The other day a friend of mine asked how I had learned to play the guitar, and I thought this would make a nice post for all to read. It might motivate you, it might set you off, either way, it will show you one thing most importantly: if I could do it, you can too. I was not a genius nor was I born talent, and I certainly haven’t always had a guitar in my hands. I just enjoyed it from the beginning, and stuck with it.
My Guitar Story
You see, anybody can learn to play the guitar. Be it, there are super talented guitarists, but unfortunately I am not one of them. If I was, you’d be watching me on TV being harassed by hundreds of girls not writing on my desktop.
Ok, no more fantasizing, here is my guitar story…
The first time I held a guitar was late high school I believe. I could already play the drums well, since I’ve been learning how since the age of 8. I loved the drums as well, but the fact is that the drums are an instrument that you can’t really play by yourself. You needed a band. But school was almost over and I wanted to learn how to play the guitar.
This is sort of why I turned towards the guitar. Not entirely because I wanted to play in a band, but rather because I loved playing music, and wanted to keep on playing even after school band days were over. I also loved the sound of guitars; they gave me a rush in my veins that I dearly enjoyed. So I bought a guitar, and started learning.
How I Learned to Play Guitar
I started out with the first option, learning from a guitar book. And well, that didn’t get me very far to say the least. I didn’t understand chord diagrams and all the ramblings about the different techniques, so the book was a waste of money. I still have the book for some reason though, saw it the other day somewhere, but I don’t know why I even kept it.
So after I realized that the book wasn’t getting me anywhere, I searched the internet for a while and got hold of a few different pieces of guitar teaching software, all of them but one was too hard to understand and also ended up being a waste of money and time. However, the one that stood out and helped me tremendously was Musician’s ToolBox. Since it had pictures and sounds, it was better than the book, and actually taught me the basic chords and fingerings, strumming, and very simple songs to start out with.
I finished the curriculum of the software fairly quickly, and was able to play quite well. My friends were impressed and praised me for my ability to play tough songs. Then I got very busy and had to stop playing for about a year.
Than school ended and I decided to pick it up again. And I haven’t stopped since. I bought a new set of Musical ToolBox because I seem to have lost my last one. (I know I’m very clumsy)This got me off on the right track, and got me practicing more and more. The more I played, the more I loved it!
And that was the first time I realized that the guitar would stay with me for the rest of my life. I love the way the neck vibrated in my palm when I strummed a chord, I loved how my fingers started hurting after playing too much, and I loved the way people looked at me when I started playing.
I love everything about the guitar, and you will too! Remember that the more you play, the better you get, and the more you’ll want to play.
I just had a conversation with a superb guitarist over the weekend, which has been playing for over 30 years. I asked him whether he remembers the beginning, and all he could say was the same. He’s loved every moment of playing ever since the beginning (which is sort of weird, since I distinctly remember not enjoying it when I couldn’t play anything yet).
So the moral of the story is that we all have different experiences with the guitar, but anybody could learn to play. The thing that sets guitarists apart from regular people is that guitarists have the strength, patience and perseverance to keep on going even if it seems hard at times. Remember that practice, makes perfect, and if I could learn to play, you can as well. After a half hour looking for the software I used to learn how to play, I found it and if you would like to check it out to you can here: http://ow.ly/81dk4. I hope you learn to play as good as I have. Good Luck!
