How to start playing classical guitar?

[Leong J. Zi]

Do i need to practice scales? what kind of scales i need to practice for classical purpose?

i know chords and strumming. But i want to play well in classical songs....

Any recommendation of songs which i can practice ?

By the way, im a beginner in classical, any suggestion of good classical guitar songs? Plan to buy some cds....

[Pragueguy]

You really need:

1. A teacher

2. Really, a good teacher

3. Actually, a very good teacher

4. In fact, you should have an excellent teacher..

ps You probably get the idea..................

[Michael McGrath]

All you need is a guitar to start; everything else is a luxury.

You already have the internet; I'd suggest reading around the techniquie forum or use google to get an idea of how you should do things, and then find an easy piece in tab to learn to play just so you can feel like you're making progress.

These completed; you should look into getting a book (I suggest Frederic Noads "Solo guitar Vol. 1) and/or a teacher so you can progress with proper technique, and learn to sight read musical notation which is a very very important part of classical guitar.

A suggestion for peices.. I don't know. I started steel string guitar first; learning the cowboy chords and strumming patterns. It took me awhile to find classical guitar; but when I did one of the first things I learned was "Romance". It's a good piece because it grows with you and forces you to learn whatever manner of doing barrechords works best for your body.

[Robin]

Do i need to practice scales? what kind of scales i need to practice for classical purpose?

i know chords and strumming. But i want to play well in classical songs....

Any recommendation of songs which i can practice ?

By the way, im a beginner in classical, any suggestion of good classical guitar songs? Plan to buy some cds....

The things you have learned playing chords and strumming are related to classical guitar but there are many differences. I echo the sentiments of the others to find a good teacher if at all possible and to work from a method that will help you develop the skills needed to play classical guitar. There are many skills to be learned even before you worry so much about scales! The best advice I can give is start slow, keep it simple and enjoy the ride.

Best,

Robin

[Leong J. Zi]

i guess i have to put more efforts on classical.... Thanks for you guys advices

[Prominent Critic]

To learn to play classical guitar you don't start with "songs," and you don't really even need to play scales yet. If you can't get a teacher, I would recommend buying a method book for self teaching.

I think that the best one is "Classic Guitar Technique," by Aaron Shearer. Start with Volume One. Or "Solo Guitar Playing," by Frederick Noad. Either of these will teach you basic classical guitar technique, along with some pieces. With that foundation you can go on to more complex pieces.

Ramon

[dogonjon]

You really need:

1. A teacher

2. Really, a good teacher

3. Actually, a very good teacher

4. In fact, you should have an excellent teacher..

ps You probably get the idea..................

......That having a teacher, who is actually an excellent teacher and only takes students that are dedicated and goal driven. You have the drive and desire to meet this prerequisite and bring a strong sense that you will accomplish your goals. You set your own time lines and exceed all expectations academically taking on extra assignments and participating in ensemble practice while assisting others in their development.

[choctawchas]

my advice would be:

1.) not to to take up learning to play the classical guitar.

2.) if you ignore 1.) then proceed to 3.)

3.) rethink 1.) again

4.) follow all of the above

5.) and number 4.) especially

good luck,duggie

oh and if you find a teacher who only accepts dedicated and goal driven students then pay him enormous sums of money because he is probably very poor and starving!

[barry haywood]

Speaking from bitter experience, whatever you do, whichever route you take, please PLEASE try to get good direction (book OR teacher) on good use of hands. I wasted early years just trying to PLAY classical guitar music with poorly placed hands. When I was shown how to, and the importance of HOW TO, my classical guitar playing progressed rapidly. So many things that are difficult/impossible suddenly become manageable when better hand positions are practiced.
Sorry, it all sounds so boring, but even "nearly" good hands allow more reach, power, accuracy and control.

Good luck with learning to play classical guitar, it really is worth the effort. Once learnt, a whole world of different styles of music becomes available to you.
My first book was Noad, "Solo Guitar Playing" made easier to use by having a good teacher.

[jkircoff]

To learn to play classical guitar you don't start with "songs," and you don't really even need to play scales yet. If you can't get a teacher, I would recommend buying a method book for self teaching.

I think that the best one is "Classic Guitar Technique," by Aaron Shearer. Start with Volume One. Or "Solo Guitar Playing," by Frederick Noad. Either of these will teach you basic classical guitar technique, along with some pieces. With that foundation you can go on to more complex pieces.

