https://acousticguitar.com lessons, music to play, and how-tos for all guitarists Fri, 22 Nov 2024 22:57:55 +0000 en-US hourly 1 https://i0.wp.com/acousticguitar.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/11/AG_Favicon.png?fit=32%2C32&ssl=1 https://acousticguitar.com 32 32 103806923 https://acousticguitar.com/classical-guitar-phenom-jiji-and-her-polystylistic-adventures/ https://acousticguitar.com/classical-guitar-phenom-jiji-and-her-polystylistic-adventures/#respond Sun, 28 Apr 2024 13:00:00 +0000 https://acousticguitar.com/?p=144046 The South Korea born guitarist/composer reflects on her diverse influences, shares practice techniques, and previews some upcoming projects.]]> https://acousticguitar.com/classical-guitar-phenom-jiji-and-her-polystylistic-adventures/feed/ 0 144046 https://acousticguitar.com/getting-started-with-classical-guitar-tremolo-picking/ https://acousticguitar.com/getting-started-with-classical-guitar-tremolo-picking/#respond Wed, 01 Nov 2023 13:00:00 +0000 https://acousticguitar.com/?p=141878 Though commonly associated with classical guitar, tremolo technique can be used on steel-string acoustic or even electric guitar to give the impression of a sustained voice. ]]> https://acousticguitar.com/getting-started-with-classical-guitar-tremolo-picking/feed/ 0 141878 https://acousticguitar.com/eric-johnson-gretchen-menn-the-acoustic-guitar-podcast/ https://acousticguitar.com/eric-johnson-gretchen-menn-the-acoustic-guitar-podcast/#respond Wed, 27 Sep 2023 11:20:00 +0000 https://acousticguitar.com/?p=142132 While both our guests are lauded for their electric guitar chops, this episode is all about playing unplugged.]]> https://acousticguitar.com/eric-johnson-gretchen-menn-the-acoustic-guitar-podcast/feed/ 0 142132 https://acousticguitar.com/lesson-5-steps-to-improving-your-acoustic-rock-arpeggio-technique/ https://acousticguitar.com/lesson-5-steps-to-improving-your-acoustic-rock-arpeggio-technique/#comments Fri, 11 Feb 2022 15:50:00 +0000 https://acousticguitar.com/?p=99222 This acoustic guitar lesson on fingerpicking arpeggios will benefit your rhythm and lead playing as well as your compositional ability and overall musicianship]]> https://acousticguitar.com/lesson-5-steps-to-improving-your-acoustic-rock-arpeggio-technique/feed/ 1 99222 https://acousticguitar.com/video-lesson-5-ways-to-build-your-rock-rhythm-guitar-rudiments/ https://acousticguitar.com/video-lesson-5-ways-to-build-your-rock-rhythm-guitar-rudiments/#respond Fri, 04 Feb 2022 18:32:00 +0000 https://acousticguitar.com/?p=100026 Developing your sense of time and rhythmic vocabulary won’t just make you a better rhythm player, it will make you a better lead player, and a better musician overall.]]> https://acousticguitar.com/video-lesson-5-ways-to-build-your-rock-rhythm-guitar-rudiments/feed/ 0 100026 https://acousticguitar.com/how-to-build-scales-part-i/ https://acousticguitar.com/how-to-build-scales-part-i/#respond Fri, 28 Jan 2022 16:28:00 +0000 https://acousticguitar.com/?p=107650 In this acoustic guitar lesson, Gretchen Menn breaks down the basics of scale formation and shows you how to apply that knowledge to the fretboard.]]> https://acousticguitar.com/how-to-build-scales-part-i/feed/ 0 107650 https://acousticguitar.com/video-lesson-learning-the-notes-on-the-fretboard-and-the-staff/ https://acousticguitar.com/video-lesson-learning-the-notes-on-the-fretboard-and-the-staff/#respond Fri, 14 Jan 2022 16:51:00 +0000 https://acousticguitar.com/?p=106580 Guitarist Gretchen Menn offers beginner's tips on how to familiarize yourself with the guitar fretboard and learn the fundamentals of music theory.]]