What’s this week’s question? Let’s dive straight in…
Question: I use both hands for various activities. I write with my left hand and throw with my right hand. I have only been able to try right handed guitars from friends, and always thought I was lefty. Recently, I tried a lefty guitar and it’s didn’t feel any more natural than my right.
Does anyone have any tips how I might be able to determine this??
Thank you kindly…
Answer: Hello there,
Contrary to what most beginners think, picking/strumming is the part that requires the most coordination. Most beginners think fretting the strings is. However, that is wrong. You want to use your dominant hand (most coordinated hand) to pick with. Fret the strings with your off hand.
For those of us who are ambidextrous, that is not easy to decide. I play the guitar right handed (over the years I have played both ways). I write with either hand (even both at the same time). I have found that I can pick the guitar as well or maybe better with my right hand. Also since it is easier to find right handed guitars than left handed ones, I play right handed. I don’t know about you, but for me each thing I do one hand feels more natural than the other. That is how I decide which hand to use for that activity. That is true with guitar also. The problem with guitar is that at first it does not feel natural no matter what hand you use. Next time you get the chance to play, focus on which hand feels most coordinated for picking strings. See if you can play one or two strings without striking the others. That sort of thing. That is about the best way I can think of to decide which way to play.
Later,
This week’s question is as follows:
Question: I really like guitars mainly bass i was wondering would it be hard for someone without any guitar knowledge to learn?
Answer: The bass guitar can be the easiest to play. You would have to take the "Less Is More" approach and only hit the bass note of every chord that the band is playing.
It would help to learn simple "finger-style" playing on the regular guitar and to do finger-picking of songs on the regular guitar before learning to play bass. By doing this, you will learn a lot more faster of where notes are on the fretboard which will help you when learning to play bass guitar.
If you learn bass, you will need to learn to mute the bass strings while playing the bass at the same time.
The bass can be the easiest to learn how to play OR it can be the hardest to learn how to play. It all depends on the type of musical approach, technical playing method, and the type of music genres you want to play.
Example: Traditional Country Music: You need to take "Less Is More" approach in terms of playing relatively simple bass lines like playing the root note and fifth note of each chord in alternation while being in a support / rhythm role within the band.
Example: Funk Music: Songs can be centered on the bass line. The bassline is usually very prominent in the mix.
A learn guitar question that should definitely interest you all this week
Question: i have done a little bit of guitar at school and I find it really difficult, but my family friend is offering to teach me to play and I’m not sure if I should say yes or no. See, I don’t mind putting the extra effort in but I don’t want him to get frustrated if I take ages to learn things.
Answer: according to me, if anyone is offering anything u shouldn’t say no….u can alwaz try it for a while, and if u don’t feel good about it, u can explain it to ur friend and stop there……..i would say, go ahead with it……….
What’s this week’s learn guitar question? Let’s dive straight in…
Question: I really would love to learn just one song on guitar, that’s fairly simple and I was wondering if these were easy enough.
Starlight by muse
Killing me softly (Plain white t’s cover version)
Written All Over My Face – Kris Allen
Answer: Probably. Learn. Hey there Delilah.
A learn guitar question that should definitely interest you all this week
Question: I know all the basic chords and have practiced them for awhile. If you could list an easy song to learn on the guitar that would be great. I’ll search tutorials on you tube so don’t worry about that.
Answer: Wonderwall by Oasis. There might be some new chords that u have to learn, but they are not difficult to learn. It is an easy song to play but sounds great. It was one of my first songs I learned.
A tough learn guitar question this week. Let’s dive straight in
Question: Around how much would a guitar lesson cost with a used guitar? Oh yeah I’m a lefty, is it more expensive?
Answer: Lessons cost between $30 and $60 an hour.
I just love answering these learn guitar questions. Here’s another:
Question: All time low
Avril lavigne
Boys like girls
Evanescence
Good Charlotte
Nickleback
Taylor swift (I know how to play you belong with me, teardrops on my guitar and jump then fall)
Mayday parade
Soooooo what are some easy songs to play by these artists or any other songs you recommend?????
Answer: You could learn knocking on heaven’s door, which is actually a bob dylan song, but avril lavigne has also played it. It’s very easy.
A learn guitar question that should definitely interest you all this week
Question: Hello, I would like to play guitar. (I’m 14, for your information. [if that helps])
I’m just not sure what a good guitar to start with would be though, could I have any suggestions?
( Please? <3 ) I would like to play electric, but if acoustic is better for beginners, then that would work too.
I would also like to order one online, because that would work better for me.
Answer: Forget what those guys are saying.
Buy an ESP guitar. They are amazing quality and come with great pickups. They also have a shorter neck, so its easy to play for someone your age. If you’re on a budget, I’d go with the ESP EC-50. I own one of those and its siiiccck. best stock pickups i’ve ever heard. 
You can find it on musiciansfriend.com you can also look there and sort by price to find one you like
Keep the learn guitar questions coming! I liked this one:
Question: What Are the Benefits of Taking Guitar Lessons Compared to Learning from YouTube?
Answer: Nothing is better than having an actual live teacher in front of you. They can observe your playing and point out what’s good and what needs work. They will often draw your attention to things that you never would have noticed as well. They can jam with you, which is one of the best ways to learn (it’s also why I specified having a live teacher in the room, you can’t jam over the internet) They will craft a lesson plan specifically for you, complete with exercises that will help you target your weak ares.
There really is no comparison. One on one private tuition has always been the best way to learn a musical instrument, and nothing is posed to change that.
What a great learn guitar question:
Question: Whats a cheap but good brand of acoustic guitar?
What size do i need (if there r sizes?) i am 5′6" and im 14
Can i learn alone with a book, ratherthan taking lessons?
Pick or finger plucking for beginners?
Any other tips?
And also… How to convince parents its a good idea and not just a phase!
Answer: I wrote out a very long piece of advice thoroughly answering all your questions. However, it was too long to post on this site, so I made a public blog post about it since the advice I gave would be good for anyone starting the guitar. I re-worded your questions and published the post in my new music blog. The link is below. I hope this is useful.
http://aomcmusicgeneral.blogspot.com/2011/08/advice-for-people-wanting-to-start.html
