Guitar MX Blog » Guitar Tips

365 Daily Guitar Lessons for 2008

Guitar MX Admin — Thu, 14 Feb 2008 18:39:40 +0000

This is a really cool idea: It’s a daily calendar with 365 guitar lessons. It’s called ‘Note-A-Day 365 Guitar Lessons: 2008 Note-A-Day Calendar for Guitar‘. Here’s a description of it:

Guitarists can learn a different lesson every day of the year with this Note-A-Day Calendar for Guitar, geared toward the advanced beginner through professional player. Requiring no music-reading ability, this 2008 daily calendar contains a 14-page glossary with 32 guitar chords, 20 guitar scales, music theory lessons, and more.

The calender lessons include guitar techniques, ear training lessons, music theory lessons, improvisational ideas, fingerboard knowledge, guitar trivia, and more.

Note-A-Day 365 Guitar Lessons is priced at $11.95 and can be purchased at Musicians Friend.

Can Hypnosis Make You A Better Guitar Player?

Guitar MX Admin — Wed, 26 Dec 2007 06:01:14 +0000

Using hypnosis to improve your guitar skills may seem a bit preposterous. After all, there is no substitute for years of practice and study to become a good guitar player.

It is possible though to practice playing an instrument, and make little substantial progress because of a lack of interest, which affects how you practice. Oftentimes, people stop practicing because they lack motivation. Since these are problems with attitude, perhaps hypnosis can help improve a person’s attitude and help them practice more frequently and practice better.

A downloadable hypnosis session from HypnosisDownloads.com claims to help learn a musical intrument. This MP3 hypnosis session claims to help you get motivated to practice frequently, and feel good about practicing, and help you feel inspired and focused on your long term musical goals. They also have another hypnosis download to help overcome performance anxiety and stage fright.

I don’t have experience with these particular hypnosis programs, but I have used hypnosis for another reason (insomnia), and it worked! So naturally, I am considering these as tools help in the guitar journey. I would be interested in what others think of this.

The Left-Handed Guitarist

Guitar MX Admin — Fri, 21 Dec 2007 06:01:05 +0000

As you can see, there are some instructional products that are endorsed on the Guitar MX site. Surprisingly, one of the more consistent sellers is the Picture Chord Encyclopedia for Left-Handed Guitarists. It’s no wonder, since there’s very little resourcesl available for left-handed guitarists. Most guitars, tablature, books and courses are designed for right-handed players. According to Wikipedia, only 7 to 10% of all people are left-handed. With 90% of guitar players being right-handed, it’s easy to see why in the guitar world, right-handers rule.

Believe it or not, left-handed guitar players may have some advantages when it comes to guitar playing, and music in general. Left-handed people process information in their brains differently than right-handed people. For example, right-handed people tend to be more analytical, whereas left-handed people tend to be more creative and artistic. Left-handed brains seem to be better at multi-tasking, which could help guitar players who sing while they play.

Some well known left-handed guitar players include Jimi Hendrix, Kurt Cobain, Paul McCartney, Albert King, Tony Iommi, Rik Emmett and Dick Dale. Mark Knopfler and BB King are also left-handed, but play guitar right-handed. Michael Angelo Batio is left-handed too, and can play both right-handed and left-handed at the same time.

Let’s say you’re left-handed and are struggling with the guitar, or you would like to learn to play the guitar; what should you do? First, try to play right-handed. Many left-handers have no problem doing certain tasks right-handed, including playing the guitar. One tip that can help determine if you’re capable of using a right-handed guitar is this: Try clapping your hands for 15 seconds. Did you hold the right hand still and clap your left hand into it? If so, then you’re probably too left-handed for a right-handed guitar. If you clapped into your left hand, or clapped into both hands at the same time, you shouldn’t have any problem using a right-handed guitar.

If you can’t play right-handed, then get a left-handed guitar. It’s not recommended ro take a right-handed guitar and re-string it and play it upside down. This will not stay in tune and is more difficult to play.

However, this is exactly what Jimi Hendrix did. By restringing his guitar and playing it upside down, his lowest string sounded bright, while his highest string sounded mellow. This was due to the pickup configuration on the Strat, and contributed to his unique sound. So it is possible to play this way, but for most players, it’s not recommended.

There aren’t as many options when selecting a left-handed guitar, but there are some great ones out there. Check some of them out here.

For more information on left-handed guitar playing, check out these lessons at GuitarNoise.com as well as this free video lesson at JamPlay.com. You can find additional instructional material for left-handed guitarists here.

Gifts Ideas For Guitar Players

Guitar MX Admin — Sat, 24 Nov 2007 02:56:01 +0000

This is the time of year where many people begin buying holiday gifts for friends and family. If you have a guitar player on your list, but don’t know what to get for them, you may want to consider these gift ideas.

Guitar Starter Kit

If you know someone who is just starting out on guitar, then a Guitar Starter Kit is a very economic way to help someone get started on their guitar journey. One kit to consider is the Epiphone Les Paul Special II Player Pack, which features:

Epiphone LP Special II Guitar
Epiphone Studio 10 amp
Gig bag
Instructional video
Quartz guitar tuner
Strap, cable, and picks

Also check out the Ibanez Quickstart Acoustic Starter Kit, which sells for just $99.

Guitar Lessons

Elmore Music offers an online guitar instruction package, that includes step-by-step video lessons, and includes many added bonuses. This would be a great gift idea for someone just starting to play guitar.

JamPlay.com is another site that offers video guitar lessons. They currently offer 4,226 minutes of video lessons for all skill levels. You can purchase 3 months of access for just $49.95.

Guitar Book’s and DVD’s

Guitar books and DVD’s are a gift that any guitar player would appreciate. Sheet Music Plus has hundreds of tablature and instructional books to fit anyone’s taste. DVD’s are also good, like the instructional Rock House series DVD’s, or performance DVD’s like recently released Eric Clapton: Crossroads Guitar Festival 2007, which would be a great gift for any guitar player.

Guitar Center Gift Card

If you’re still unsure what to get for a guitar player, then consider a Guitar Center gift card. Guitar Center Gift Cards are available in any amount from $5 to $500, and can be redeemed at any Guitar Center location or online. Guitar Center gift cards can be purchased by clicking here.

You can find more gift ideas by clicking here.