> https://acousticguitar.com/video-lesson-learning-the-notes-on-the-fretboard-and-the-staff/feed/ 0 106580 https://acousticguitar.com/a-guitar-tribute-to-j-s-bach-on-his-336th-birthday/ https://acousticguitar.com/a-guitar-tribute-to-j-s-bach-on-his-336th-birthday/#respond Thu, 01 Apr 2021 04:30:55 +0000 https://acousticguitar.com/?p=122822 Here is J.S. Bach’s transcendental prelude to Cello Suite No. 1 performed on acoustic guitar. Learn the history of this arrangement and find advice for learning to play it yourself.]]> https://acousticguitar.com/a-guitar-tribute-to-j-s-bach-on-his-336th-birthday/feed/ 0 122822 https://acousticguitar.com/how-to-use-modes-and-pentatonic-scales-on-guitar/ https://acousticguitar.com/how-to-use-modes-and-pentatonic-scales-on-guitar/#respond Wed, 24 Mar 2021 22:02:01 +0000 https://acousticguitar.com/?p=122750 Here are some tips on understanding the power of modes and pentatonic scales (major and minor), and how to fit them into your own playing on acoustic guitar.]]> https://acousticguitar.com/how-to-use-modes-and-pentatonic-scales-on-guitar/feed/ 0 122750 https://acousticguitar.com/the-basics-start-playing-arpeggios-in-any-style/ https://acousticguitar.com/the-basics-start-playing-arpeggios-in-any-style/#respond Fri, 24 Jul 2020 14:02:00 +0000 https://acousticguitar.com/?p=118753 Start with chord shapes you already know. Learn a handful of fingerstyle picking patterns and then begin incorporating arpeggios into your vocabulary.]]> https://acousticguitar.com/the-basics-start-playing-arpeggios-in-any-style/feed/ 0 118753 https://acousticguitar.com/start-enriching-your-music-now-with-seventh-chords/ https://acousticguitar.com/start-enriching-your-music-now-with-seventh-chords/#respond Sun, 10 May 2020 11:18:00 +0000 https://acousticguitar.com/?p=116938 The basic concept for seventh chords is simple enough: any number following a chord indicates the note that is to be included in the basic triad to form a more colorful harmony. ]]> https://acousticguitar.com/start-enriching-your-music-now-with-seventh-chords/feed/ 0 116938 https://acousticguitar.com/introducing-the-way-music-works-by-gretchen-menn/ https://acousticguitar.com/introducing-the-way-music-works-by-gretchen-menn/#respond Sat, 07 Mar 2020 09:01:00 +0000 https://acousticguitar.com/?p=115537 "Many guitar players have an aversion to anything that smacks of music theory," Gretchen Menn says, "My aim is to show you that having a basic understanding of the fundamentals will benefit you as a guitarist, a musician, and a creative soul."]]> https://acousticguitar.com/introducing-the-way-music-works-by-gretchen-menn/feed/ 0 115537 https://acousticguitar.com/the-way-music-works-acoustic-guitar-plus/ https://acousticguitar.com/the-way-music-works-acoustic-guitar-plus/#respond Wed, 04 Dec 2019 00:15:00 +0000 https://acousticguitar.com/?p=115245 A step-by-step guide to using the fundamentals of music to unlock both the fretboard and your creativity.]]> https://acousticguitar.com/the-way-music-works-acoustic-guitar-plus/feed/ 0 115245 https://acousticguitar.com/guitar-basics-how-to-build-chords-and-use-them-in-progression/ https://acousticguitar.com/guitar-basics-how-to-build-chords-and-use-them-in-progression/#respond Fri, 15 Mar 2019 16:19:17 +0000 https://acousticguitar.com/?p=110445 In this guitar lesson we study the fundamentals of diatonic harmony to understand the theory, then apply it to the fretboard to build chords and use them in progression.]]> https://acousticguitar.com/guitar-basics-how-to-build-chords-and-use-them-in-progression/feed/ 0 110445 https://acousticguitar.com/lesson-chord-building-basics/ https://acousticguitar.com/lesson-chord-building-basics/#comments Fri, 18 Jan 2019 22:42:50 +0000 https://acousticguitar.com/?p=109670 The guitar is a wonderfully flexible instrument that allows for full, rich harmonies with easy fingerings. Yet so many guitarists stop there.]]