Getting the first guitar is exciting for every guitar owner. If you are a guitarist, you may know the feeling and excitement when you bought your first guitar. Every beginner wants to learn the guitar as soon as possible and try to learn everything at once, that is not possible.
It takes time to learn a guitar, and beginners make a lot of mistakes while learning, which delays their progress. Therefore, it is essential to follow the right steps and avoid the mistakes that most beginners make while learning a guitar. This post shares the common mistakes that beginner guitarists need to avoid while learning guitar.
Holding the guitar incorrectly
Many beginners find it challenging to hold the guitar as the shape of the guitar is much different from other things we hold. Not holding the guitar correctly makes it difficult to play and produce the correct tones. However, the shape of the guitar is made perfectly to make it comfortable to hold. Those curves are there for a reason.
One is there to fit on your thigh while sitting, and another is to cup your ribcage. These curves make it easy to hold the guitar close to your body and support it with your thigh. Most beginners don’t make use of these curves, and the guitar tends to slip away from their body.
Using too much effort
The common mistake that many beginners make is trying too hard to play it with perfection. Beginners try to learn their new guitar within a few days that is not possible. So, they try to play too hard, which leads to a delay in learning and the production of wrong tones.
Finger positioning
Another mistake that beginners make is that they position their fingers incorrectly on the guitar. To play the guitar correctly, one should place the fingers near the fret wire towards its body. You should press slightly behind the fret wire and not above it. If you place the fingers correctly, it needs a light pressure to produce a clean and clear note.
Not tuning the guitar
Many beginners don’t tune the guitar before playing the same as they don’t think of tuning as important. Although it is not easy for beginners to tune a guitar, it is important to produce the right tones.
Moreover, beginners are unable to differentiate between good tones and bad tones without tuning their guitar. Therefore, beginners need to have an experienced guitarist to tune their guitar and guide them about the good and bad tones.
Avoiding Barre Chords
Playing the barre chords means using a single finger to hold multiple strings. Beginners require a lot of strength in the fretting hand to play the barre chords. Although barre chords are tough to learn in the beginning, they are required to play many songs. Beginners must devote some time to practice playing these chords, and it gets easier as their fretting hand gets stronger.
Being impatient
It is quite common for beginners becoming impatient and trying to learn everything at once. As they discover some effective ways of playing guitar, they try to speed up their rate of progress. However, beginners need to realize that there is no way to speed up learning faster than the natural pace. Therefore, learning steadily is the best way as keeping patience is essential to learn playing guitar.
Ignoring the tempo and timing
Rhythm is an essential element in music, whether it is from a piano or guitar. It is essential to create a sense of rhythm for every guitarist and musician. So, whether you aim to play in bands or just going solo with your songs, you need to stay in time. A simple way to do it is to use a metronome that you can purchase from any store selling guitar parts in Australia or near your location. A metronome can help you develop the rhythmic ability and understand the beat perfectly while playing.
Final Words
These are some common mistakes beginners make while playing the guitar. The best way to avoid such mistakes is to practice under a professional guitarist, who can guide you from scratch. Practicing with a professional guitarist helps you avoid mistakes and learn many effective ways to boost your learning process.
