So you've chosen to take up the guitar. Good for you! Now comes the hard part: which guitar is the best to start playing on? Well, the answer to that question depends on many things. It depends on what kind of music you enjoy listening to, what kind of music you are looking to play, and what kind of level you wish to reach--amateur or professional.

Before we go over each topic, let us first discuss the differences between Electric and Acoustic guitars.

The main difference between an Electric and Acoustic guitar is the fact that the Electric must be plugged into an amplifier in order to be heard loudly, while the Acoustic can be played and heard without the use of an amp. This is because Acoustic guitars have sound holes, which produce the sound. Electric guitars, on the other hand, don't have a sound hole and are thus known as Hollow-body's. Electric hollow-body’s can be heard by the people playing them, but are inaudible to others without the use of an amp. Additionally, there are Electric guitars with the ability to be played both acoustically and electrically because they have little sound holes. These are known as semi-hollow bodies and are very versatile because they can sound one way unplugged and another way on an amp. Finally, there are some Acoustic guitars, known as Acoustic-Electric's, that can be played acoustically or on an amp. However, these are very different from semi-hollow bodies, because they sound pretty much the same unplugged or plugged--the only difference being that the Acoustic-Electric when plugged into the amp.

OK, now that we've briefly gone over the different types of Acoustic and Electric guitars, we can now move on to the criteria for choosing a guitar.

The Music You Enjoy Helps You Decide What Guitar to Buy: Let's start off with the first topic. Obviously, those who enjoy listening to a certain kind of music are most likely going to want to play it on guitar. That is why you must take this into consideration when looking for a guitar. Choosing the wrong type of guitar could lead to frustration and giving up the instrument all together. Do you enjoy rock music--metal, modern, alternative and otherwise? Then chances are a hollow-body electric guitar is a wise choice. If that is the case, you will also want to purchase an amp. But what if you like rock music that makes use of both acoustic and electric guitar? Then perhaps a semi-hollow body guitar is the best choice. Or maybe you don't like rock and instead enjoy country or mellow music. Acoustic or Acoustic-Electric guitar is then your best bet.

What Kind of Music Do You Want to Play?: Maybe you're a big rock fan, but would rather learn to play mellow, acoustic-based songs. That's perfectly fine, and if that's the genre you wish to play, you definitely want to pick up an Acoustic or Acoustic-Electric guitar. It's also possible that you're a big fan of acoustic-pop but want to start playing rock & roll. Do yourself a favor and pick up a semi-hollow or hollow body guitar.

What Level Do You Wish to Achieve?: Are you just taking up the guitar for recreational purposes and not looking to form a band or master the instrument? The Electric guitar is probably a good choice. This is because Electric guitars are much easier to start playing on than Acoustics are. Electrics have thinner strings (which are easier to start playing on) and, when plugged into an amp, allow room for error. Beginner mistakes can be easily covered up with Electric guitars. However, you cannot expect to make mistakes and be a pro. Acoustic guitars do not cover up your mistakes at all--if anything, they highlight them. You are forced to play songs correctly and master techniques the right way. The learning curve of an Acoustic is steeper, but you will reap the rewards if you master it. A transition from Acoustic to Electric guitar will be incredibly easy, whereas a transition from Electric to Acoustic guitar will be a bit harder. Thinking about what you want to accomplish on the guitar is a big factor in your decision.

Well, there you have it. After you think deeply about the above topics, you should be able to decide what type of guitar to get. Once you’ve made that decision, you’ll probably want to check out our articles on "Choosing the right Acoustic guitar" and "Choosing the right Electric guitar".

By: Gray Rollins -

Article Directory: http://www.articledashboard.com

Gray Rollins writes for GuitarsLand.com. Once you've decided on which guitar you want to get, check out our acoustic guitar buying guide and our electric guitar buying guide.

I’ve just finished looking at Griff Hamlin's latest
package, Playing Through The Blues - A Guide For The
Lead Guitar Player. Obviously I see a lot of products
either because I'm looking for something specific, or
because someone wants me to promote their product.

Most of the time I'm less than impressed, but this
product has me quite excited because it is so different
from anything I have seen in a long time. That is why
I have taken the time to sit and type a letter to all
the people I know and tell you all about it.

Learning the blues can be a frustrating task. It seems
so simple, but only a handful of people seem to know
the trick to really making it sound great. Griff and
his team have put together what I believe is a really
thorough, step-by-step method that has actually been
tested and proven on his own guitar students over the
past several years.

The main book provides all of the scales, techniques,
theory, and tricks that you'll need. It follows a
simple and logical progression. Each chapter builds on
the one before it. At the end of each chapter, you'll
be told exactly what you need to be able to do before
moving on to the next chapter. You can't fail with this.

