Do Your Fingers Hurt Playing Guitar?
If you're getting sore fingers after practicing the guitar then the good news is, you must be doing something right. Sore fingers probably means you're doing enough practice and believe me, you're not the only one to get sore fingers.
The other good news is your body will be creating calluses (hard bits of skin) to protect your fingers from injury and pain.
It's quite natural if you think about it. You have been pressing a delicate part of your body onto sharp bits of wire. It's bound to hurt! It 's just something we all go through when learning to how to play the guitar.
Even if you've been playing for years and you have an extended period without touching a guitar, the hard skin on your fingers will disappear and you'll find it hurts again.
Click HERE for a free video on how to stop your fingers hurting
OK! But how do I stop them hurting?
Our goal is to build thick skin on the tips of our fingers so that the nerves are not as exposed. Here are a few tips to if you're getting sore fingers.
- Take a day off. Stop playing. Give it a rest if they are hurting and come back to it tomorrow. But make sure you do play even just a short while each day when you come back to it. This will help your fingers build the thick skin it needs to prevent the pain.
- Dip the tips of your fingers in alcohol or something like vodka. This is believed to accelerate the hardening up of the skin by dehydrating it. Kind of like the opposite of using softening hand cream.
- Avoid washing your hands too much. Again, too much pampering of the hands will soften up the skin.
- "Ghost" the fingers of the left hand. That means touch the strings rather than press down on them. This means you can still practice but you won't be hurting your fingers. Not great fun but at least you can still practice finger changes.
- Tune the guitar to an open tuning and use your first finger to barre the chords. A good open tuning for this would be open E (E B E G# B E). Then you can move to the 5th an 7th frets with your first finger to play A and B. This means you can still practice your right hand techniques.
- I've also heard rumours that applying witch hazel to your finger tips will work. Never tried it myself so I can't vouch for it. If it works for you let me know.
It's also rumoured that the great Eric Clapton would use alcohol to harden up his finger tips so it's worth a try!
Above all, only time will help with the finger pain because only with time can you build up the thick skin required to press those wires down.
Yes, I'm afraid so. It's our old friend "stick at it" and it will all come good. Oh well, it happens to us all 
I found a free video on our partner site at JamPlay about how to stop your fingers hurting. Click here to watch it.
Get a Guitar For Christmas? Top 5 Websites To Buy Guitar Lessons
| I remember getting my first guitar for Chirstmas. That was about 20 years ago and it was a Hofner Committee.
If you were lucky enough to get a spanking new guitar from Santa (or even from yourself) then here are my lesson recommendations to get you on the right track. Once again, Learn & Master is my top choice. They've also recently released a Blues version which you'll be interested in if you're into blues. |
 Learn & Master Guitar has received more great reviews than any other program from a huge number of people looking for guitar lessons. It gets my top vote:
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Best Product For Beginners: Jamorama Average User Rating: 
Jamorama is the long-established comprehensive guitar training program from the Rockstar Recipes group. It’s billed as the best low price learn guitar course in the market. So does it live up to this claim? |
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Best For Learning To Play Songs -Team Method Guitar Average User Rating: The bonus software you get is worth the whole course fee. Learning how to play songs by ear is probably the best way to improve your ear AND your guitar song writing skills. |
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Best For Learning Blues Guitar - Learn & Master Spotlight Blues Guitar Average User Rating: This is the brand new DVD course from Learn & Master and as usual with their products, it's great quality. If you’re into blues, I think you’ll love it.
This is your opportunity to learn how to play blues guitar like a master. |
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Best For Learning Guitar Online - Guitar Superstars Average User Rating:
I have no doubt that anyone who purchases the Guitar Superstars learning system will find exactly what they are looking for inside. It's a painless system that covers all you need to know and do to learn guitar really fast. And the trick is you can choose which teacher you want to study with. It works with both Mac and PC |
| Best For Learning Blues Guitar - Blues Guitar Secrets 2.0 Average User Rating: This systematic approach that Blues Guitar Secrets takes to teach you from scratch is something that I would highly recommend you seriously consider. If you’re into blues, I think you’ll love it.
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Secrets To Learning Guitar Scales
When you learn to play piano instructors will start by teaching the scales and it is just as important to master the scales if you want to learn how to play guitar.
In piano, your fingers move up and down the keys and in guitar they move across the strings. Learning the fingering techniques is crucial to learning chords and making music.
The easiest way to start practicing the scales on a guitar is to use only one string and move up and down the frets. Start with the fifth fret and walk down to the 8th strumming the string at each stop then work your way back up. When you feel confident performing the scale on a single string then you can work up to trying it on all six.
