Training in the guitar usually begins with the chords of the first position. It would seem that it is simpler than studying the simple fingering of Am, Dm and E. Moreover, having mastered this bunch, you can already play a lot of simple songs.
But, unfortunately, beginners can not cope with this task. Fingers are confused, despite all the efforts; corns on the fingertips are unpleasant; and switching to another chord seems like an impossible task at all.
Involuntarily come thoughts of musical insolvency and frustration. But there should be no room for chagrin - there is a way out and everything is fixable. A series of auxiliary simple exercises, considered in this article, will give more performance confidence and help put your fingers in place.
Preparation for Guitar Exercises
Before embarking on the exercises, you need to take into account that the phalanges of the fingers should be almost perpendicular to the surface of the neck at the time of pressing the strings. The little finger should be above the strings and not fall for the neck.
In all exercises, chords are played by a simple brute force (Exercise 1), the only thing that will change in it is the bass string (depends on the chord). If anyone is confused by the size of 6/8 and it is difficult to understand how it is rhythmically played, you can listen to the intro of the ballad Nothing Else Matters of Metallica. The first bars of this composition are played in exactly the same way.
Exercise 1
By the way, examples of the given notations are called tablature. You can read more about this method of guitar notation in the article “What is a tablature and how to play the guitar without notes?”.
The basis of the exercises
Chords in the exercises are taken, as if gradually. First one finger is put, an arpeggio is played (brute force) 2 bars, then the second finger is put, the third finger and just as well, by analogy. The result is a full chord in standard fingering. The fingers are gaining strength for the quality of pressing the string, and practicing the skill. That is, the beginner goes through the preparatory stage in mastering the chords of the first position.
Exercise 2 - Am (A minor)
At the top of each measure is a guitar net, that is, a schematic designation of chord fingering on the fingerboard. It will be easier to disassemble the musical material. The numbers at the bottom of the grid, near each string, indicate which finger to press the string. Next comes the musical notation and tabs - string / number of frets.
You need to start playing with an extremely slow tempo, at which fingers have time to press the strings and the search does not go astray from the rhythm. Beats of tact for uniformity are preferably counted with a kick (one-two-three-2p. In each cycle).
Exercise 3 - Dm (D Minor)
In this exercise, the setting of the chord Dm is practiced. His beginners are somewhat more difficult, because of a small stretch within three frets, in contrast to the Am and E fingerings, in two frets. Therefore, the exercise begins with the setting of the third finger and then the second, the first and the standard Dm is obtained. During the execution, you need to control the fingers so that they do not “disperse” and the brush - it must take a fixed position and not bend.
Exercise 4 - E (E major)
Exercise to work out the chord E, in some way it is similar to exercise 2 (Am) due to similar fingering. In steps 7 and 8, fingers from the fifth and fourth strings are not removed.
Now that each of the chords is worked out separately, you can begin to work out transitions from chord to chord. In the next exercise, the first 4th bar is formed by Am, then 1 finger is placed on the third string in the 5th bar - thus, the transition to E appears. In the 9th bar, a gradual transition to Am begins again.
Exercise 5 - Am - E - Am
Exercise 6 - Am - Dm - Am
The first 6 measures are built in A minor, then 6 measures in D minor. At the end there is a reprise, that is, you need to go back to the beginning and play again.
How to organize self-study?
The material must be worked out gradually, starting with the first exercise. When the performance is confident and clear, without hesitation and errors, you can proceed to the next.
It is strictly forbidden to overload the hand. Even with a slight pain you need to immediately stop playing.
It is best to engage in the morning and evening hours, for 15-30 minutes. Having mastered the exercise, you should not put it aside. Subsequent classes can begin with its repetition, as a warm-up.
Play exercises need to be systematically, little by little, but every day. Shown persistence and perseverance will not make long wait for the appearance of the desired results. Lada will not seem so impregnable, and you can safely make new steps in the development of guitar skill.
So these were beginner guitar exercises. And what to do when these exercises are already mastered? Ahead - the development of new techniques of playing the guitar. By the way, it will be useful for beginners to learn how the methods of playing the guitar differ from the ways of sound extraction. You can read about this in the article "Methods of playing the guitar."
I wish you success!
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