Are you trying to learn the guitar? Whether you’re a beginner or an intermediate player, you’re bound to make some guitar mistakes. While learning how to play guitar is different for everyone, making mistakes is only natural, especially if you’re a beginner.
If you’re self-taught or don’t know how to correct the mistakes you make, there are things you can do to become a better guitarist and be able to discern playing mistakes. These mistakes are so common you would be surprised how many aspiring guitarists are susceptible to doing them unconsciously.
Purchasing a Guitar Without Thought
There are different types of guitars, and thousands or millions are sold on the market. It may be hard to find a guitar that suits you since there are numerous factors to consider, like size, type, condition, and many more. Everyone has their personalities and preferences when choosing their instrument. The guitar you purchase should inspire you to practice more frequently.
Decide whether you want to invest in a new guitar or purchase a used one. Are you looking for a vintage look and sound, or do you want to get cutting-edge technology? How much is your budget for a guitar? These are questions to ask yourself when deciding on one.
Suppose you’re searching for a good guitar. Don’t just limit yourself to local guitar stores. Consider searching for guitars online and around the world. For example, a good guitar store newcastle, Australia, is at the Musos Corner, which sells most of the top premium guitar brands on the market. Shopping outside of your scope just allows you to have more options to choose from.
Of course, there are also many great stores outside of Australia. The following are some of the best guitar-manufacturing countries. If you have the means, consider visiting these countries and see how they differ in manufacturing their guitars:
- China
- Central Asia
- Indonesia
- Mexico
- Korea
- Japan
- United States of America
- Europe
When learning about these countries and how unique the guitars they make are, you may eventually find one that suits your preferences.
Practicing Playing the Guitar Without a Metronome
A metronome is a device you can use to improve your guitar skills. So, it’s a tool you must use when practicing your guitar. What is a metronome? It’s a device that produces regular beats you can play along to improve your rhythm and timing. Hence, practicing with a metronome can help beginners achieve flawless precision.
Sadly, many guitar players ignore the existence of this tool. A guitar player can play each note accurately and perfectly. However, when you play a song, and it’s out of tempo, or the timing is just poor, your overall play would end up sounding wrong.
Practicing with a metronome is helpful, especially if you play with an electric guitar, which is almost always accompanied by other instruments in a band. When you’re in a band, all instruments have to harmonize to create the perfect sound.
If you’re lagging behind the rest of the group, you should probably stick out like a sore thumb. Thus, you should always pay attention to your tempo when learning how to play the guitar and perform better.
Not Taking Your Own Learning Pace
Learning the guitar is different for everyone. If you go too fast, you may be harder on yourself and make more mistakes than learning at your own pace. Remember that mastering a good guitar technique will take time.
Slowly build your way up to faster tempos incrementally, and consider going at 50% first to get used to it. By going slow and taking your time, you can focus and hone your technique. This is much better than hurrying the learning at full speed with a sloppy technique.
Remember that when you first practice a new thing, you’ll eventually learn and make this habit permanent. Thus, if you pursue a sloppy technique by going fast, you may find it hard to eliminate this poor technique later on.
Inconsistent Guitar Practice
A lot of it relies on muscle memory when learning an instrument, just like it would for other activities that require complex motor skills. Many guitarists look like they are playing effortlessly due to the hundreds of hours they’ve put into practicing and with constant repetition.
If you practice even just 15 minutes a day, you can see better improvement in your guitar skills. Avoid making the mistake of cramming all of your practices into one day for 10 hours per week. Consistency is the key to muscle memory, so learn to be disciplined in guitar practice.
Final Thoughts
Like any artistic and physical activity, learning to play the guitar without a teacher can make it easy for the guitarist to create bad habits. These bad habits can hinder your progress and make it hard to learn the instrument properly. But with awareness and diligence, you’ll learn how to play guitar in no time and will be able to play the chords of the songs you love.
