# Tips, I'm somewhat a beginner!



## Kyleduong (Jan 26, 2018)

So I took a guitar course in high shool, didnt learn shit just songs with single note. Now I'm just learning on my own for songs that are popular with tabs. The problem is that I haven't develop the skill of changing notes or like playing notes, not chords, like for fingerstyl songs, and I can't find any video on it at all pls help


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## cboutilier (Jan 12, 2016)

Fingerstyle requires black magic and blood sacrifice.


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## Guncho (Jun 16, 2015)

Learn some chords. G C D learn to change between them easily and strum them comfortably.


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## Kyleduong (Jan 26, 2018)

Guncho said:


> Learn some chords. G C D learn to change between them easily and strum them comfortably.


I think I'm not a full beginner and like almost intermediate since I know all the basic chords, some other chords that has 7th in it, and I have a decent f chord atm


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## jimmy c g (Jan 1, 2008)

a decent f chord atm is a very misunderstood attribute...


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## cboutilier (Jan 12, 2016)

jimmy c g said:


> a decent f chord atm is a very misunderstood attribute...


I only use it 80% of the time when playing rhythm. I am almost always playing F, A, or C shape chords up and down the neck.


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## mawmow (Nov 14, 2017)

I am not sure I understand your quest.
As I went from playing chords (arpeggios) to fingerstyle, I had to exercise my quite clusmy fingers on the neck.
I began with short classical pieces to do so.
The idea is to play notes in the first fret with the index finger, the second fret with second finger and so on : that is first position.
There is a video at Homespun by the late Pete Huttlinger about fingerstyle exercises.
P.S. I cannot give any book title since a relative is now using them, look for easy or beginner's classical pieces.


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## Scotty (Jan 30, 2013)

If none of the above appeals as a method of learning to get you to play something you like, try rocksmith.


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## [email protected] (May 15, 2017)

Try Banjo, nothing gets people's' attention faster


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## Morkolo (Dec 9, 2010)

Kyleduong said:


> I think I'm not a full beginner and like almost intermediate since I know all the basic chords, some other chords that has 7th in it, and I have a decent f chord atm


Well if you're an intermediate player than you should be able to explain more clearly what it is you're trying to work on. A quick Youtube search for fingerstyle guitar tutorial had over 3 million results. You already read tabs so a quick google search should send you on your way. If for example you're having trouble moving between chord shapes while keeping the melody going unfortunately that's something that only practice will fix.


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## Casey86 (Jan 28, 2018)

'Dust in the Wind' by Kansas was first just a fingerstyle exercise by the guitarist. His wife said it 'sounds nice write lyrics' for it. Here is a decent 'how to' video. I'm just learning guitar and enjoyed the video.


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## Kyleduong (Jan 26, 2018)

Well I don' have the knowledge of music yet since I don't care for little details and just playing atm, Imma try to practice fingerstyle exercises and all of that shit, but is there like a easy song that I can learn f ngerstyle that isn't really that old or like something in the 2000 just cause I can' impress people if they don't know he song lol


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## Dorian2 (Jun 9, 2015)

No offense here @Kyleduong , but as a teacher I'd like to suggest you're more of a beginner. Maybe try searching for Beginner fingerstyle guitar or maybe try to tackle some basic Classical guitar stuff, much like what @mawmow did. What type of songs are you looking to play that are newer? Any particular finger style artists that you like? Or are you looking to apply finger style to a flat picked tune? Are you looking to use both chords and single notes together? Let the forum know more specically what yu're looking to accomplish...besides impressing your friends.


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## albert (Apr 15, 2009)

To get better at fingerstyle I like to play scales (especially as a warm up) and chords as arrpegios (one string at a time) with thumb and alternating fingers (index I, middle m and ring a). There are some Metallica songs that begin with finger style acoustic as well as some Black Sabbath like Iron Man or Diary of a Madman. I am sure there are many others that I can't think of right now. Don't give up, it really is a lot of fun.


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## Greg Ellis (Oct 1, 2007)

Most of these songs are really old grandpa music, but there are a few in the list that are more recent...

Top 70+ Greatest Fingerpicking Songs | Musician Tuts


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## Adcandour (Apr 21, 2013)

How about Silent Lucidity? That SUPER EASY, and will impress people (who don't know how to play guitar).

I always thought Nothing Else Matters was pretty easy and impressive too. Tricker than the one above.


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## bw66 (Dec 17, 2009)

I find that it's easier to impress non-musical friends with songs that they don't know - if they are familiar with the song, they will compare your playing to the recording. The suggestion of starting with some easy classical pieces is a good one - people are always impressed by classical music on guitar - even if they say that classical music is not to their taste, they will assume that classical music is hard.


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## cdntac (Oct 11, 2017)

Want to know how to impress your friends? 

Practice. Then practice some more. After that, practice even more. 

There aren't any short cuts.


