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YOU CAN LEARN GUITAR!

BEGINNER GUITAR

WRITTEN LESSON MANUAL

-W ritten by David Taub

TABLE OF CONTENTS:

Lesson Page

Table of Contents ..................................................................................................... 2

Introduction...............................................................................................................3

Ten essential points to remember............................................................................ 4

Parts of the guitar – acoustic & electric....................................................................5

Frequently asked questions, acoustic or el ectric? ...................................................6

Utilizing the pick ....................................................................................................... 7

Names of the open strings .......................................................................................8

Three goals and you will be playing songs ..............................................................9

Reading chord charts ...............................................................................................10

Fret hand techniques – building a solid foundation.................................................. 11-12

Learning your first chord ..........................................................................................13-14

Learning your second chord..................................................................................... 15

Learning your third chord ......................................................................................... 16

A few tips on practicing ............................................................................................17-18

Frequently asked question on practic ing .................................................................19

Strumming and rhythm mechanics .......................................................................... 20

Strum patterns..........................................................................................................21-22

Another cool strum pattern.......................................................................................23

Another frequently asked question on practicing .....................................................24

Open position chords to learn ..................................................................................25-26

The F major chord....................................................................................................27

Chord chart and practic e review ..............................................................................28

Chord changing techniques and principles .............................................................. 29

The shared fingers chord changing technique.........................................................30

Shared fingers chord change practice ..................................................................... 31

The cluster principle chord chang ing technique....................................................... 32

Cluster principle chor d change practice...................................................................33

The slide principle chord change technique and practice........................................ 34

Techniques review ................................................................................................... 35

Notes on the Fretboard ............................................................................................36

-Written by David Taub, co-creator, Next Level Guita r Inc.®

distribution of any part of this book is prohibited

NEXT LEVEL GUITAR®

INTRODUCTION:

Hello good people! David Taub here and I would like to take a moment to thank you for your interest

in my instructional products. I am so excited to get you started on your guitar journey. Whether you

have been playing for a little while or are just starting from scratch, I am tot ally confident that my

lessons will help you achieve your guitar goals and get you pla ying the guitar and having fun.

I think you will find that my teaching methods are of the best available on the market today. I have

successfully taught thousands and thousands of students both privately and online all o ver the world.

I teach all levels, from students who have never touched a guitar, on through ad vanced players - so I

recognize the entire spectrum.

Teaching a wide array of students allows me to see on a daily basis the common challenges that all

students face when learning the instrument. This gives me unique insights on creating exercises and

lesson plans to help students overcome these challenges and get them playing the guitar in the

fastest and most efficient manner.

So I know what works and what doesn’t, what students gravitate toward, what empowers students,

and how to get students quickly moving forward on the instrument b y achieving clear cut goals and

objectives - all while ha ving FUN!

Like with anything new and different, dive into these mate ria ls with an open mind. Know that if you

practice these techniques, work hard, and keep honing your skills and refining your art, these

methods will bring results and you will be playing guitar like you always dreamed of.

Guitar can be a challenging instrume nt for sure, but if you fo llow my structured curriculu m, keep a

positive attitude, and practice the right things, then you will succeed . The guitar will be someth ing that

will brin g you joy for the rest of your life. The guitar is infectious and once you start reaping the

rewards you won’t want to stop. In fact you will probably be playing guitar for the rest of your life.

Enjoy these materials and please let me know if you have any questions. I always welcome your

insights and feedback as I am constantly tweaking my instructional products to make them the best

they can be. You can email me at [email protected]

I wish you the best in all your m usical endeavors.

Enjoy the journey, and as always……..ROCK ON!

David Taub

www.nextlevelguitar.com

……..And please check out my full on video instructional website at www.nextlevelguitar.com

TEN ESSENTIAL POINTS TO REMEMBER:

1. Patience – Learning an instrument requires patience. Many of the techniques take time to

master. Even fingering chords can be quite challenging. This is normal so do not get

discouraged. It takes time to get your fingers, tendons, and muscles use d to bending in the

ways necessary to play guita r. Take your time, be patient and it will come.

2. Attitude – A positive attitude goes a long way. You can do this, so try an d stay positive and

remember that your guitar playing is an evolution.

3. Proper technique – Utilizing the proper techniques and learn ing the proper fundamentals is

essential for beginner guitar. Any bad habits that you start off with will be very hard to untangle

later as well as they will impede your pro gress down the road. So strive to fo llow the technique

guidelines closely at first and then later down the road you can develop them into your own

personal style – first learn the rules, then go ahead and break them !.

4. Fingernail length - Keep the fingernails on your fret hand short. If your nails are too long they

will interfere with the fretting of notes on the fingerboard . If you press straight down with one

finger on a solid surface, like a tabletop, and you fee l the nail h it ting the tab le before your

fingertip, your nails are too long and will need to be cu t.

5. Cleanliness - Wash and thoroughly dry your hands before picking up the guitar. It will ke ep

oily residues and dirt off the fin gerb oard and your hands will be clean and not slide around on

the neck. Wipe the neck down with a soft cloth after playing as this keeps the neck clean and

prolongs string life.

6. On Discomfort - Fingertip soreness and wrist discomf ort is normal for the beginning guitarist.

As you play more your fingertip calluses will build up stro nger and the discomfort will get less

and less. But if you feel major pain in the wrist or arm - STOP. Big pain is your bodies’ way of

telling you something may be wrong. Give it a little rest and go back to it later and check to

ensure you are utilizing the prope r techniques.

7. Slow down - Playing slow and in time is ALWAYS better than playing fast and sloppy. Always

master a concept at slow spe eds before trying to play it faster. Speed comes with time.

8. Notes on the neck – Not at first but eventually you want t o try to memorize the notes on the

neck and the notes that make up a given chord or a scale. You just don’t want to solely rely o n

just fingerings or shapes. It will make you a better guitarist in the long run and you will be able

to speak “the language” of music when conversing with ot her musicians, writing songs, playing

with your friends, or in a band situation.

9. Develop your ear – I say these words often, I feel developing your ear is one of the most

important things you can do as a guitarist or musician.

10.Music theor y - Alittletheoryisagoodthing.Notinthebeginningbuteventuallyputtingtime

into learning some music theory has great value. It will move your playing f orward faster and

allow you to communicate the language of music to other musicians.

11. Fun – Give yourself ple nty of “fun time” on the guitar doing what you love to do b est – learn a

song, write a new tune, do fun stuff. Don’t spend all your time just studying and working new

concepts. HAVE FUN AND STAY POSITIVE – practice does not have to b e dru dgery!

PARTS OF THE GUITAR – ACOUSTIC & ELECTRIC:

In order to communicate effectively in guitar lingo you will need to learn some guitar terminology. Th e

illustrations below display some of the common parts of an a coustic guitar and an ele ctric guitar.

headstock

tuning pegs

nut

frets

neck

frets

body

soundhole

pickups

bridge

ACOUSTIC GUIT AR ELECTRIC GUITAR

FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS

Which guitar do I choose Acoustic or Electric?

You have a choice when you start to learn to play guitar. Do you want t o learn to play on the acoustic

guitar or on the electric guitar? The principles, concepts, and te chnique s that you will learn when first

starting to play guitar are the same no matter which one you choose.

However, there are some basic differences between the two that I feel are very much worth

mentioning. Your decision partially lies in which o ne sounds b est to your ears and which one do you

envision yourself playing.

Many of you will be drawn more to one than the other. You may want to have that electric guitar

plugged in through an amplifier and eventually add d ist ortion and rock out. Or, you may love and are

more drawn toward the beautifu l sounds produced by a ringing, full-bodied acoustic guitar.

Both instruments are truly wonderful and mo st guitar players event ually end up owning on e of each, if

not more. I have twelve guitars at this time and love them all – they are all unique and h a ve their o wn

voices.

