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Playing With Other Guitar Players

July 9th, 2010

Playing With Other Guitar Players
Source: Guitar Basics

Playing With Other Guitar Players

By now, we are almost a half year into the lesson material (Okay 5 months), and maybe you have been talking to your friends about playing guitar or you have found others who have been taking guitar lessons or can already play the guitar. Now you have decided to get together with a friend and play some music. What do you do?

You know that is a great question and I still remember my very first time that I got together with another guitarist and we asked each other that very question. What you want to do?

Ultimate Kids Guitar Lessons Tip #1: Let me take a moment here to tell you how important getting together with other guitarists is for the guitar student. This is probably the singular most important learning experience you can have besides taking great lessons. You will put your guitar lessons in hyper-drive and become an accomplished guitarist in far less time.

Discover Each Other’s Skill Level:

One of the most important things to know about each other is to what level have you reached in your playing? Certainly you don’t get an advanced intermediate student together with a beginner after they have just had the guitar a month. Sure it can be a educational experience for the beginner, but it will likely be agonizing for the intermediate student. After all the two reasons guitar players get together is to #1? Yep – have fun. make sure you do that. #2? To learn something from each other.

Also, getting together with someone who is far above your level can be dis-heartening for you. You will say to yourself, how can they sound so good and me so poor? The answer is time and hard work – lots of it.

Try To Get With Someone Who Can Teach You New Things:

Now it is not likely that you will find someone who possesses the exact same skills as you, but maybe you will find someone who is stronger in one area than another. Say for instance, if you are having trouble with rhythm chords and are strong in playing lead songs, it would be good to find someone who is strong in rhythm and weak in lead. That way you can benefit from each other’s strengths and both have a learning experience.

What Are Some Of The Things We Can Play Together:

This is where there will have to have a little give and take. If there is just yourself and one other guitarist, it makes sense for one of you to play the lead of a song and the other to play the rhythm chords. In this introductory session, determine who will be best at doing what, and play the entire session in those roles. It will sound rough, choppy and not so cool first, but hang in there – remember if in playing with another guitarist, practice makes perfect!

The next time you get together you can reverse rolls. After doing this for several more sessions you will ease into a pattern and comfort level with each other and things will go much more naturally and smoothly for you.

Your guitarist friend may really hear something they like that you play, and will ask you to show them that ‘lick’ (a lick is a guitarist term for a great little one or two measure piece of a song – it can be a kick-off to a song or the ending to a song or anywhere in the middle). If that is the case, please do show them the lick, as that will pay off for you when you want to learn something that they do.

First Play Songs You Know The Best And Are Easy For You To Play:

It is always tempting to show off a little bit when we first get together with a new player. We all do it and don’t feel bad if you fall into that trap. Just know that playing a simple song very well will sound a whole lot better than playing your most difficult song very poorly.

Ultimate Kids Guitar Lesson Tip #2: Try playing your lesson materials first. Start with songs you know the best and are easy for you to play. It is important that you start with the very easiest stuff. I know the temptation will be to play the most difficult song or passage that you know, but if you can’t play it well, the WOW factor goes down the toilet. You will impress no one by doing that.

Ultimate Kids Guitar Lesson Tip #3: By all means do not feel embarrassed that you cannot play as well as the other person. You don’t know how long they have been playing or if they are even telling you the full story. Some kids like to say ” Yeah, I’ve been playing just 2 weeks and this is what I can play” They they rip off a song that you know took more time that they are claiming.

Sure some people possess more musical talent than others. Just remember playing guitar or any other instrument for that matter is 5% talent and 95% perspiration. That means nearly everyone has to work and work really hard to get where they are.