I am just starting module 2 of grade 1. So very much at the beginning. A few questions:
tuning with an app, the g string sounds the correct height for a split second, then jumps to what I assume are overtones only. It is a quality brand, but I bought them in a shop that was not really for accoustic guitars, so they might have been laying around a while. Could that be the reason? Also, higher e snapped while stringing. Both has not happened ever before.
last time I started to play guitar, I realized that most books are teaching to build up the chord from the first finger onwards. I found that building it up from the last finger backwards is much easier for me. Is there any reason NOT to do that?
fingerpain I am actually proud to have, hehe. But what concerns me is wrist pain. I shake out the fretting hand every now and then, but still I would like to practice either longer or more often, but am scared a bit. What I do NOT want is hurting something so that I need to take a break for weeks. Any thoughts? Some wrist bandage a good/bad idea? I know it will come with practice, and I just need to relax more, yada yada. Still want to practice more gddmnt.
my cats do not appreciate my practicing accoustic guitar, so I got a preloved e-guitar for when they are sleeping. So far I find building chords VERY different, so maybe it will interfere in a bad way? Any other reason not to switch back and forth as an ultra noobish beginner?
If you have pain in the wrist then thatâs not a good sign. Iâm not the right person to give advice on this but I think other people in the community will be able to give some suggestions if you post a short video showing your hand position when playing.
Did you get them from Clas Ohlson? I know they have some guitar equipment as well⌠and guitar strings may not be among their topsellers. But more likely it was bad luck. No idea, where the closest music shop is in your region. Seinäjoki maybe? I tend to order my picks and strings and can highly recommend Kitarapaja, their service is very fast.
My guitar teacher told me that shaking out the wrist can help to alleviate mild pain. But of course it is no real longterm solution. Please donât play through the pain. I made this mistake last autumn (and yes, I used cooling cream and a wrist brace so that I could continue playing) and ended up more or less not being able to play for approx. six monthsâŚ
Are you bending your wrist a lot when you are playing?
for the finger placing, stick with the thing that works for you now. Coming along, Justin has a lesson on air changes and the ultimate goal is to land all fingers at once. But this takes time and practice. To develop finger independence, you could also try building the chord with a different finger each time, but that is also some more advanced stuff for the future.
Regards the strings and tuning: how old are the strings? Might be time to change them.
Switching between acoustic and electric wonât harm you. Feel glad to have both options.
Lastly, ans most important, the wrist pain. This is a little concerning, as you should not feel pain in the wrist while playing. To help you, could you try posting pictures or even a short video of your fretting hand and overall playing posture? So people here can see, what might causes the pain.
Hi Aino,
For Tuning, I find the app (really any app) does jump around a bit. I tend to tune the open string and then tune also the same string while fretting at the 12th fret and kind of pick the mid point between the two. This helps negate the impact of intonation and it makes tuning take a little longer, which I get a better result from.
For building chords, I am not sure exactly what the questions is. But what I believe you are asking I think I build the chord generally off some commonality between the first and second chord. I.E. from A major to D major, my ring finger on the B strong would anchor to the string and slide down to form the base for my D major. The other fingers would move in relation to the chord. So basically one finger is telling the other fingers where to go, but the order, up or does does not matter so much. There is also another popular online music teacher guy, Marty Music who often says, make the chord shape and then remove your fingers from the guitar and hold the same shape and âuse freeze sprayâ to hold that position. I think about this a lot myself and when I teach my kids. This is basically building the chord all at once, which I think it ultimately where you want to be.
If your wrist hurts, the first thing I would think about is your where your elbow is. If you are trying to play open/cowboy chords, but your elbow is too close to your body for example then your wrist would be a poor angle. Likewise, if your elbow is too far forward your wrist could have too dramatic an angle. You want your fingers to bend more than your wrist. If you injure your wrist, you will not be able to play/practice. I would not take that too lightly.
For e-guitar, I find that playing all kinds of different guitars is very valuable practice. Different scale lengths like a LP versus Strat, different neck profiles, different string gauges (including acoustic or electric), classical Nylon versus steel, different body type, acoustic dreadnaught versus electric etc. etc. etc. Get your fingers used to playing with all these different factors is VERY educational. That said, I think if you are wanting to perform, I would practice what you intend to perform on the instrument you intend to perform.
1st, Iâm no pro. I have read a few notes on tuning though. Best I can remember many tuning issues come from a incorrectly cut nut. The string gets caught in the nut. imho, try some lub in the nut slots. Also when tuning, tune âupâ to pitch. Then pull on the string around the middle of the string, stretching it. Then check tuning again. Also put lub on the bridge, or any other friction point the string rests on. Maybe thatâd be the bottom of a string tree.