Ramon

I generally agree with you Ramon. Ideally one would find a good classical guitar teacher and combine his/her teachings with some independent study from the likes of Shearer, Noad, or Delcamp. Finding a good teacher and being able to afford lessons can be sticky wickets though, and if you're not able to find or afford a good teacher, utilizing the aforementioned authors combined with research and participation in forums such as this can help you teach yourself. What's important is one stays patient and diligent during the course of study -- be it self-induced or with the aid of a teacher. With time and proper practice one will improve and realize self-satisfaction as a result.

[idi0tkiddd]

Ide say you should get a good teacher Sahahasand haha. This has been very helpful to me, I am also just starting out also. Thanks. I am mainly focused on learning to read music, some super basic (not classical, more like Horse with No Name/America and Hurt/Johnny Cash) songs, basic scales and exercises. Is this a good place to put most of my energy into? I am working on reading music everyday... with the exercises and such mainly to relax my brain during practice.

[nomadpenguin]

Learn to read sheet music. Do it. Do not be one of those poor souls who constantly have to ask for tabs

[idi0tkiddd]

I'm glad Im headed in the right direction. Any tricks or literature you would reccomend to a person that is new to it?

[robin loops]

I second the Get a teacher advice! you'll accomplish more in the first year with a good teacher than ten years without!

Learn to read music is another really important one. Aside from tabs being very limiting to work from there are also limited tabs available. Notation opens up an entire universe of available music, including everything ever written for other instruments (when you get to a level of being able to transcribe from one instrument to another and desire to do that).

Also like the Frederick Noad solo guitar playing books (level 1 and 2) whcih are full of nice little pieces to work on and great study notes for each. But get a teacher as well, and use the Noad for reference and/or work on it with you TEACHER.

POSTURE!!!!!!!! make sure you start off by learning the correct (or A correct, as there is not just one correct way) way to hold the guitar. Very important to avoid injury! If you only take one class with a teacher FIND a teacher to help you cross this bridge. DON'T try it alone. You can look at youtube videos until you're blue in the face but only a teacher can take into account your particular size/shape and body style and this is perhaps the most important element to playing guitar as incorrect posture will not only be uncomfortable and cause pain, it can cause permanent injury.

If you don't have a semi decent student guitar I highly recommend getting one. It's really frustrating trying to learn to play an instrument that not even a seasoned pro could make sound good. Doesn't have to be super awesome but a 100$ walmart special definitely won't cut it. Best entry levels I've seen are the Yamaha sg151's. I did a lot of reasearch before picking one up as my go-to/ take it camping guitar. They can be gotten pretty cheap. Next, have your guitar setup to play easily... Very hard to learn on a high action guitar... Make sure that it at least meets the 4MM(bass)3mm(treble) at 12th fret guideline as a maximum. I've played for years and have trouble playing action mmuch higher than this. A good guitar tech can get it set up even lower than this without too much expense. If you buy a new one make sure it is set up well or that they will include setup in the proce of the guitar so you don't have the added expense.

Personally I also recommend (if you're totally new to the guitar) continuing to learn a bit of chord based styles of music as well. I.E. Classic rock or pop. A lot of folks will disagree with this one but I find it helps a beginner get a little more enjoyment out of it much sooner and gets you familiar with the guitar neck, chordal structure etc. Basically one can be playing simple 3 chord songs within a few weeks and playing them well within a couple of months whereas classical can take several months before you are playing music that you are happy with. It also helps to strengthen the hands. Think of it this way... A person that wants to become a great soccer/football player can still benefit from riding around the river trail on a bicycle or jogging in the park with their dog. However, do use good posture even when playing chord based styles and avoid strange hand angles and guitar over right leg while slouching in a chair. Not necessarily full on classical posture but find one that gets the guitar into a similar position.

And don't forget to have fun. If you don't enjoy it, you really have to have lot of discipline to continue. Also if you don't enjoy it, neither with your audience...

[Pete Morrison]

I have been playing solo classical guitar for a couple of years now using the Noad book mentioned a few times above as my main source and i can confirm that it is a great one to begin with. Dont try to advance too quickly, carefully follow the lessons there as they do build upon each other in terms of technical ability and developing ability to read notation (i.e. written music). Stick with it and I promise you from personal experience that you will have a lot of pleasure as your knowledge of the guitar and skill in playing develops. Take careful note of what people are saying about injuries too. As a basically self taught player i have been through periods where i have had finger/shoulder pain etc (it can be quite strenuous playing a non-electric, acoustic guitar over long periods of time) but have found by a process of elimination that the pain has always been due to some bad posture or overwork without enough rests etc. One good tip i found was to stretch/rotate my neck in all directions before practice and occasionally use small hand held weights to strengthen arms and release tension (not excessively though). This removed a lot of pain issues.
Hope this helps !
Regards and happy playing !!