Continue to start with the fifth fret and work your way down to the eighth beginning with the first string, then do the same on the second and all of the other strings until you make it through all six.
Once you have gone down the scale on each string work your way back up on each string using all four fingers.
People who are trying to learn guitar scales need to practice them each and every day. Once you have learned the scales it is a great way to warm up your fingers before a lesson or practice session.
It is very important that you hold down each string tightly as you move through the scales; you may find it helpful to position your thumb square in the center of the back of the guitar neck to be able to reach each string.
Another tip to help develop the proper fingering technique is to make sure that your wrist is not bent and the palm of your left hand is facing the ceiling.
Your fingers need to be slightly bent and relaxed to be able to nimbly move up and down the neck of the guitar as you perform the scales.
You can find other fretting tips for how to get a relaxed hand by following this link; 5 Guitar Fretting Secrets
Are you serious about learning guitar? If so I can highly recommend checking out The Learn & Master Guitar DVDs.
Learn & Master is all you need to get from beginner to master guitar player. If provides DVDs, printed materials and jam along CDs that will really accelerate your playing.
Click Here to visit Learn & Master Guitar Now!
Here’s a Quick Way to Learn Guitar Chords
If you want to be a good guitar player it is absolutely essential that you master the basic chords. Learning guitar chords and how to make the progression from one to another will have you playing songs in no time. The easiest way to pick up playing chords is through chord diagrams that are written right into most music books.
To be able to understand chord diagrams you must first understand how a guitar is designed. On the neck of your guitar area you will see a series of horizontal lines that are called frets and the strings that represent the six vertical lines on the diagram.
Each chord diagram will display a black dot showing on what string and in which fret you should place each finger. For example, to form a C major chord place your first finger on the 2nd string in the 1st fret, your second finger on the 3rd string in the 2nd fret and your third finger on the 5th string at the 3rd fret. Above the chord diagram will be letters x or o, x means don’t strum that string and o means play it.
Click Here for the Best Online Lessons to Learn Guitar Chords
There are five cornerstone chords that form the basis of all music. CAGED is an acronym for the five that most songs are built upon. If you can master these basic chords it will be much simpler to perform variations on them later.
Listen as you strum the chord for a buzzing sound if you hear that, it means you are not holding down the string tight enough. Expect your fingertips to hurt until you build up calluses from practicing.
Guitar experts also recommend that you clip your fingernails which make it difficult to press the strings correctly. When you hold down the string make sure you are using the tip of your finger to hold the note and not just letting your finger lie across the strings.
When playing chords all notes must be held down simultaneously as the thumb strums the strings and practice at least five minutes every day. In addition to practicing, you need to spend time studying the major chords so that you have them memorized.
If you're looking for a more detailed lesson on how to learn guitar chords, I can highly recommend Jamorama.
It will teach you how to quickly build the strength and agility you need to advance beyond the beginner stage. They use special techniques to eliminate sore and clumsy fingers and start you playing fluent, flowing guitar.
GuitarTricks Review
Reviewer: Keith Douglas
Website Reviewed: GuitarTricks.com
Rating: 
If you really have a very erratic schedule and can’t take time out on a regular basis, you’ve probably ruled out the thought of getting yourself a guitar expert who could tutor you with some basic guitar lessons.
On GuitarTricks however, you get an opportunity to register on the site to access the guitar video lessons.
The expert who guides your through each session seems to be knowing exactly what you know and what you don’t. The professional guitarists who are conveniently available at your beck and call through the learning videos that you can turn on based on your leisure time slot that you have allotted for yourself.
In a hurry? ==>CLICK HERE to join GuitarTricks now
The amazing step by step experience that could teach you quite something in a day cannot be compared with anything else. You will need to subscribe for the guitar lessons on GuitarTricks to get a professional tutoring experience from your very own computer.
If you’re not sure whether you should invest the subscription amount without getting an idea of what it is about, make use of the 24 hour free guitar learning session for all guitar freaks who are eager to hold this amazing musical instrument and get the strings vibrating some enthralling music in the air.
The beginners have the fundamentals course that they can try their hand at, followed by the next which is a more intermediate level for people who do have an idea of how to play the guitar and want to improve on that.
The third is for advanced learners who get a taste of playing various genres be it Blues, Jazz or Funk. All said and done, GuitaTricks, has a great system in place that can be adapted with ease.
Surprise your friends with your new found talent at playing the guitar and get inspired to just keep enhancing it with help from the experts at GuitarTricks.
I have no doubt that you'll find Guitar Tricks extremely enjoyable and effective system for learning guitar.
Jamorama Review – Will it help me learn guitar fast?