The biggest thing to keep in mind when making this de cision is the electric guitar is a little easier to

learn on than an acoustic. On an electric guitar, the strings are of a lighter gauge, the action is lower,

its easier to press down on the strings, and the body is thinner and easier to get your arm aroun d. So

overall the electric will be easier to play and learn on in the beginning.

But learning first on an acoustic is fine, its just a little m ore challenging. Eit her way you want t o find

the guitar that is the right fit for your hands and body and one that does not fight you. You want a

guitar that is set up well and is easy to play. You will have enou gh to worry about at first just getting

over the physics of the instrument.

Whatever guitar you go with make sure it’s the right fit for your body and hands. There are many

different model guitars on the market today. Some have wide necks and some thin, some have large

bodies and some smaller. So finding the right sized guitar that fits your hands and body best, is

absolutely essential. The wrong sized guitar that is poorly set up and ha rd to play will increase your

frustration level exponentially. Keep the variable s to a minimum and get the right sized guitar.

I suggest going with what you love. If you are drawn mo re toward the a coust ic, and love that acoustic

sound – then go with that. You will probably end up having at least one of each down the line, and

then you will have the best of both worlds.

UTILIZING THE PICK:

There are basically two ways to attack the strings of the guitar. One way is with your fingers alone,

which is called finger picking or fingerstyle guitar. Another way is utilizing a plectrum or what is more

commonly t ermed a pick.

I want to get you playing t he guitar in the fastest manner possible so lets start by utilizing the pick.

Fingerstyle is in deed awesome, but the beginning techniques are very challenging and take a lot of

time to develop. I suggest starting off by using a pick and if you like that fingerstyle sound then that is

something you can study down the road after you have had some guitar time under your belt.

Guitar picks come in various shapes, sizes, thickness, and mate ria ls. Various thickness picks will

actually sound different as they hit the strings. A s you get more familiar with the pick, you will want to

experiment. T ry different ma terials and sizes to find what feels the best in your hands, AND sounds

best to your ears.

I have found that beginning students gravitate mo re toward picks made from nylon th at h ave ra ised

letters or ridges built into them. You don’t want the pick moving or sliding in your hand so you will find

the raised ridges or letters act like grips.

Often beginners find the pick slipping in the ir hand as they strum, so a pick with grips on it comes in

very handy. They also make picks with holesinthem,thiswaypartofyourfingerfitsintothathole.

This aids in gripping the pick so it does not twist or slide in your hand.

Illustrated below are the two most common ways to hold the pick. Try them both and see which feels

best in your hand.

As per above picture: O pen your hand and

have your palm face up. Next, place the pick

with the pointy tip facing str aight up flat on

your pointer finger. Less than half of the pick

should be off the pointer f inger. Then come

over the top of the pick with your thumb and

grip the pick firmly but not with excessive

pressure between both fingers. W ith this

method the tip of the t humb is upward in the

same line as the pointy tip of the pick.

As per the above picture: Turn the pick sideways

so the pointy tip is pointed toward your left. Point

your pointer finger toward the left in a straight-

line horizontal with the pick. The tip of your

finger should be pointing at t he pointy tip of the

pick. Place the pick on top of your pointer finger,

less than half of the pick should be hanging off

your finger. Then come over the top of the pick

with your t humb sandwiching the pick between

your pointer finger and thumb.

NAMES OF THE OPEN STRINGS: What’s that about dynamite?

Let’s learn the names of the six open strings from lowest to highest.

At first you want to be playing in what is called “Standard Tuning” or “A440 tuning”. In this tuning the

open strings from low to high ring out to the notes E, A, D, G, B, and E. There is a low E st rin g and a

high E string.

The low E string is also called the 6

string, the A is also called the 5

string, the D is the 4

string, G

is the 3

string, B is the 2

string, and the high E is th e 1

string.

It’s very important to know the names of the open strings. I have an easy little saying that will help

you remember, in fact I don’t think you will ever forget them if you commit this phrase to memory.

To remember the names of the six open strings just remember th is statement “Eddie Ate Dynamite,

Good Bye Eddie” – EADGBE– there you have it – the names of the six open strin gs.

Eddie Ate Dynamite Good Bye Eddie

E A D G B E

Guitar Neck

Nut

Fret

fret

THREE GOALS AND YOU WILL BE PLAYING SONGS:

It is important as you move through this structured guitar plan that we set a few guitar goals along the

way. We all know that songs are very important to musicians. In fact many of us may have picked up

the guitar with the goal of being able to eventually play songs. Well, I am going to get you to the point

where you can play songs by first tackling three critical guitar goals.

THREE GOALS TO BE ABLE TO PLAY SONGS:

1. Learn some open position chords

2. Learn how to str um with rhythm

3. Learn how to change chords

If you can do the above three things, then you will be playing songs – that fast. What are songs

played on an instrument? Basically a series or string of notes or chords played with a certain rhythm.

You can break them down int o a series of chord changes or chord progressions.

So if you learn some chords, learn how to strum, and then learn how to change chords, you will be

playing so ngs. It’s quite amazing how fast I can get you playing musically so unding examples.

So let’s get started with the first goal and learn some chords. I am going to explain how to re ad

chord charts and then teach you your first three chords. This will get you started on your first

chord progression.

Remember that with just a handful of chords you will be able to play thousands and thousands

of songs. Some of the best songs ever written are made up of only three or four chords. It’s

truly amazing how much you will be able to accomplish by just learning the chords listed in this

book. You will amaze yourself!

Along with learning a few chords and practicing them, you a lso want to start learning how to

strum with rhythm and learn some strum patterns. So we can work on the first two goals at the

same time. Then when you have the first two chord s sounding good we can work on changing

them.

READING CHORD CHARTS:

All my written illustrations are consistent in that the strings are always shown vertical and the frets

horizontal. You will have to be able to read the cho rd cha rts in order to study the chords that we will

be learning.

The chords are drawn in a standard way that you probably have seen before . In the grid illustration

below you can see all six strings are shown vertically from the Low E to the High E. The grid looks

like the actual neck of the guitar. The frets run horizontal and are numbe red in orde r starting with the

fret, 2

fret, 3

fret, and so o n. Notice the thick horizontal line at the top of the grid. This is called

the nut and is not considered a fret.

At first you will be spending a lot of time within the first five frets working on open position chords, or

chords played with at least one open string. Th ese open position chords are the first chords that just

about every guitar player learns when the y first start to le arn guitar. These open position chord s are

also referred to as “cowboy ch ords”, “six bangers”, or “the basic open chords”.

**CHORD = A chord is defined as two or more notes pla yed at the same time.

Low High

Nut

EADGBE

fret

3rd fret

fret

The fret hand fingers are

numbered in a standard way

so you can easily know what

finger to place on what

string. The pointer finger is

“1”, the middle finger is “2”,

the ring finger is “3”, and the

pinky is “4 ”. The thumb is

often referred to as “T”. Look

for th ese numbers at the

bottom of the grid as they tell

which finger to use to fret a

given note.

FRET HAND TECHNIQUES – BUILDING A SOLID FOUNDATION:

Fret hand technique is absolutely critical fo r optimum guitar playing. The p rope r technique will give

you a rock solid foundation that we can build on a s you move up that guitar sta irca se.

At first when fretting notes, you will experience some mild discomfort in your wrist and also on the tips

of your fingers. This only lasts until you build up some calluses on your fin gertips. All th is is normal

and I assure you the discomfort in the wrist and fingertips will sub side more and more each day and

eventually disappear completely.

Your wrist and finger tendons will grow stronger and will get used to the positions as well as your

fingertips will soon get very tough. When you see the skin on your fingertips start to rip you should be

like “YEAH!” – because that is what you want – you want the skin to rip and then when it comes back

it will be tougher a nd stronger. So consider the ripped skin like a merit badge!

KEY POINT: Remember as we go through the chord fingerings for your first

batch of chords, do not get discouraged, it may take weeks to get the fingerings

memorized and for the chords to sound clean and r ing true. Stay positive – and

remember that your playing is an evolution!

