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Couple Money Weekly Round-Up: Learning the Guitar

by Elle on May 23, 2010

Picking Up the Electric Guitar

Besides blogging, I like to keep myself busy and entertained with other things. My focus right now is learning to play the electric guitar. I received it as a college graduation gift, but like many things, I’ve hadn’t spent much time with it. I’m determined to change that this year and at least learn the basics and a couple of songs.

My new goal is learning some basic guitar.

My new goal is learning some basic guitar.

I’m definitely a beginner and so I’ve asked around to get some advice from family and friends who play. They were kind enough to give me some resources to check out and use as I learn. Justin Guitar was bought up a few times, so I went ahead to the site and checked it out.

If you’re looking for free material on the web for learning the guitar, this is the site. He has a ton of information on there and he has some wonderful DVDs to buy at reasonable prices if that’s your preference.

If any of you guys have any recommendations for learning an instrument, not just the guitar, could you leave a link in the comments section? It would be nice to help others pick up an instrument to learn in their spare time.

Personal Finance Posts I Enjoyed This Week

With my schedule this week, I saved my post reading for this weekend. Like most weeks, there were too many to include in the round-up.

Remember, if you submit your best post over the past week, I’ll read it and probably include it in my weekly round-up.  I’ve discovered some great posts and new blogs this way.

Photo Credit: mrbill

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Tagged as: Learning the Guitar

  • Dan

    I’ve been playing guitar on and off for 25 years (wow, did that comment suddenly make me feel old…). I am now teaching my son the basics on an electric. One resource I can highly recommend is Homespun. This is, hands down, the best instruction you can find aside from a private instructor. Just stay away from the streaming instruction. It’s fairly new and there are still some glitches. Just order the DVDs. I also just found a site online called ActiveMelody.com. I actually found it through iTunes where the author has some excellent beginner blues videos that are some of the best beginner guitar lessons I have found. I am using a few with my son to supplement his learning through the Homespun materials. There are also some great instructional videos on YouTube, but you have to search around.

    Start with the blues and go from there. That will give you a good foundation to build from. Good luck to you. You will never regret learning the guitar! I used to play nothing but electric, but find the older I get the more I enjoy my Martin acoustic.

  • Elle

    Thanks Dan! There seems to be a lot of music lessons there. I’m trying to practice a little each day and then build up from there. I’m hoping to stick with it until I reach my goals.

  • Dan

    The most important thing is to find some easy songs you like and learn to play them. Learning the basics is essential, but like anything else, if you don’t enjoy it you won’t stick with it. Exercising, eating foods that are good for you, learning guitar… it’s no different. Learn to read tab (it’s super easy) and then visit Ultimate Guitar (http://www.ultimate-guitar.com) and download some songs you like! Before I taught my son a lick of basics, he learned to play some Jonas Brothers and Metallica songs. He was hooked!

    Good luck, and have fun!

  • http://www.namelymarly.com Marly

    I absolutely agree with Dan that if you can find some simple songs you like and play those it will help a lot. You need to feel some success on your belt. I also recommend getting to know some people who play in your area. There are a lot of tricks to the trade in playing a guitar. For example there are several ways to finger a g-chord, depending on what chord you’ll be playing next. It can help you transition in the song. You can learn this from reading, but having someone show you would help a lot. How can you meet others? One idea would be to go to a local coffee shop where someone is playing and just introduce yourself to the musicians. You never know, they might be willing to hang out and jam one of these days. I love acoustical guitar so that is what I play, but I’m still just mediocre at best. It’s so much fun though! Congrats to you for learning the guitar!

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