When Iâm tuning I also will tune whatever string, say G to what I think is in tune. Then go play the note A on the G string, or B, or C, whatever note. See if that note is in tune. Adj. accordingly. I find sometimes itâs a happy medium that I find works best for being in tune. Some notes may be a shade flat, or a shade sharp, but Iâm looking for overall in basic tune. I also like to play the chord C after tuning. I find if Iâm out of tune, a C chord will sound poorly. Retune to get it to sound proper.
As for the snapped E string. I donât know. Did you tune it to higher than E? Over tightening the string? Or perhaps itâs some sharp point the string is resting on at friction points. Or perhaps itâs just a poorly mfg. string?
Again, Iâm no pro. But I canât see itâd make any difference one way or the other. In the end, your gonna want to put all fingers down on âsaidâ chord in one fowl swoop. How you get there I canât see any benefit one way or the other.
Is your wrist pretty much straight? Or at least mostly straight. I believe that to be the goal. The exception would be some chords just donât lend themselves well to a straight wrist. But generally straight wrist is what your trying to achieve I think.
And for sure, be relaxed.
Thatâs funny. To me anyways. Wait till ya plug in. My cats sleep right in ft. of my amp. Depending on the day, all I gotta do is switch on the amp switch and thatâs enough for them to get up and go somewhere else.
As for switching back and forth between acoustic and electric. This will not interfere with your learning. It may even help as youâll get used to playing guitars that vary from your norm. fwiw, I switch between the two all the time. Itâs something ya get used to as I do think electrics generally play a bit easier than acoustics. For me, that starts with the fact that I have .010 strings on my electrics and .011âs on my acoustic. They just play different. Youâll get used to it imho.
Have fun in your adventure. Playing guitar is hard to do, but the fun and rewards of playing outweigh the effort that you gotta put into it.
Keep at it Aino. A few years from now youâll be all over it.
Lastly, I love your avatar. What a sweet looking cat.
Catâs rule!
Get yourself a clip-on tuner. They are much better than an app.
If you broke the high e string after re-stringing itâs possible you initially tightened the string way beyond the tuned tension, then when you went to tune it the tuner was telling you to tune up. So you keep increasing string tension untilâŚ
Been there, done that. You only make that mistake once.
Thanks so much for the rec! Kitarapaja looks great, indeed! I was looking around for a place to have my Alhambra âservicedâ, eventually. That is by far the most trustinspiring place I saw so far. Oulu is ⌠reachable
Did you ever try F-Musiikki? They are in Seinäjoki, too, and for general âtarvikeetâ probably OK. Just do not give off that huge âtrustworthyâ vibe for my beloved Alhambra, since they seem more into electric guitars. Maybe I am wrong, though.
Also, thanks for answering the wrist question. That is exactly what I feared. I used to do that in sports, sometimes worked, sometimes⌠not so much But with this being more about fine motorics than say running, it sure is different. I will make videos and analyze more thoroughly.
Strings were still from Switzerland. The hardcase I bought preloved there is also not for a classical guitar, but with extra padding, it worked. Just wanted to show appreciation for him going out of his way to find a cheap but good way to move the guitar so I bought extra strings there.
Thank you! Yes, they do. Maybe you know the saying âdogs have owners, cats have employeesâ. Hope they do not fire me over the guitars The electric one I play without amp, of course Great to know it is even a good idea!
Thanks everyone for awesome tips! I am used to making videos of my work and analyze every friggin twitch from my job. Will do similar with playing. Good idea yâall gave me here. Also, great other tips! I do not think the string snapping is on me, though. I string carefully, and the two years or so I played before, it never happened. But who knows.
Yes. F-Musiikki is fine. Itâs the leading music store chain in Finland. They have both electric and acoustic guitars. I got my electric and newest acoustic from F-Musiikki in Vantaa. They even set up the acoustic for free, when I bought it. Service is somewhat impersonal, but they always let you try whatever guitar without raising an eyebrow.
Kitarapaja was recommended to me especially for their excellent repair services. Visiting their shop in Oulu is surely a good idea
Oh sorry, you have a classical guitar. In that case my recommendation to buy a clip-on tuner may not apply. I donât know if they work with nylon strings.
I donât see why it wouldnât. A clip-on tuner just reads the vibration in the guitar body, and if an acoustic guitar, steel or nylon string, isnât vibrating, thereâs no sound.
Mmm, OK. My clip-on tuners (Boss & Fender) attach to the headstock, not the body. I assume thereâs less vibration at the headstock. Iâve noticed both tuners are more âtwitchyâ on my electric vs the acoustic. I assume thatâs because the electric strings are lighter and/or the solid body is less resonant. Hence my assumption nylons might not have enough mass to give a reliable result with a clip-on.
In any case youâre probably right. A quick Google should sort it out.
I knew my terminology was going to cause confusion. The vibration of the strings goes through the entire guitar, and thatâs what I meant by âthe body.â Poor choice of words. But thereâs no reason a clip-on tuner wonât work on a classical, nylon-string guitar since it reads vibration, and all acoustic guitars count on vibration to make a sound.