You also need to keep the fingernails on the four fingers on your fret hand short. A good test is to

press down on a flat surface with your fingertip, like a ta bletop, and if you can feel the nail before you

feel the tip of your finger, then the nail is too long and must be cut.

You don’t want your fingernail to hit the fretboard before your fingertip. If your nails are too long it will

cause interference when fingering notes and chords and will prohibit them from ringing true. So keep

them short.

As we go t hrough the proper technique remember, if you feel big pain in the wrist or arm – STOP –

take a break, and check that you are utilizing prope r technique. Pain is your body’s way of telling you

something may be wrong. Give it a little rest, take a break and go back to it later. Remember, Ro me

was not built in a day.

Key Practice Technique – make sure when you are learning your chords that you use this solid

fret hand technique. Ensure your fingers remain clu stered together and do not t ake them apart.

Always remain on your fingertips with your f ingers cupped and your thumb in the proper position on

the back of the neck. This technique is crucial!

Remember to execute these techniques when fing ering chords:

1. FINGERS - Keep your fingers cupped and fret the notes on your fingertips, don’t lay your

fingers flat, stay on the tips of your fingers and press down hard on the required st rin g.

2. WRIST - Keep your wrist down. Having your wrist up too f ar throws the shoulder in to the wrong

position. Your arm and shoulder should be in a very nat ural and comfortable flowing position.

3. THUMB - For now, keep your thumb anchored on the back of the neck about even with your

finger or between your 1

and 2nd fingers. Do not grip the guitar neck like a baseball bat or

have your thumb way over to one side.

4. CLOSENESS - Keep A LL your fret fingers close to the fretboard at all times. Don’t let your fret

hand fly out of position far away from the fretboard. Think of it like your fingers are

magnetically attracted to the strin gs and you cant slip a credit card between the strings and

your fingertips.

5. FRETTING - Fre t each note right behind the designated fret, not in between frets, right be hind

the fret. You have to press quite hard in the beginning to get the note to ring true. If you have

to fret multiple notes on the same fret then the fingers have to slide back a tad to make room –

but for the most part be right behind the fret.

6. DO NOT BEND - Make sure you are not bending an y strings as you finger e ach note or the

chord will ring out of tune. Loo k down the strings making sure they are all straight and not bent.

7. NO TOUCHING - Make sure your fingers are not touching any of the other strings other than

the strings they are required to fret for the given chord. If part of one finger is hittin g an errant

string it will keep that string from ringing true. Be sure that the palm of your fret hand does not

touch the high E string. If it does, try lowerin g th e wrist an d cupping th e fingers more.

8. CLUSTER - Keep your fret hand in a tight cluster and do not pull it apart. Pinky finger should

be hitching a ride on the 3

finger with all fingers in a tight cluster close to th e fret board at all

times like in the photo illustrations – use those p hotos as a template for technique on all the

chords you work on.

LEARNING YOUR FIRST CHORD – E minor:

Like I mentioned earlier, you will be able to play thousands of songs by learning just a handful of open

chords. The first set of 12 open position chords form the foundation for thousands and thousands of

popular songs.

Now that you are familiar with reading chord charts from the previous lesson let’s illustrate your first

chord. We will be learning to play an E minor, (Em), chord. The small “m” next to a chord letter name

means minor. If no other letters or numbers appear next to a chord letter then major is implied.

The chord chart below on the right has two black dots on the vertical string lines. The black dot s

illustrate where you put your fingers an d on which strings. The numbers at the bottom of the chord

chart refer to which finger of your fret hand you will be utilizing to play the chord. The “0” means that

you play t hat string open and an “X” m eans that you d on’t play that string at all.

Looking at the below illustration you will fret the 2

fret of the A string with your first finger and the 2

fret of the D string with your second finger. You will also play the Low E string, G string, B string, and

high E string all open.

The low E string , G string, B

string, and high E string are

all played open as illustrated

by the “0” below each string.

fret

Use your second finger to

fret the note at the 2

fret

on the D string

Use your first finger to fret

the note at the 2

fret on

the A string

012000

**Notice the proper fret hand

techniques are being

employed to play the Em

chord - fingers are cupped

and on the fingertips, the 3

and 4

fingers are attached

tight to the 2

finger as well

as they are in tight close to

the fretboard, the whole hand

is clustered together in a tight

economical cluster, wrist is

down, and the fingers and

hand are not interfering by

inadvertently touching other

strings. Try it just like t his….

Voice the Em chord illustrated be low and strum the chord using the pick coming d own through all six

strings striking the strings one at a time and listening that each of the six notes ring out true. You

shouldn’t hear any popping or muted string noises. Remember to utilize all the technique principles

outlined above and if the chord is not ringing true check that your fingers or palm are not inadvertently

touching any other strings.

Play the notes of the chord one at a time and check that all are rin ging true . Then strum through the

chord letting the pick do the work. Listen to the sound of the chord and commit the Em chord to

memory.

Use the same learning templa te taught above for learning all your new chords. When first learning a

new chord remember to always play the no tes individually an d let them ring out to ensure there are

no dead strings, muted strings, strings being bent, or any other extraneous string noises or pops that

contaminate the true sound of the given chord.

Then after you hear all the notes ring true individually try strumming th e entire chord all at once and

again make sure all the notes ring true when strummed.

Now you should be able to play an Em chord and have it sounding pretty good. Memorize the

fingering and know that it is an Em chord. Remember our first goal is to learn a batch of the basic

open position chords. Some of the coming chords will be easier and some will be harder. It all just

takes patience and practice, so stick with it and you will be rocking out in no t ime!

Key Practice Exercise – a good practice exercise to do when you first learn a new chord

is to practice fingering the chord, strum it, and then lift all your fingers off fret board slightly, b ut

keeping them in the same cluster shape of the chord hovering slightly over the frets, then

placing back on the fret board in the same chord position. Check that the chord still rings true

with another strum and also check that your fingers have not moved out of position. Practice

off and on, off and on. This gets you used to coming off chords and getting back on them

quickly and accurately. Do this when learning all new chords and commit the chord names and

shapes to memory.

012000

LEARNING YOUR SECOND CHORD – Asus2:

The next chord we will learn is Asus2 or A suspended 2

. Use the same fret hand tech nique that you

learned in the previous lessons for all the chords you will be learning going f orward. This new chord

utilizes the same fingering and shape as the Em chord, everything moves down one string each and

you don’t play the low E string.

To play the Asus2 chord you would fret the first note with your first finger on the second f ret of the D

string, and then fret with your second finger the note at the 2

fret of the G string. You will play the A

string, B string, and high E strings open and you will not be playing the Low E string. Basically just

play t he Em chord and drop the fingers down one string each and you have the Asus2 chord.

Key Practice Exercise: Try changing from the Em chord straight down to the Asus2 chord.

Strum the Em chord once, then drop the fingers straight down one string each to the Asus2 chord and

strum that chord once. Then back up to the Em chord. Practice back and forth, back and forth.

Practice getting the transition smooth and getting all the notes of e ach chord to ring true.

Asus2

X01200

Use your first finger to fret

the note at the second fret

of the D string

Use your second finger to

fret the note at the second

fret of the G string

The Low E string is not

played as illustrated by the

“X” below the string

The A string, B string, and

the high E strings are played

open as illustrated by the “0”

below each string

Asus2

X01200

012000

Notice the proper

technique employed when

playing the Asus2 chord.

Fingers cupped, on the

fingertips and all fingers as

close to the fretboard as

possible. Third and fourth

fingers hitching a ride

attached to the 2

finger.

All the open strings can

ring true without

interference. Notice this

chord is the same fingering

as the Em chord, just the

fingering is dropped down

one string.

Notice the Am9 chord has the same

fingering as the Em and Asus2

chords – just slide the Asus2 chord

up three frets to the fifth fret. Also

notice the proper fret hand technique

employed to play the chord.

