The Essential Components Of Great Guitar Lesson Videos

A search on the internet for guitar tuition in video format can turn out to be a off putting experience, particularly for the new student with no idea of what he needs. What are the most desirable features of the most effective packages available? As you might imagine, it's quite easy to identify common components that might help us make the right choice.

Easy To Follow

Of course it almost goes without saying, any instruction for any subject should flow in a logical way and be understood easily. First steps need to be clearly described, and build into further lessons. Theory has it's place, but a student guitarist is literally champing at the bit - he would like to play! This then should be the first action, presenting the basic things which can be practised straight away. After all, a thorough understanding of the basics will reap big advantages at a later date.

Notation versus Tablature

For years, guitarists in the classical style learned to read music and used written notes when performing or creating new music. Inevitably, this signifies a progress that is often perceived as too slow for our modern way of doing things. During the sixties, blues guitar maestro Stephan Grossman and some contemporaries, put together a method of notation that represented the strings and frets of the guitar neck. This abbreviated 'musical' notation could be quickly understood and is a powerful method for learning blues guitar, for example. A grid of six strings is numbered from the bottom bass E (1) to the top E string (6) and a number placed on a string shows which fret the finger should be placed above. A single line near the side of the number indicates that the thumb or finger is employed.

Image Presentation - What Should Appear On The Screen

There could be many variations on this theme, but we can identify important elements of this all important visual aid to guitar lessons. The student should be made aware from the beginning what the object of that lesson might be. If he is to learn a complete song, then that song should be be performed in precisely the same way as the detailed tuition shows throughout the video. Before the main tuition, any unusual movements can be discussed and valuable tips given. A close up of each hand is priceless, and are best shown seperately. Chord charts and guitar tablature could be overlaid on the screen, so that students can associate finger movements with the notation. This method is particularly effective for learning finger picking blues guitar.

Other Desirable Attributes

When being taught a song, it's good to have the words at hand and a brief discussion covering singing while playing at the same time. You might think this is obvious, but it's really hard for a new student to do both together! The complete tablature and lyrics could be supplied as a seperate Word or PDF file, which can be printed out and referred to at the student's leisure. An MP3 audio file could additionally be given, so that the instruction could be accessed casually at any time. However, if the video file is in the right format, it can be viewed on an iPad or iPhone.

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