> https://acousticguitar.com/lesson-chord-building-basics/feed/ 2 109670 https://acousticguitar.com/video-lesson-all-about-the-12-bar-blues-form/ https://acousticguitar.com/video-lesson-all-about-the-12-bar-blues-form/#respond Wed, 12 Dec 2018 00:38:59 +0000 https://acousticguitar.com/?p=109131 You can find the blues everywhere. Its characteristic 12-bar form and blue notes permeate jazz, rock, country, soul… you name it. ]]> https://acousticguitar.com/video-lesson-all-about-the-12-bar-blues-form/feed/ 0 109131 https://acousticguitar.com/how-to-build-pentatonic-scales/ https://acousticguitar.com/how-to-build-pentatonic-scales/#respond Tue, 16 Oct 2018 20:41:05 +0000 https://acousticguitar.com/?p=108222 The pentatonic scale is everywhere. Its characteristic sound is useful in a wide variety of genres. ]]> https://acousticguitar.com/how-to-build-pentatonic-scales/feed/ 0 108222 https://acousticguitar.com/video-lesson-how-to-build-scales-part-2-of-2/ https://acousticguitar.com/video-lesson-how-to-build-scales-part-2-of-2/#respond Thu, 13 Sep 2018 04:00:44 +0000 https://acousticguitar.com/?p=107973 If you’re going to spend any time learning scales, why not really learn them? Why not own them? In the long run it'll be a valuable use of your time.]]> https://acousticguitar.com/video-lesson-how-to-build-scales-part-2-of-2/feed/ 0 107973 https://acousticguitar.com/video-lesson-get-rhythm-part-2-more-on-beats-meters-and-more/ https://acousticguitar.com/video-lesson-get-rhythm-part-2-more-on-beats-meters-and-more/#respond Fri, 20 Jul 2018 22:55:58 +0000 https://acousticguitar.com/?p=107211 Even if this is review for you, it’s always a good idea to revisit the basics—not only to further solidify the foundation upon which all else is built, but to provide new insights as you examine something familiar with fresh eyes and skills.]]> https://acousticguitar.com/video-lesson-get-rhythm-part-2-more-on-beats-meters-and-more/feed/ 0 107211 https://acousticguitar.com/get-rhythm-part-1/ https://acousticguitar.com/get-rhythm-part-1/#respond Thu, 14 Jun 2018 13:41:25 +0000 https://acousticguitar.com/?p=106877 THE PROBLEM Rhythm is a shaky area for you. You have a difficult time communicating a rhythmic idea unless you can play it; you have a tendency to fall into familiar, repetitive rhythms. THE SOLUTION Learn the fundamentals of rhythm, then work through exercises designed to improve your rhythmic cognition. Music takes place in time. Nothing […]]]> https://acousticguitar.com/get-rhythm-part-1/feed/ 0 106877 https://acousticguitar.com/acoustic-guitar-soloing-essentials/ https://acousticguitar.com/acoustic-guitar-soloing-essentials/#respond Sat, 20 May 2017 11:45:54 +0000 https://acousticguitar.com/?p=102225 Pentatonic scales are an effective and generally manageable way to get started, and many guitar players derive much of their approach from this basic framework.]]> https://acousticguitar.com/acoustic-guitar-soloing-essentials/feed/ 0 102225 https://acousticguitar.com/video-lesson-5-steps-toward-developing-chord-fluency-on-the-fretboard/ https://acousticguitar.com/video-lesson-5-steps-toward-developing-chord-fluency-on-the-fretboard/#respond Fri, 24 Mar 2017 23:49:11 +0000 https://acousticguitar.com/?p=101639 Use a little music theory to learn how major and minor triads are built and to start connecting chord shapes. With an awareness of how these chords work, you’ll be primed to play songs as diverse as the Who’s “Substitute” and Paul Simon’s “Me and Julio Down by the Schoolyard”—and to create your own chord progressions and solos.]]> https://acousticguitar.com/video-lesson-5-steps-toward-developing-chord-fluency-on-the-fretboard/feed/ 0 101639 https://acousticguitar.com/video-lesson-5-ways-to-learn-hybrid-picking/ https://acousticguitar.com/video-lesson-5-ways-to-learn-hybrid-picking/#respond Thu, 16 Feb 2017 18:56:40 +0000 https://acousticguitar.com/?p=101139 This versatile technique is used across genres—guitarists from Jimmy Page to Jorma Kaukonen have made it an essential part of their acoustic work.]]> https://acousticguitar.com/video-lesson-5-ways-to-learn-hybrid-picking/feed/ 0 101139