LEARNING YOUR THIRD CHORD – Am9

Now we a re going t o learn to play an Aminor9 chord or Am9 (remember small m = minor).

Examine the illustrations below an d notice that you use the same fingering or chord voicing to play

Am9 as you did for Asus2. Just slide the Asus2 chord shape down 3 frets t o the fifth fret. On both

chords you still don’t play the low E string. Follow the illustrat ions below to play the Am9 chord. It is

such a dark and pretty sounding chord – love this one!

Key Practice Technique: Keep follo wing the same fo rmat as taught above as you go thro ugh

this book and learn new chords. First play the notes of the chord one at a time a nd then strum all a t

once to ensure that the chord rings true. If you hear muted or dead notes check that none of your

fingers are hitting other strings, make sure you are on your fin gertips and your wrist is down. Pract ice

coming on and off the chord as explained in the practice exercises above.

Asus2

X01200

012000

Am9

X01200

fret

Am9

Use your first finger to fret

the note at the fifth fret of

the D string

Use your second

finger to fret the note

at the fifth fret of the

Gstring

The Low E string is not

played as illustrated by the

“X” below the string

The A string, B string, and

the high E strings are played

open as illustrated by the “0”

below each string

X01200

A FEW TIPS ON PRACTICING:

Practice time does not have to be boring and viewed as a negative no-fun activity. I make

practice time fun and exciting for my students so they see the progress they are making on the

guitar while playing fun sounding musical examples. Practice should not be dru dgery. Follo w

these suggestions and practice t ips:

Make it easy for yourself to practice:

Buy a guitar stand and keep your guitar out on the stand so it is accessible to you a t all times in a

room that you are in most. This way you will be much m ore likely to grab it and practice when you

have a free five or ten minute pocket of time. Don’t keep your guitar packed up in its case under your

bed or packed away in the closet. You will be less likely to pull it out when you have free time.

Shorter p ractice blocks of time are better than

long marathon sessions:

Often people think that they can’t learn an instrument because they don’t have a n hour or two chunk

of time every day to commit to learning. Well you don’t need that much time and in fact several

smaller blocks of time throughout the day are much more productive than one long marathon session

once every few d ays.

We all have those small pockets of ten or twenty minutes during the day where we waste time. So if

you have a spare ten minutes pick up the guitar and pra ctice, go through some chords, chord

changes, or work on that strum pattern. You will be amazed how all those ten-minute small sessions

really add up to big gains in your playing.

Remember that in the beginning of your guitar journey you have to wrap your hands around the guitar

often. You won’t get the hang of the instrument by playing once a week or every ten days.

The more time you have your hands on the guitar in the beginning the faster you will see pro gress. A

few ten or twenty minute blocks of time throughout the day works fantastic!

Fingertip and wrist di scomfort

One of the biggest challenges of the beginner guitarist is getting over the physics of the instrument. It

takes some time to get your fingertip calluses built up a nd for your wrist and fret hand to get used to

bending and playing chord shapes. So at first you will experience some f ingertip and wrist discomfort.

But know that it will get less and less with time and eventually disappear.

This is another reason why to limit your playing at first to ten to twenty minute blocks of time. If you

play for too long at first then your fingertips will be so sore tha t you wont be able to play the next day.

Remember that moderation is best at first as well as you will retain more with smaller practice blocks.

Learning the fundamentals and proper technique:

It is vital to build a solid foundation when you start playing guitar. Techniques and principles get

stacked on top of one another. Remember that learning guitar in the beginning is like a staircase and

you have to learn step one before traversing step two, step two before step th ree, and so on. You

don’t want to build any bad habits early on as these bad habits are very challenging to und o later. A

bad habit now may not seem like much but it ca n impede your progress later in your guitar journey.

Having structure and consistency is key:

One of the keys t o beginner guitar is consistency. Keep trying to pu t those guita rs in your hands every

day, even if it’s only for ten minutes. Grab that guitar before going to work if you have a spare ten

minutes, or when you get home from work, or before going to bed for a few minutes, or whileyouare

waiting for dinner to cook. Keep putting it in your hands every day and you will see big gains.

Remember to consistently utilize your structured plan. Work on your practice regimens, chord

changes, learn new chords, strum patterns, etc. Whatever you are currently learning hit it hard and

consistently as per the plan and you will get better and be tter the more you practice.

Muscle memory:

A lot of the early techniques you are learning have to dea l with challenges regarding muscle memory.

The goal is to get your fret hand and b rain wired togeth er to remem ber ch ord fingerings a nd positions,

and how to change chords without thinking about it. Eventually you want to get your chord fingering

and chord changing to be on autopilot. It takes tim e and practice to get th at muscle mem ory built into

your subconscious.

The way to get to the autopilot stage is consistently practicing the chords, chord changes, and fret

hand movements back and forth, back and forth, ten minutes a day, one day at a time. Keep itupand

soon you won’t even have to think about it, the fret hand will work automatically.

Don’t overwhelm yourself:

I often see beginner guitar players take on way too much. They try and soak up and practice every

piece of knowledge or lesson f rom books, the internet, private studies, this guy, that girl, etc. And in

the end their playing suffers and they are at a standstill because they glaze over too many principles

at once and don’t put the needed time into each st age of learning. They eventually get frustrated and

put the instrument down.

Don’t overwhelm yourself by trying to take on too many new things at once. At first stick to the basics

as per the lessons in this book – learn some chords, learn to strum, learn to change chords. That is

plenty at first. Take these lessons and techniques in stages, slow and steady wins the race.

Use a practice log to chart your p ro gress:

Utilizing a practice log to chart your progress and keep notes is invaluable. You don’t need anything

fancy. In fact a simple three ring binder with filler paper works best.

Make notes of the chords you are learning, strum patterns, and chord changes that you are practicing

and the ones you are struggling with. Write out the practice progressions and circle the changes

within the progressions that you have to work on separately as they are the ones you are stumbling

over and need to practice more.

Add filler paper to your binder and keep accurate records in your practice log of the items you are

working on, what needs work, new cho rds, chord changes, strum patterns, rhythms, progressions,

songs, original material, scales, etc. Date the entries and keep track of your progress as you move

forward in your guitar journey. Just like setting goa ls in life, you want to set musical goals……and

then go out there and achieve them.

Give yourself plenty of fun time on the gu itar:

Don’t regiment your entire guitar playing experience to just to study, study, study. Remember that this

is a fun activity and you want to give yourself plenty of fun time on the guitar to just jam and enjoy the

instrument.

Try t o learn a new so ng, or puts some chords together t hat you like the sound of, or try to write a

song. Do things that you enjoy on the instrument and have fun – that is why you picked up this

amazing instrument in the first place.

FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS ON PRACTICING

How much should I practice?

I get asked all the time, “David, how much time should I spend practicing”. To be honest I don’t have

a canned a nswer for this question. I will tell you t his, – there is positive correlation between the

amount of time you practice and how fast you move up the staircase.

The more you practice, as long as you follow my structured methodology, the faster you will advance.

But as far as how much actual time should you practice all depends on what you have going on in

your life, how fast you want to move forward, and balance.

That is the great thing a bout learning guitar and ut ilizing my teaching m ethods – you can learn at your

own pace, a pace that fits your lifestyle.

We are all very busy people. We have jobs, families, boyfriends, girlfriends, friends, hobbies, and

social lives. So we all want that balance in our lives where we get to d o all the things we love and are

passionate about as well as taking on new projects, setting goals, and going o ut there and achieving

them.

Ideally, if you can practice for two or three fifteen-minute sessions throughout the day yo u will see

great progress. Even just two fifteen-minute sessions is fine. Once you getoverthefingertip

soreness, practicing forty-five minutes a day would be awesome. The more time you put into

practicing the right things, the faster you will move forward.

So find the balance that suits your life. Again, you want to keep it realistic. In the beginning stages of

learning guita r you will want to pick up the guitar and practice as often as possible. Early on you don’t

want to go a week or ten days without picking up the guitar, as you will forget the concepts that you

previously learned and then you have to start a ll over again.

