats to a bar, or four, and at different speeds.
For the Right hand. Lay your hand palm down on a flat surface, and concentrate on lifting one finger at a time without moving any of the other fingers. As this becomes easier, try making repetitive patterns of finger movements, or extend to lift any two fingers (leaving three still in contact with the table).
These exercises are designed to encourage the strength and dexterity of the lesser-used muscles at the base of your fingers in each hand, and will make it easier for you to perform the different tasks you need to play the guitar well. Very soon you’ll discover that you can perform both these exercises at the same time.
In order to finger the Chords you will use to accompany the melody line you must place your fingers in fixed positions snugly behind the Frets which are evenly spaced on the Neck of the guitar while you strum with the other hand (or a Plectrum).
You’ll find that the vast majority of songs can be accompanied with as little as three chords. These are called the ‘related’ chords of any given key and generally are based on do, fa and so of the scale. With these you’ll soon be playing a large number of songs and can quickly add more.
The one thing which is vital is the discipline of setting aside time for regular daily practice, even if you can only spare five minutes or so. Practice has to be a habit rather than something which needs conscious effort. With regular practice you will soon discover that the only reference book you need is any of the comprehensive, easy to follow books with diagrams of all the basic chords and which fingers to use.
Finally, the electric guitar has the advantage of certain special effects which cannot be reproduced with an acoustic guitar. Acoustic guitars depend on the size of the open resonance space to produce the volume of the notes and chords played. Electric guitars (including the bass guitar, which has only four strings) are capable of a range of special effects, such as ‘fuzz’, or the wah-wah sound induced by use of a tremolo arm. Foot pedals are also common, and can be used to add other effects, such as an upper (or lower) octave to the notes actually strummed.
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