Beginner Guitar: The All-in-One Guide (Book & Streaming Video Course)

By Christian J. Triola

Do you know little or nothing about guitar, yet dream of playing for yourself or a crowd of adoring fans?

Beginner Guitar: The All-in-One Guide will set you on the path to turn that dream into reality! Written in plain language, with photos, illustrations, audio examples, and over an hour of online video instruction to guide you, it's like taking a beginner guitar course from the comfort of your own home, on your schedule.

 

Designed with you in mind

Beginner Guitar will take you step-by-step through everything you need to get started playing today, from describing different types of guitars and equipment, how to choose and care for your instrument, as well introduce you to some of the many techniques and styles of playing. We'll start with the basics, and by the time you've finished, you'll have a firm foundation in guitar and a skillset that will enable you to play hundreds of popular songs.

 

Let your curiosity guide you

Start anywhere in Beginner Guitar and skip around to your heart's content. Each section will guide you through everything you'll need to become a confident player. You choose where to place your focus and when. We'll provide the instruction, photos, diagrams, audio, and streaming video instruction to make it easy!

 

It's everything you need to get started

You'll get everything that most private instructors teach in the first couple years of lessons:

• Learn to play chords, including power chords and progressions
• Discover how much fun it can be to use tablature, read notes, and play by ear
• Learn the best ways to practice to get better faster
• Try out various playing styles—country, rock, folk, jazz, blues, and classical
• Practice fingerpicking techniques
• Learn how to care for your instrument, change strings, and tune
• And much more!

Experience you can trust

The Missing Method for Guitar is dedicated to creating high quality instructional materials that inspire and empower all levels of guitar player, from absolute beginners to professional guitarists. Author Christian J. Triola has a BA in Music (Jazz Studies), a Master's degree in Education, over a dozen published guitar books, and 20+ years experience teaching hundreds of students of all ages to play guitar.

 

It's time

Join the millions of people who have discovered the joy of playing guitar. Download your copy and get started today!

• Language: English
• Publisher: Tenterhook Books, LLC
• Release date: Aug 12, 2021
• ISBN: 9798201572624

Book preview

Beginner GuitarBeginner Guitar Title PageThe Missing Method for Guitar

Copyright © 2021, 2018 Christian J Triola, Amy Joy Triola

All Rights Reserved

Except as permitted under the U S Copyright Act of 1976, no part of this publication may be reproduced, distributed, or transmitted, in whole or in part, in any form or by any means, or stored in any form of retrieval system, without prior written consent of the author

Bulk sales and permissions inquiries can be directed to the author at [e-mail].

Cover and Book Design by Amy Joy Triola, ©2018 Amy Joy Triola

The Missing Method ™ for Guitar is an imprint of Tenterhook Books, LLC The Missing Method name and logos are property of Tenterhook Books, LLC

First Edition 2018, Tenterhook Books, LLC Akron, Ohio Print Edition Library of Congress Control Number: 2020911119

Print ISBN-13: 978-1953101006

Contents

About the Author

Introduction

Welcome

Unit 1: The Basics

Types of Guitars

Guitar Basics

Equipment

How to Tune Your Guitar

Basic Techniques

Best Practices for Practicing

How to Take Care of Your Guitar

Unit 2: Playing Chords

Time

How to Read a Fretboard Diagram

The Fastest Way to Learn Chords

A Quick Lesson in Music Theory

Easy Chords to Get You Started

G Major & E Minor

D7 Chord

C Major & A Minor

Review Using Common Chord Progressions

Song Form

Eighth Note Strumming

3/4 Time

Rests

Ties

Unit 3: Reading Music

The Elements of Reading Music

Time

Notes on the First String

Notes on the Second String

Notes on the Third String

Notes on the Fourth String

Notes on the Fifth String

Notes on the Sixth String

Introducing Accidentals

Unit 4: Tablature

Intro to Tablature

Reading Tabs with Notation

Unit 5: Fingerstyle

Fingerstyle: The Basics

Travis Picking

Block Chords and Double Stops

Unit 6: Power Chords

Open Power Chords

Root 6 Power Chords

Root 5 Power Chords

Combining Roots

Three Note Power Chords

Palm Muting

Unit 7: Basics of Popular Style

Folk

The Blues

Rock

Country

Jazz

Classical

Unit 8: Ear Training

Ear Training

Interval Practice

Chords and Chord Progressions

Rhythm Training

Appendix

How to Change Your Strings

How to Practice with a Metronome

TAB Articulation Chart

Chord Reference Chart

Resources to Take Your Playing Further

About the AuthorChristian J. Triola

Christian J. Triola holds a Bachelor’s Degree in Music (Jazz Studies) and a Master’s Degree in Education, both from The University of Akron. He has taught guitar, bass, mandolin, ukulele, and piano for over 20 years, published over a dozen guitar method books, and has played in a variety of bands in addition to his many solo performances.

What is the Missing Method?

The Missing Method for Guitar is the guitar method imprint of Tenterhook Books, LLC, owned and operated by Christian J Triola and his wife, Amy Joy Triola. The imprint began in 2013 in an effort to bring method books that didn’t exist to Christian’s guitar students. Today, we have expanded that mission to create high quality instructional materials that inspire and empower all levels of guitar player, from absolute beginners to professional guitarists.

The Missing Method ™ now spans many series of guitar books, addressing topics from chords, to note reading, practice strategies, playing techniques and much more. Learn more at TheMissingMethod.com.

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Introduction Heading BlockHow this book works heading block

When first learning how to play guitar, you are often faced with too many choices: do you learn to read music? Learn to read tablature? Strum chords first? And what about learning by ear? With this book, you will learn the basics of how to do all these things so you can discover for yourself what direction you want to take. Some will want to learn every approach, while others will simply want to strum along with their favorite songs. It’s all up to you. There is no wrong way of learning guitar. You have to discover for yourself what works best for you for the style of music you want to play. And speaking of styles of music, this book also covers the basics of the most popular guitar styles, giving you a solid foundation from which to build.

With this book, you will be able to explore the world of guitar and decide for yourself what you want to be able to do with it.

What you will learn heading block

Each unit is designed to add to your overall knowledge of the guitar. Not only will you learn about note reading, chords, and TAB, but you’ll also learn about guitar amps and other accessories, plus how to tune and maintain your guitar. Be sure to use the appendix as well. It contains important information on how to use a metronome effectively, tips for changing your strings, and much more, including a TAB chart showing you how to decipher some of the most common symbols used in much of the tablature you’ll find in songbooks and online.

Overview & Recommended Approach heading block

In Unit 1, you’ll learn about the guitar and all the basic information you’ll need to know about your instrument. Unit 2 starts you