So practice as often as possible, especia lly in the beginning, while achieving balance in your life. And

most importantly – HAVE FUN! One of the mantras in my life is, “if it’s not fun…..why do it?”

STRUMMING AND RHYTHM MECHANICS:

Now that you have learned some chords we can tackle the techniques of strumming and rhythm.

While you work on the strumming examples below be sure to keep m oving forward learning more

open chords and getting them memorized, and get tingthenotestoringtrue.Morechordsare

illustrated in the coming pages, but at the same time let’s work on your strumming an d rhythms

Music is more than just notes and chords, it’s also about rh ythm and meter. In order to play

something musical sounding we need to play it with rhythm. The easiest way to do that with guitar is

strumming the guitar rhythmically with what is kno wn as st rum pat terns.

Let’s learn the proper techn iques for strumming and go over basic strum mechanics, we will then

learn rhythm ic strum pattern s.

Proper strum mechanics:

1. Strumming is more arm than wrist. When strumming bend at the elbow and move the arm

up and down working the pick through all the strings. Don’t lea ve the arm semi-stationary

and just bend the wrist to strum, that is not correct. Bend at the elbow a nd put your arm into

the strum and be emotive. Hit those strings with emot ion and with conviction! Like you are

waving up and down vertically across the st rings. Music is about emotion and passion and

it will come across in your playing.

2. Keep a nice loose feel with the strumming hand when strumming. Don’t lock the wrist or

arm and don’t strum in herky-jerky m otions. It should be smooth, even and loose. If your

strumming is locked it will co me across very robotic and sterile sounding – loose is ke y.

3. Be sure and use a long movement when strumm ing. Do not strum just from the top of the

low E string to the bottom of the h igh E string. Your strum should have a long swath. Strum

from the top of the guitar body all the way down to the bottom of the guitar body – think

long strum.

4. Don’t think of it like your hand is moving up and down. Think of it more in terms that you are

swinging your elbow – that is the motion that you want – and keep it long and loose.

Meter and notes:

First let’s discuss meter and then on to strum patterns. We will start with quarter notes. A quarter

note is one note per beat and one f ull measure of quarter notes is:

“ONE – TWO – THREE – FOUR”

Key Practice Exercise: First try strumming quarter notes with four down strums or d/d/d/d. Play

an Em chord and strum with four down strums. Then try changing to the Asus2 chord for four down

strums. Then back to the Em chord. Then to the Am9, mix it up. Practice those quarter note strums.

Now we will add up st rums to the mix and play straight eighth notes. Eighth notes are two notes per

beat and the count is:

“ONE – AND – TW O – AND – THREE - AND – FOUR – AND”

Two notes per beat, there is a “one-and” before you get to the two so you are playing two notes per

beat with eighth notes. Let’s utilize alterna te strummin g with this count , up then down t hen up then

down. The down strums will be on all the numbers or beats and t he up st rums will come on all the

“ANDS”. So playing straight eighth notes will be this:

d/ u / d / u / d / u / d/ u

1& 2 & 3 & 4 &

d= downstrum u = upstrum

Try t he eighth notes up and down as above on the chords that you know. As you can probably tell it

does not sound very musical. Just p ractice the st raight eighths to get a feel fo r strumming up and

down and getting comfortable with the proper strum me chanics. We have to add rhythm with rests

and then repeat the rests to make it sound musical. We will need to learn some strum patterns.

Strum patterns:

Strum patterns are rhythmic sets of strums with rests that can be repeated to sound a rhythm. It’s that

repeated series of rests that give music its rhythm, or life’s blood.

We need that rhythm to sound musical. As you could tell from the straight eighth note strumm ing that

you tried above it does not sound very musical. It is sounds sterile, like an e xercise.

Below are a few stru m patterns to get you started that have an eighth note feel to them. Rememberto

break strum patterns down into smalle r sections when first working them up. It will take a while to get

the groove of a pattern, but stick with it and soon you will get it.

Here is a great beginner strum pattern that you can use for hundreds of songs. I have found that this

pattern is one that beginner students can get going fairly quickly. You can try this pa ttern with one of

the chords you know or just grab the strings to mute them and just scratch out the rhythm, no chord is

needed as you can add chords in later. Keep it simple at first, the first pattern is:

dow n/down/up/up/down/up (d/d/u/u/d/u )

Let’s break it down to make it easier to get it rolling – first play two down strum s (noted in red):

dow n/down up/up/d own/up

Then follow it up with two up strums:

dow n/down/up/up/down/up

Then for the last part of the strum pattern play straight eighth notes with a down up:

dow n/down/up/up/down/up

Then put all three parts together slow, with good strum mechanics:

Down/ down up/up down/up

Key Practice Exercises: Keep repeating the pattern – d/d/u/u/d/u d/d/u/u/d/u d/d/u/u/d/u

and so on. You will probably get the pattern one or two times around and then lose it. But keep at it

and then next try you may have it four times or so around before losing it. Ke ep going until you ha ve it

locked down. Then add chords to it and try it with one chord and then with changing chord s. You ca n

also try it with progressions or songs that you know. It’s a fantastic patte rn that is very musical and

works with tons of songs. Keep practicing and you will get it!

I have written below how th e strum pattern ups and down line up with the musical time. You may not

necessarily want to think of the pattern in musical time as that may throw your strum off. This visual is

to show you how the count looks on paper:

dduudu

1& 2 &3 & 4 &

ANOTHE R COOL STRUM PATTERN:

Now let’s follow the above template to learn another strum patt ern. This fun patte rn is almost straight

eighth notes. The only differen ce is that we are going to yank out one down strum from the straight

eighth note pattern. So we will have two up strums in a row and leave out that one down strum. That

will give us that needed rest. Then we repeat the pattern and we have our rhythm. This pattern is:

dow n/up/down/up/up/down/up (d/u/d/u/u/d/u)

Again, lets break the pattern down to make it easier to get rolling. Play straight eighth notes at f irst

with a down up down up, (as indicated in red).

dow n/up/down/up up/down/up

Then for the second and last part we do an up down up – like t his:

dow n/up/down/up up/down/up

Then put all three together slow with our good strum mechanics:

dow n/up/down/up/up/down/up

Key Practice Exercises: Keep repeating the pattern – d/u/d/u/u/d/u d/u/d/u/u/ d/u

d/u/d/u/u/d/u and so on. Just like the first strum pattern above you will probably get the pattern

one or two times around and then lose it. But keep at itandthennexttryyoumayhaveitfourtimes

around before losing it. Keep going until you have it locked down. Then add chords to it and try it with

one chord and then with changing chords. Also try with any progression s or songs that you know.

Practice both strum patterns and get them both lo cked down an d sounding grea t with the chords that

you know.

Keep trying to freewheel the pattern over and over like the other exam ple. Again, for this pattern

much like the last one, you may not necessarily want to think of the pattern in musical time as that

may throw you off. But just so you can see the count on paper it would look like this:

duduudu

1&2&3&4&

ANOTHER FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTION ON PRACTICING

At this point in m y guitar journey, what exactly should I be practicing?

Another common question I get all the time has to do with practice content or practice regimens.

Questions like, is there a set practice regimen I should be following? Or, what exactly do I need to be

practicing to ensure I am practicing the “right things”? Very good question s indeed.

At this point in your guitar journey you should be dividing your practice time up into sections. You

need to hit the three goals we set at the same time. For whatever practice time you have over twenty

minutes break it up into separate sections and spend time on the following:

1. Learn the first batch of 12 open position chords as I have diagrammed out on t he coming

pages. Remember that you will eventually be able to play thousands of songs with the se basic

12 chords. At first play the notes of the chord individually and then strum the whole chord and

let the chord ring out to check it is ringing true with no open string noises, pops, strings bent, or

fingers hitting other strings. Le arn the chord fingerings and memorize t he name s. Your goal is

eventually to learn all 12 chord s, know their names and shapes, and have all of them sounding

awesome. (Note: this will take time so it will be an ongoing evolution in your playing, try a dding

a new chord every few days).