The best part, however, is the audio examples and jam
tracks. Every audio example comes with a full speed
and slow speed version, so you can play along easily
at first, and pick up the pace as you get better.

There's also 4 complete solos that really sound like
they are from your favorite blues songs. You could
memorize them and totally use them at your next blues
jam or gig. They demonstrate all of the techniques
throughout the book, and give a very good "real world"
example of the techniques and approach.

Also, there are 6 jam tracks that come with the
package, so once you get going you can just play
along with the band. And the tracks are really good
quality, just like you're jamming with a real band.
It's a lot of fun.

As a bonus Griff has included an excellent book full
of turnaround and ending licks. Some of them are
pretty straight forward blues, but a couple of them
are real head-turners.

As you can tell, I'm really impressed with this
package as a whole. The testimonials on the website
prove that I'm not alone. This is a very well thought
out, tested, and put together system.

Don’t just take my word for it though, take a look
for yourself at:

http://www.playingthroughtheblues.info

All the best,

John

A popular musical instrument, guitar has always been an intrinsic part of global musical tradition giving it an altogether different status. Being a string instrument guitar has really modified itself to a great extent from its previous form.

The emergence of the seven-string guitar in the musical scene was not a sudden move. A guitar having four pairs of strings usually marked the renaissance period. By the end of the baroque period it graduated into five courses and also used a variety of tunings.

The eighteenth century saw the emergence of a six-string instrument. These developments clearly reveal the desire to upgrade their instruments and increase the range of the guitar. Gradually this particular category became a popular form of instrument. It surpassed its counterparts in sound quality and other aspects.

A seven-string guitar as the very name suggests is a guitar having seven strings instead of six that guitars usually have. Having the essence of Brazilian culture and tradition guitars have traversed a long way only to provide comfort to frayed nerves.

The seven-string tradition is an old tradition that flourished greatly in the 19th century. The seventh string is usually kept below D or E scale. Infact, a popular genre of music called the 7-string music was the rage in the 19th century amongst youngsters.

The seven string guitar today has emerged as a key instrument in many music recitals. Topping its other counterparts like eight-string guitar and ten-string guitar, it has now become one of the most popular versions. It still continues to be a favorite musical instrument amongst the young generation of music lovers.

There are many artists who have taken guitar to great heights. Some of the popular seven string guitarists who adorned the musical landscape are as follows-

Rocky George
Ruud Adrianus Jolie
Korn
Andrei Krylov (musician)
Limp Bizkit
Jeff Loomis
MaNga
Meshuggah
Mnemic
Mushroomhead
Nevermore
Sergey Nikitin
Unearth
Steve Vai
George Van Eps
Yuri Vizbor
Vladimir Vysotsky
Voyager Project (band)
Within Temptation
Howard Alden
Alexander Dolsky
Battlelore
Stringskip
Carnal Grief
Martin Cliffe
Rusty Cooley
Dave Weiner
Dino Cazares
Don Ross (guitarist)
Fear Factory
Dave Felton
Fuseboxx
Alexander Galich

A typical seven-string guitar comes in the following shades:

Red Cedar
Engelman Spruce
Brazilian Walnut
Brazilian Rosewood

Popular types of seven-string guitars are as given below-

The Russian Guitar
The Brazilian Guitar
The electric guitar

Hogging the limelight in the 80s the seven-string guitar touched a new high in the 90s and completely revolutionized the entire art scene. The seven string guitar has also become immensely popular amongst the bands who used it to play high tunes and deep melodies.

Seven string guitars also find a niche in the progressive genres. Solo artists also made considerable use of the seven-string guitars to enliven their stage shows to a great extent.

Representing a particular genre of music this particular musical instrument made great forays into the world of music giving the entire music industry a whole new makeover. The magical sounds of music overflowing from a seven-string guitar are sure to touch your very soul.

By: Victor Epand

Article Directory: http://www.articledashboard.com

Victor Epand is an expert consultant for guitars, drums, and synthesizers. You can find the best marketplace for guitars, drums, and synthesizers at these 3 sites: seven strings guitars, drums, drum sets, and synthesizers, keyboards.

A large part of getting just the right tone from an electric guitar happens when the signal from the instrument is amplified. True, the original tone is an amalgam of the tone wood selected for the guitar's body and the electrical pickup technology employed, but the tone generated in the amplification process is definitely not to be understated or underemphasized. Most guitarists tend to lean towards tube amplification over transistor-based, solid state technology, but for what reasons, and are these reasons with merit?