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## mawmow (Nov 14, 2017)

"Practice makes better". In fact there are three "P" to mastering (the guitar) : Practise, be Patient and Persevere.

Think about it : You have to at least learn chords and form them as you read their names, build muscle strenght of your forearms and get more agility and develop new sense of touch of your fingertips, you also have to train your ears and your brain has to make sense of all of that (brain plasticity) before you can impress your friends. Sorry, it won't happen tomorrow.
And if you want to play fingerstyle, you will have to learn notes on the fretboard, read the tabs and/ or staffs and synchronize more acurately fingers of both hands. You will unfortunately not be there next week.

We all Practised, been Patient and Persevered... and still do everyday while learning new pieces. ;-)

I began fingerstyle as a hobby by 55 years old and I am struggling to wrap up theory and practice ever since !
I bought a bunch of books in the Fingerpicking series and still discover pieces I was not aware of and find myself quite rewarded when I come to honestly play one of them. There are also series for beginners.
You want new pieces... why not great old classicals getting through the ages ?
I guess we all began with something like The House of the Rising Sun : easy arpeggios on basic chords to get hands synchronized !

Remember : Practise, be Patient and Persevere.


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## Kyleduong (Jan 26, 2018)

The type of music I want to play is more of the modern day stuff tbh, I don' mind classical and stuff but it seems that people enjoy songs more of this generation, and I seen YouTube videos of people playing these songs, also I forgot to add friends and girls lol


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## Dorian2 (Jun 9, 2015)

Kyleduong said:


> The type of music I want to play is more of the modern day stuff tbh, I don' mind classical and stuff but it seems that people enjoy songs more of this generation, and I seen YouTube videos of people playing these songs, also I forgot to add friends and girls lol


What genre and style of modern day stuff Kyle. Can you supply a couple of examples please? It's actually fairly important in this particular discussion. C'mon man. Spill the Beans!! What do you listen to? No one is going to judge you. Is it guitar based? RAP? Ed Sheeran? Arch Enemy? Justin Bielieber? Taylor Swift. Rise Against? Is it Radio friendly or deep underground death dirges? Satanic music? Dance? KPOP? There are a shit load of players here and we've seen and heard it all and more. My daughter learned what adcandour suggested (SIlent Lucidity) as her 1st tune, went on to Nirvana and some GreenSleeves all while she listens to Operatic and Power Metal. When she wants a break from that, she listens to KPOP as many of her Asian friends dig that kind of stuff. I did take note your name BTW....but I'm not assuming you're into any of the above.


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## Kyleduong (Jan 26, 2018)

Yea lol sorry bout not putting the details, I been told more people wanna heard songs like pop and stuff, so I'm trying to learn some ed sheeran songs and some of the f ngerstyle pip songs from Eddie van de meer and james bartholomew on youtube. I have tabs of James Arthur and ed sheeran tabs, but yea myself personally I'm in to hip pop and shit but I don' mind learning these types of songs


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## Wardo (Feb 5, 2010)

mawmow said:


> .... I guess we all began with something like The House of the Rising Sun : easy arpeggios on basic chords to get hands synchronized !


Once I learned that song in grade school, way back when, I had enough to change around with and start making up my own songs.


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## Guest (Feb 4, 2018)




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## Wardo (Feb 5, 2010)

laristotle said:


>


Glad I didn’t get rid of my Ovation; I was keeping it in case I ever needed a bed pan but now I’m gonna do the drum mod on it for playing in front of the liquor store.


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## Dorian2 (Jun 9, 2015)

Kyleduong said:


> Yea lol sorry bout not putting the details, I been told more people wanna heard songs like pop and stuff, so I'm trying to learn some ed sheeran songs and some of the f ngerstyle pip songs from Eddie van de meer and james bartholomew on youtube. I have tabs of James Arthur and ed sheeran tabs, but yea myself personally I'm in to hip pop and shit but I don' mind learning these types of songs


With something like Hip P(H)op would somethhing like this be what your trying to get at?






As with all musical instruments, particularly guitar, you'll have to learn songs that allow you to work on some basic rudiments and styles to begin with. But everything that applies to one genre or sub genre of music can be applied to most other genres at some point in your playing. You mentioned in your OP that you'd only worked with single note lines, so try learning as many chords (or chord shapes at minimum) as you can. Here's a super fun, easy basic acoustic song that I've recently learned (I'm into Hard Rock and Metal) that may appeal to you. It covers a lot of stuff that would help you out as far as chords and beats/rhythms are concerned. Finger style can certainly be used on it now or later when you have both the chords and some type of finger style patterns down. I'm pretty sure you've heard of it.






Here's the chords:

Gnarls Barkley - Crazy (Chords)


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## Steadfastly (Nov 14, 2008)

Got to YouTube and do a How to play (enter song title). There are lots of these and you should find several to your liking.


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