2. Practice the proper fret hand technique as taught in the above lessons. It is absolutely crucial

to be playing these chords properly. Remember to keep the wrist down, th e fingers cupped

and in a tight cluster, all fingers extremely close to the fretboard at all times, and your pinky

hitching a ride attached to that third finger.

3. Work on your strumming and rhythm. Get the first two strum patterns down cold and practice

them with the chords you know and eventually the chord changing exercises I list on the

coming pages. Work on your strum mechanics and gettin g your up strums an d down strums

the same volume. Practice getting that arm loose and freewheeling. Let the force of your arm

bring the pick through the strings and it will cut through the strings while you strum, like a knife

cuts through warm butter.

4. Practice your chord changing and good changing mecha nics as outlined in the lessons on the

coming pages. Practice the harder changes that you are stru ggling with back and forth, back

and forth. Hit chord changes every day for a few minutes. Write down the ones you struggle

with in your log and practice them while watching TV, remember it’s the muscle memorythat

you are working. Go through the chord changing exercises a nd proper chord changing

techniques listed in the coming lessons. Knock changes out one at a time. Keep pushing

yourself to complete harder and harder chord changes, that is how you will get better – by

constantly pushing yourself on the instrument.

Practice string chord changes together into progressions and working them with diff erent strum

patterns. Once you know some chords and how to strum, then practice chord changing and

soon you will be playing songs – that fast!

OPEN POSITION CHORDS TO LEARN:

Start working on learning these open position chords. Learn them in the order shown on the next few

pages. Each new one will prepare you for the coming chords. Remember that the small “m” nextto

the chord name denotes “minor”.

These were the first three chords that you learned in the above lessons:

The next two chords for you to learn will b e Emajor and Aminor. Look at the chord charts below and

notice that both chords share the exact same voicing. Just drop the Emajor down one string each and

you have Aminor. Same principle as with th e above cho rds Emino r and Asus2 – same chord sha pes.

Notice that with the next two chords you DO NOT play the low E string as well as you DO NOT play

the A string. These are two four note chords so for now try to avoid hitting the low E and A strings

when playing t hese chords.

XX01

023100

X02310

XX0231

2000

Asus2

X01200

Am9

01200

fret

The next two chords will be a little trickier. Notice for the A major chord all three fingers get crammed

into the second fret. Keep practicing the chord till you find the sweet spot on your guita r where you

feel comfortable playing all three strings within the sam e fret.

The C major chord requires a bit of a stretch a cross three frets. Practice with the wrist down and

getting a good stretch across the frets. The low E string is not played an d needs to be muted so it

does no t ring out and muddy t he chord. Let the very tip of your third finger “spill” over the A st rin g and

slightly touch the low E string thus muting it so it will not be heard when strumming the chord. Or you

can also mute the low E string with your thumb by having it come slightly over the top of the neck and

just touch the low E to deaden it. You can use this muting technique for any of the chords in which

you don’t play the low E string. This way you can strum all the strings and n ot have to worry about

that low E string ringing out as it will be muted.

The next two chords will require utilizing all f our fingers on your fret hand. Look at the chart below and

notice that both chords share the same voicing. If you drop the G major chord down one string each

you have the Cadd9 chord. It’s a fun change to practice, as many songs have that G to Cadd9 chord

movement.

X01230

X32010

210034

Cadd9

X21034

THE F MAJORCHORD– YOU CAN DO IT!

The F major chord is one of the more challenging chords to learn and master when first starting on

guitar. In fact it will probably be the hardest chord you have faced to date. This is due to the need to

bar across two strings with your first finger while stretching to the third fret with your third finger. So it

requires both some strength and a bit of a stretch.

The F chord is in a lot of songs, so you will definitely want to add it to your ever growing chord

catalog. This one will take some time to master so be patient. We will start with an easier chord to get

you prepared to tackle the F major chord.

Remember to utilize the fingering listed below and play the notes of the chord individually to ensure

all notes are ringing true. If you are hearing muted strings, ot her strings ringing, or any ot her noises

check your technique and fret hand position to examine why t he chord is not soundin g proper.

Narrow it down string by st rin g until you find the culprit and correct. Eventually on ce your learn bar

chords you will utilize an F major bar cho rd in place of the sma ller four-string F chord. However, there

is still a lot of value in learning the four string F ma jor chord and having it in your chord vocabulary.

All students struggle with the F chord at first, but if you keep practicing and peckin g away, it will come

with time just like all the other open position chords tha t you have learned. We will start off with an F

major seventh chord, (Fmaj7), as a pre-cursor in getting to the F major chord.

Key Note: Do not get discouraged – it m ay take a little b it to get the fingerings down and for these

chords to start sounding very clean – that is normal – it takes time for your finger tendons and wrist to

get adjusted to these new p ositions. Keep positive and it will come with t ime.

F major

– This F major chord has no open strings. Do not play the low E

string and the A. Utilize your first finger as a bar and press firmly down

on the high E and B strings. S ometimes it helps if you angle the bar a

little. If you are not able to stretch far enough to reach the A and F notes

with your 2

and 3

fingers then move the whole shape up to the 7

fret

and practice it there where the frets are closer together. Then slowly

move the shape back d own the fretboard as you practice the chord each

day and your fingers get used to the stretch. Don’t get discouraged, this

is one of the hardest chords to get at first. Stay positive and it will come

with time. Keep chipping away at it every day.

XX3211

Fmaj7

XX3210

F major seventh chord, Fmaj7

– Try this chord in preparation to play

the F major chord. This Fmaj7 chord is a four-string chord. Youdonot

play t he low E string and the A string. The high E string is p layed open.

Major 7th chords are very sweet and jazzy sounding, very pretty

sounding chords. Use this chord for now and in place of the F chord until

you get the below chord nailed down.

CHORD CHART AND PRACTICE REVIEW:

Chord = any two or more notes played at the same time.

Open position chords = chords played with at least one open string.

Small “m” = m inor.

The black dots show where to put your fingers.

On your fret hand, pointer finger is 1, middle finger is 2, ring finger is 3, and pinky f inger is 4

The numbers below the strings refer to the fingers to be ut ilized when f orming e ach chord.

A "0" below the indicated string means that that string is played open, (not fin gere d).

An "X" below the indicated string means that string is not played. In most instances it

will need to be muted.

Key Practice Exercises for Chords: The goal is to get all the open chords memorized and

sounding great. You want to get each note of each chord to ring true. First play the notes of the chord

individually, letting them ring out to ensure there a re no overtones, muted strings, or strings be ing

bent. Then strum the chord p laying all notes togeth er. Again check that the chord sounds clean. At

first, practice fingering the chords and lifting all your fingers off th e fretboard slightly, but keeping them

in the same shape, then placing them back on the fret board in the same position. Check that the

chord still rings true and your fingers have not moved out of position. Continue to work on and learn

new chords every d ay to get the first dozen open chords down cold .

Key Practice Exercises for Strumming and Rhythm: The goal is to learn both st rum

patterns as taught in the above lessons. Practice them till you can roll through them withou t even

thinking of up strums and down strums. Get them to where they are loose and sound rhythmically

flowing, not sterile and mechanical sounding. Use the strum patterns t o play the chords that you know

and for changing chords as outlined in the le ssons to follow.

CHORD CHANGING TECHNIQUES AND PRINCIP LES:

Chord changing can be one of the most challenging aspects of beginner guitar. At first it seems

almost impossible to go from one chord to another in time while strumming. I assure you we all go

through these challenges when learning guitar an d it just takes practiceandpatience.

If you regularly practice the chord changing techniques and p rin ciples in the coming lessons you will

soon be tackling the most challenging of changes. I developed these techniques to take the

frustration out of chord changing and to get you playing music fast.

