Pitches on the Guitar

        Learning the Pitches on the Guitar




          You are now ready to start learning the different pitches playable on the guitar.The exercises given in lessons 4-11 will teach you the different notes you can play on each string of the guitar, starting with the high E- string.

          Do not write numbers in the music to tell you what fret to play a certain note on.You will not learn the notes this way.Be patient. It will take some time and practice before you
will have the notes memorized.

        Place the fingers of the left hand just before the fret that is indicated. Do not place in directly on the fret.The first finger should be on the first fret, the second finger on the second
fret etc..



Practice Hints:
1. Always practice slow.
2. Try to play the correct rhythm right away.
3. Do not just play through the piece. Find the hardest measures and spend most of your time on those.
      Illustration of Left hand        Position of the Thumb

Rest Stroke

The Rest Stroke:


              As a preparation to playing notes on the guitar, we   need to practice the rest stroke first on the
open strings.

Place the index finger of your left hand on the high E-string and pluck it. 
You will then rest your i index finger on the next string. 
Now repeat the same motion with your middle finger. 
Once the middle finger rests on the second string lift up the first finger again. 
You can think of the rest stroke as a type of walking motion.






Illustration of the Rest Stroke

Exercise (4.1):
Play each string four times. When you get to the low E-string, the motion will stay
the same, even though there is no string left to rest your fingers on. Listen to the exercise
first before trying it. 

 
Your fingers should be almost straight, and in order to keep them that way your whole hand needs to move up when the lower strings are played.

Hand Using

LESSON 4

Terms and Symbols in Guitar Music
Left Hand: Right Hand:

Seating Position:
There are two ways of holding the guitar. In the regular position you would put the
guitar on the right leg. In the classical position it is resting on the left leg, while your left foot is
placed on a footstool. Either position has advantages and disadvantages. Choose the one most
comfortable to you.

Rhythm Exercises

LESSON 3

Rhythm Exercises
We usually practice rhythms by clapping them, so we do not have to worry about playing the guitar
at the same time. Naturally you will not hear the notes sustained, but rather only the beginning of each
note.

Quater Beats

By now you might have begun to wonder what the
4,4
at the beginning of each line stands for. It is called
time signature, and it appears at the beginning of every musical selection or exercise.
4,4
stands for 4 quarter beats per measure. They can appear in any form.

3,4
3 quarter beats per measure

2,4
2 quarter beats per measure

Note: Sometimes the 4,4 symbol may be substituted for the symbol: c

Quarter Note

3. The quarter note:
                      Quarter notes are half as long as half notes, so they will receive 1 beat each.

4. The eighth note:

                     Eighth notes can be notated in two ways. A single eighth note will usually be notated like this:

Two or more eighth notes can be notated like this:

Eighth notes are half as long as quarter notes. So two eighth notes have to be played in the same
time it takes for one quarter note to be played. To count eighth notes we have to use
SUBDIVISION. We subdivide the quarter beat into two eighth note beats by using the symbol &
(and).

Symbols in Music

                
                   Basic Terms and Symbols in Music

Lesson 1 (Tuning The Guitar)

Follow your instincts. 

If you think you have matched the sound with tone, you will probably be correct. 

If the strings are put on correctly on your guitar, the pitch will go up when the tuning peg is turned away from you, and
lower when the peg is turned towards you. 

When the first string is in tune listen to the sound of the second string with tone, and repeat the same procedure until all six strings are in tune.

Note: 

Tuning a guitar is not as hard as you might think, but it is going to take some practice. 

If it requires a bit to tune practicing the guitar the initial number of times, do not get frustrated; it's going to become easier in the foreseeable future.

Guitar Brands

 Main Parts of Guitar

Classical guitars are for sale to the beginning guitarist approximately 150-400 dollars. 

The top guitars for their price come in Mexico.

Japanese guitars are more expensive, but you are still a
good product for price. 

The best choice for the classical guitarist would still be a guitar from Spain,which can be not quite as no problem finding.

If you select a guitar make certain that it feels comfortable, and that there are no buzzing sounds once you strum the strings. 

A great full sound for the high strings is much more desirable than a strong bass string sound.


Some trustworthy brands: 

Japan:             Mexico:            Spain:
Yamaha          Tres Piños        Artesano
Takamini        Valenciana        P. Saez
Ibanez