Tube technology has been the choice of famous and novice musicians alike for decades, because its technology has been present the longest. Vacuum tubes were used in the first radios and televisions to provide power for sound amplification. Tubes are basically light bulbs, possessing a filament inside that must get warm in order to perform their duties. When musicians talk about their tube amplifiers, they inevitably mention the "warmth" of the tone produced. This warmth arguably comes from the true heat that is being generated by these tubes, a naturally emanating warmness generated from current through filament that can be heard in the guitarist's resulting tone. A tube sound can be described as possessing this "warmness" throughout the entire spectrum of guitar sound, resulting in mellow, "creamy" treble sounds that experience a "punch" or focus when strings are struck harder, while continuing to display thick bass sounds from underneath. Who wouldn't enjoy a warm sound that seems to vibrate and grow to fill the space of a given room? When guitarists first discovered the ability to overdrive tubes, achieving a clipped or distorted sound from the speakers, tube sound became immortalized. Guitarists found that more distortion could be added gradually as the gain knob was turned up, creating a more saturated, dirty sound across the whole sound spectrum. The amount of available drive that a particular amplifier can handle without overextending itself is called "headroom". This allows a guitarist to pump up the gain in order to overdrive the signal without experiencing electrical difficulty because of the increased power to the tubes. While tubes arguably provide the best tone possible, this tone does not come without a price. Tube amplifiers cost substantially more than their solid state cousins. Also, since the tubes themselves are made of glass, some care is necessary when loading and unloading tube amplifiers, though new advances are making them more durable than ever. Warming up a tube amplifier is necessary before playing, but ask any of the well informed sales associates at Strait Music of Austin, and they'll surely say the same: tube amplifiers sound warmer, fuller, and resoundingly better than solid state, and are definitely worth the extra money in the attempt to find that killer tone!

About the Author:

About the Author: Clint Strait is a third generation owner and assistant manager of the Strait Music, Austin Music Stores, providing the best selection of electric guitars and guitar amplifiers to Austin and the surrounding area for over forty years. For more information please visit www.straitmusic.com.

by Will Kalif

Right hand technique is often the most overlooked part of a classical guitarist's skill yet it is the most important. Improving your right hand will transform your playing from mechanical to brilliant and expressive. Here are some tips and techniques that will help you improve.

Your left hand determines the note and your right hand determines just about everything else from tone, to timbre, volume, texture and all the subtleties of the sound that comes from your classical guitar. Yet it is often overlooked when it comes to practice. If you want to really improve your classical guitar playing you need to start focusing on right hand technique. Here are some tips and tricks on how to do it.

Practice the types of strokes

A lot of beginner guitarists don't realize that there are two different types of right hand strokes you can perform. The first stroke (and most common) is the free stroke where the finger doesn't contact anything after plucking the string. The second type of stroke is the rest stroke where the finger comes to rest on the next string down after plucking. Practice your scales and arpeggios using both types of strokes.

Walking across the strings

You can set up your own exercises that will dramatically improve your right hand play and I recommend you do walking exercises at the beginning of every practice session. Walking exercises are simply exercises where you play across all six strings in varying finger patterns. You can do this without stopping any of the strings with your left hand (open) or you can do scales.

Heres how to do it: Simply pluck down then up the six strings alternating between your index and middle fingers. Easy enough right? You started out with your index finger plucking the bass E string right? Now change that up and start your plucking by using your middle finger on the bass E string! It feels quite a bit different doesn't it? Now do a three-finger pattern using index, middle and ring finger. And of course mix that pattern up by starting with a finger other than your index. This will probably feel a little awkward at first but keep at it. With a simple practice exercise like this your classical guitar playing will improve dramatically.

Get a Free pdf written by a master

There is a series of studies called 120 right hand exercises for classical guitar. Matteo Carcassi wrote these studies and they are in the free public domain. The exercises vary in difficulty so are appropriate for beginners to advanced. You can slowly work your way through them over time. Using these studies is a great way to improve right hand play and also improve sight-reading skills.

A Recommended Book

If you are looking for more guidance on improving your play I recommend you get a book by Scott Tennant called "Pumping Nylon". I own it and have made it a part of my regular practice sessions. It has a lot of practical exercises for both the right and left hand. In 2006 a new version of this book aimed at beginners was published. There is also a nice DVD version available if you are a visual style learner.

Because the left hand is closer to your eyes, and because most people are right handed focusing on improvement of the right hand is often overlooked. But if you really want to take your classical guitar playing to the next level you should make a conscious effort to improve your right hand technique. Your speed of playing, clarity, and ability to express with the instrument will be greatly enhanced.

You can download the free pdf 120 Right Hand Studies on the author's website: The Classical Guitar