You will find some chord changes to be easier than others. With practice, the easier chan ges will

become automatic. You wont even have to be thinking about them consciously. You will soon be

amazed that your fingers will just fall into pla ce. Th is is the muscle memory taking effect that I spoke

of earlier in this book.

As taught in previous lessons, a good practice device is to fret a chord and practice lifting your fingers

off the fret board slightly while keeping the fret fingers in t he same chord shape. Then place your

fingers back on the fret board in the same chord position. Pick all the notes of the chord individually

and then strum the chord, this will ensure that all notes ring clea n and your fingers have not shifted.

Good fret hand technique, as taught in previous lessons, is vital in order to get proficient at chord

changing. Many of the chord change practice exercises that I o utline in the coming le ssons, you will

see over and over again in many popular songs. So getting these changes down now with goo d

technique will ensure an easier road when beginning to play son gs.

When changing chords you always want to utilize the following techniques.

1. Practice the chord change mechanics by switching with only one strum per chordtogetused

to the finger movements and to check that all notes of both chords are ringing true. Go back

and forth between the two chords till fluid. Practice back and forth, back and f orth.

2. Try to move your fingers all at once, not one at a time.

3. Keep your fingers close to the fretboard at all times in a nice tight cluster. Don’t have your

fingers flying out of position. Keep the fingers in close and tight.

4. Look for shared fingers, clusters, and slides as explained below.

5. Keep that pinky finger attached to the side of the third finger.

Key Practice: Once you have the chord change mechanics down for a given change, try it while

strumming. Start off very slow and count in time count ing quarter notes “One – Two – Three – Four” –

change – then repeat. When you have the chan ge solid with quarter notes then practice the change

with a strum pattern. Take your time, the speed of the change will come. At first practice chord

changes two at a time. Then start putting those two-chord changes together to make three and four

chord changes and BAM…….you will be playing songs!

THE SHARED FINGE RS CHORD CHANGING TECHNIQUE:

When changing chords you want to examine the fingerings for each chord to determine if there are

any common fingered notes between each chord. If one or two fingers are to remain pre ssed on the

same note, then leave them pressed down as you move to the next chord while moving your other

fingers around the common ones.

Its critical that you don’t take any fingers off the neck if you don’t have to, especially if you are ju st

going to put them right back in the same place with the next chord. Always analyze chord change

fingerings in this fashion, this way there isn’t any non-necessary finger movements.

G to Cadd9 change – In the illu stration below the two chords share two of the same not es. You want

to use that to your advantage when changing between them. When changing from a G to a Cadd9

chord leave your third and fourth fingers down on the B and high E strings. There is no reason to pick

them up just to put them right back in the same place.

Just slide your first and second fingers stra ight down one strin g each. Slide your fingers right on the

strings leaving them in the same cluster to perform this change fluidly. Do n’t lift them straight off the

neck, rather slide them down the strings keeping them as close to the fretboard as possible.

Try t he chord change mechanics first without even strumming, just a dry change between th e two

chords. Then try the change with a slow quarter note strum. When you are confident making the

change with quarter notes, then try with a strum pattern.

Key practice chord change exercises:

For all the chord changing techniques you will be learning, I will list specific chord change exercises

to practice so you can master each change. The goal is to get fluid at each change. Be sure to chart

your progress in your practice log and try to practice chord changing ten m inutes every day.

You wont hit the change in time every time at first. You may only find that you can hit it 20% of the

time. Just keep practicing and soon you will get it 45% of the t ime, then 70% of the time and so on

until you have it cold.

Once you have it cold you will be able to do that change in a ny pie ce of m usic you want. So you want

to knock out as many of the coming two chord changes as possible. Get them all down cold in your

back pocket and then playing songs will be easy as pie !

All the changes on the page below utilize the shared fingers principle. Be sure to practice them every

day. Practice the dry change first and work on the solid chord change mechanics as taught in the

previous lessons. Work the change back and forth, back and forth, till fluid and comfortable.

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Cadd9

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SHARED FINGERS CHORD CHANGE PRACTICE:

Keep in mind that you wont get t he changes every t ime right off the bat. Usually the process includes

getting the mechanics of the change down, then with strumming, and working the f ingers to move all

at the same time together to make the change. Then you hit the change but not everytime.With

practice you will nail the change more and more consistently until you have it down cold.

C to Am change – In the illustration below, notice the first and second fingers are fret ting notes that

are shared between the two chords. Therefore you leave those two fingers down, as they don’t have

to be picked up when executing this change.

Switching from C to Am only requires the movement of the 3

finger from the 3

fret of the A string to

the A note on the 2

fret of the G-string. If needed, nudge your second finger over just a bit to make a

little room for the 3

finger within tha t second fret. Leave the first and second fingers in place from the

C chord as you move to the Am chord. Practice this change back and forth until its fluid.

Cadd9 to D change – When completing this change leave your third fin ger d own on the 3

fret of the

B string. That note is shared between both chords. Then at the same t ime move your first and 2

fingers together picking them slightly off the fretboard to finger the D chord. Go back and forth

between these two chords until fluid. Then while strumming, quarter and eighth notes.

D to G change – Utilize the shared finger principle when executing this change by leaving your 3

finger on the D note, 3

fret B strings. Then all together move your first and second fingers up to

finger the G chord while moving your pinky onto the G note, 3

fret high E string. Keep practicing t his

movement back and forth, back and forth, and it will become very fluid over time.

G to Cadd9 to D - Put the above chan ges back to back in to a three-chord change and you will have

the beginning of many popular songs! After the D chord go back to the G chord and keep rolling

through the three changes.

G to Em change – When changing from G t o Em utilize shared fingers by leaving your first finger on

the B note, 2

fret A string. Then take your second finger from the low E string and slide it under your

first finger on the E note, 2

fret D string. Lift off the 3

and 4

fingers to complete the change.

Em to C change - Concentrate on the shared finger, leaving the 2

finger on the E note on the D

string 2

fret, and pivot your 1st and 3rd fingers around that note to form the C chord. Move your 1st

finger to the C note on the B string 1

fret, and your 3rd finger to the C note on the A string 3

fret.

Practice pivoting the first and third fingers to get her around that shared 2

finger.

Dm to G change - Leave your third finger on the D note 3

fret, B string when changing to the G

chord. Move your first and second fingers at the same time up to the G chord position while leaving

your third finger in the same place and then adding your pinky to the 3

fret of the high E string.

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THE CLUSTER PRINCIPLE CHORD CHANGING TECHNIQUE:

The chord changing techniques you are learning throughout this section of the book are absolutely

critical for your guitar success. Earlier we discussed the importance in analyzing chord ch anges f or

shared fingers. Now we will learn about clustering.

Clustering is where you can leave your fingers in the same grouping, or “cluster”, as you move

through a chord change. There is no reason to o pen your hand up and come o ut of a tight fret finger

grouping when it is not necessary.

By keeping the fingers clustered t ogether you don’t waste time a nd efforts reshaping your fingers to

voice the next chord. Keeping your fret hand in a tight cluster close to the fretboard at all times makes

changing chords much easier and faster.

To illustrate the cluster principle let’s examine changing chords from E to Am.

E to Am change – Changing from E to Am or Am to E is a fairly simple chord change to execute

because the chord shapes are exactly the same and are played with the exact same fingerings.

Check the illustration below and notice how the chord shapes are identical, just played on different

strings.

To execute the change from E to Am, concentrate on leaving your fingers in the exact same cluster

as you lift off the E chord and just slide the whole shape down one string. As you move the chord

shape down on the strings, your fingers should not come apart at all. They need to remain in that tight

grouping or cluster.

It’s a quick lift off and put back maneuver. As always do not allow your fingers to come f ar off the fret

board, just slide them right along th e strings. Keep them close in and formed in the same shape and

that pinky attached hitching a ride on that third finger. Practice the move back and forth, back and

forth.

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CLUSTER PRINCIPLE CHORD CHANGE PRACTICE:

Follow the same protocol for practicing the below cluster chord changes as you did for the sh ared

fingers practice chord changes. Remember to keep executing the changes with the proper fret hand

technique and work th e changes every day. Keep that fret hand in a tight cluster close to the

fretboard at all times, DO NOT take that hand apart or away from the fretboard.

Em to Am change - To switch be tween t he Em and Am chords first play the Em chord with your 2

and 3

fingers, not the usual 1

and 2

fingers. This will make it easier to execute t he chord cha nge.

From Em slide both the 2

and 3

fingers down one string each while keeping those two fingers

clustered together in a tight package. At the same time add your 1st finger on the C note on the B

string 1

fret to complete the Am chord.

Then when going back from the Am to the Em just lift the 1st finger off the B string and a gain leave

your 2

and 3

fingers in the same tight cluster, just move them up one string each. Remember to

keep your fingers as close as possible to the fret b oard . P ractice the mechanics of this change back

and forth.

A to Em change – With the A chord you have your 1

,and3

fingers all on the 2

fret. When

changing from the A to Em leave your 1

and 2

fingers clu stered and attached together. Ju st slide

them up one string each keeping them in the sam e cluster to form the Em chord . Take your 3

finger

slightly off the fretboard and keep that pinky finger hitching a ride attached to the 3

finger.

Remember to keep your fingers clo se to the fretboa rd, just move them off the strings slightly when

you move from the A chord to the Em chord.

Dm to E change – to execute the change between Dm and E all three fingers will cha nge positions

during the change. The goal is to keep them clustered together as best as possible and keep that

pinky finger attached hitching a ride on the 3

finger. The first finger stays on the first fret, just move it

up two strings to the G string. At t he same time the 2

and 3

fingers move up but stay one under

the other and come down at the 2

fret on the A and D strings. Rem ember to keep trying your best to

move all fingers at once, not one at a time.

C to D c hange – This cha nge will give you practice taking all th ree fingers slightly off the strings and

coming down in another shape. There are no shared fingers in this change. The main po int here is to

keep your fingers as close to the fretboard as po ssible and mo ve them all a t the same time when

moving between the chords. You a lso want to keep that pinky finger attached to the 3

finger hitching

a ride. Keep practicing the movement in this change and it will get very fluid with time.

Am to Dm change – When executing this chan ge utilize the cluster principle and keep your fingers in

the same basic shape, just spread it out for the extra fret when dropping down to the Dm chord.

Although the two chords do share one note, all three fingers need to change positions. Keep all

fingers clustered together and just slide them in unison o ne fret distance to finger the D minor chord.

Practice this motion until you have it solid and in t ime add in a strum pattern.

THE SLIDE PRINCIPLE CHORD CHANGE TECHNIQUE AND PRACTICE:

There are times when you change chords that you will have to lift all your f ingers off all the notes on

the fretboard to form the next chord. There will be no shared notes and possibly no common clusters

between certain changes. So we want to learn one more chord changing technique to make ch anging

chords as frustration free as possible. Keep in mind no matter what the change is your fret hand must

stay clo se to the fretboard and not come apart.

Even though some changes do not share notes there are instan ces where you can keep a finger or

two down on the fretboard a nd just slide them into posit ion for the next chord. Your finger wont come

off the fretboard so to speak, it will just slide down a fret or two.

This slide provides you with a “guide” of sorts tha t leads you into the next chord. Usually you will find

a slide change example where the next chord has a note on the same string but one or two frets over.

Lets analyze some chord changes where the slide principle comes in handy.

A to D c hange – To execute this change leave your th ird finger on the B string 2

fret and just slide it

over from the 2

fret to the 3

fret when m aking the ch ange. Don’t take the 3

finger off the

fretboard, just slide it down a half step.

At the same time you are sliding, move the 1st a nd 2

fingers down to the D chord keeping the

fingers close to the fretboard and in a tight cluster.

Keep your other fingers close to the fretboard and clustered together co ming off the A chord and lift

them slightly off the strings to get to the D chord. Practice that slide maneuver back and forth.

E to D change – To execute this change you will use that first finger to slide into the next chord.

Leave the 1 st finger on the G # note, G-string 1

fret and as you start the change to the D slide the 1

finger up one fret, (a half step). At the same time you are sliding, slightly lift the 2

and 3

fingers

from and the A and D strings and fret the D and F# notes on the B and high E strings t o form the D

chord. Keep your hand together and clustered. Practice this motion and soon the slide will be a very

fluid movement that will make chord changes faster and easier.

A to D minor change – This change will incorporate both shared fingers and the slide principle.

These chords share the A note on the G string 2

fret so leave your 2nd f inger down on that A note.

Slide your third finger from the 2

fret of the B string to the third fret of the B string. The last part of

the change is to be done at the same time you are sliding on the B string. Move your first finger from

the E note, 2

fret D st rin g, to th e F note, 1

fret, high E string. Remember, like with the other

changes, you want to tra in your fingers to execute th ese moves together at the same time. It t akes

practice, but stay positive, keep working on it and it will come!

TECHNIQUES REVIEW:

Fret hand and chord changing techniques review

1. SPEED - Playing slow and clean is ALWAYS better than fast and sloppy.

2. TECHNIQUE - Remember to always play with proper fret hand technique

3. ATTITUDE - Stay positive and do not get discouraged. It will take a while to get ch ord

fingerings memorized and to get chords sounding totally clean. Your playing is an evolution.

4. CHORDS - When learning new chords, play the chord one note at a time before strumming t o

ensure all notes of the chord ring true. Each note should sound clean with no dead strings,

pops, or overtones from other strings.

5. CHANGING CHORDS - Focus on m oving fingers only slight ly off the fret b oard when changing

chords. Keep your fret hand in a tight cluster and don’t open it up or pull it away f rom the guitar

neck.

6. PINKY FINGER - Keep you pinky finger attached to your third finger tucke d tight and hitching a

ride. Also the wrist should be down, fingers cupped, and sta y on your fingertips.

7. STRUMMING – At first stru m very slowly. Strum as slo w as necessary to make the changes in

time. Remember that the faster you strum then the faster you will have to make the chan ges to

stay in time.

8. ANALYZE – Pull chord changes apart and analyze t hem for shared fingers, clusters, and

slides.

Keep practicing two chord changes individually until they are very fluid and the y will eventually

become automatic. Then tie two chord changes together into three or more chord change

progressions. Remember…Rome was no t built in a day. Stay po sit ive, take your time, keep practicing

and it will come!

FOUR-CHORD CHANGE PRACTICE EXAMPLE:

G – Em – C - D

When taking on multiple cho rd changes do not feel overwhelmed. Just think of the string as a

connected bunch of two chord changes and ana lyze them two at a time. The G to Em change has a

shared finger. The Em to C change also has a shared finger as we execute that change with the pivot

maneuver. The hardest change in this progression will be the change f rom C t o D, a s you will have to

move all three fingers off the C chord to change to the D chord. Then the D back to the G has a

shared finger.

Break the changes down t o two at a time and practice them individually. G to Em, then Em to C, the n

C to D, and finally D back to G. When you have all the change mechanics solid f or each change then

try to tie them together in time to play the four-chord change. Work through the finger movements

first, then with quarter notes, and then with strum patterns. You will be on your way to learning an

endless stream of songs and enjoying the guitar for the rest of your life- rock on!

NOTES ON THE FRETBOARD:

654 321

EA D G BE Edie Ate Dynamite Good Bye Edie

Low

fret

Fret

The twelve-note scale consists of:

A, Bb, B, C, C#, D, Eb, E, F, F#, G, G#

# = SHARP

b=FLAT

High

AandG

strings are relate d –

from an y note on the A string

go 2 strings down and 2 frets

over, you have the same note

an octave higher on the G

string.

EandD

strings

are related – from

any note on the E

string go 2 strings

down and 2 frets

over, you have the

same note an

octave higher on

the D string.

Low E and High E

strings have same

note names on each

fret – just two

octaves apart.