Website Reviewed: Jamorama
Reviewer: Keith Douglas
Rating: 
Jamorama is the long-established comprehensive guitar training program from the Rockstar Recipes group. It’s billed as the best low price learn guitar course in the market.
So does it live up to this claim?
Well frankly yes, it does. If you're looking to learn guitar online, you can't go far wrong with Jamorama. I'm sure you can appreciate how frustrating it is sometimes to practice for hours and feel like you're not getting anywhere. Join the club!
There also seems to be a frustration in the lack of quality guitar tuition on the internet. The latest version of Jamorama from a guy called Ben Edwards has gone a long way to fixing this.They had great success with the first version of Jamorama and have greatly improved it in this latest version.
==> Click HERE to get Jamorama now <==
It's a product that is complete and has more information than you can shake a stick at. Jamorama really does include an awesome array of features to enable guitar students to accelerate their learning.
Before I go any further I want to tell you about one of the bonuses that you get when you buy Jamorama. The whole course is worth it just for this bonus I think. You get free 30 day access to SongPond, as website that teaches you how to play individual songs. The lessons are all video lessons.
For example, you can learn "Wish You Were Here" by Pink Floyd you can just click to view the lesson and start learning the songs straight away! It's may favourite part of the Jamorama package.
What Do You Get?
- Two glossy books full of tabs, exercises and music
- Jam tracks
- 148 video examples and exercises
- 2 educational computer games to develop your skills in training your ear to transcribe music and reading music.
- Pro version of Jayde Musica
- Pro version of GuitEarIt! (helps you get better at learning songs on the radio)
- Advanced Learning Techniques for Guitar (eBook)
- How to tune your guitar (eBook)
Most of these programs are fun to play and I like the GuitEarIt for learning to play songs that you hear on the radio. Advanced Techniques for Guitar introduces the idea of mental visualization, which is a powerful tool in speeding up your learning.
Who's It For?
I'd say this course is a good all round course for beginners. It's a got a reasonable price tag too ($49 last time I looked). I would say that if you can already play then you would want to get Learn and Master Guitar (aff) instead. Jamorama will be too simple for you and there'll be a lot of material in it that you won't use.
What Will It Do for Me?
- The lessons are clear with 3 windows in each video showing you the right hand, left hand and the fingers on the fretboard.
- There is a TON of material here and the bonus games are great for learning songs
- You get instant access and downloads. You can start right away
- The emphasis is on playing your favourite songs
So there we have it. I've given it 4 out of 5 because of the vast amount of material and lessons, the reasonable ease of use and the reasonable price tag. If you're just starting out I'd recommend it.
The Complete Flake’s Guide To Learning Guitar Chords
Chords are possibly the most important factor in the success of the guitar. They're also the most important thing to focus on when you're learning guitar.
But how on earth do you start? The important thing is that you must be willing to focus on learning the basics. Here are 5 answers to common questions beginners have when learning guitar chords:
Why Do I Need To Learn Guitar Chords Anyway?
Besides being relatively easy to carry on a bus, the guitar owes most of it's popularity to the ease of playing chords. If you can learn 3 chords, strum a little and sing a bit you can play hundreds of popular songs . . . and even write your own.
Guitar chord boxes are easy to learn and read which means if you can get hold of a chord book you can potentially know hundreds of chords within hours.
Chords are the backbone of your guitar playing and it's most useful feature. Ignore chords at your peril!
How Many Chords Do I Need To Learn?
Well Bob Dylan only knew a handful of chords and he led a musical social revolution in the 60s. You don't need to know hundreds of chords to play songs. Start with 3 or 4 and then gradually learn the extra ones you need to play your favourite songs. That's what worked for me. Learn your first 3 chords and you can play almost any Chuck Berry song.
How Do You Read A Chord Diagram?
The strings of the guitar in a chord diagram are represented by 6 vertical lines. The thickest string (bottom E) is on the far left of the diagram and the thinnest string (top E ) is on the far right of the diagram. The horizontal lines on the diagram represent the frets.
Black dots represent where you put your fingers. Usually they have numbers on them to show which left hand finger should be used. Sometimes you might see a 'T'. This means use the thumb of your left hand.
At the top of the diagram are X and 0 marks. An X means don't play that string and a 0 means play the string but don't put a finger down on it. This is called playing it 'open'.
Sometimes there is a number on the top left hand side of the diagram it means the chord shape should be played up the neck - for example a 5 means the chord should be played at the 5th fret.
What's The Difference Between a Major and a Minor Chord?
Technically, the difference is that a major chord contains a 'major 3rd' note and a minor chord contains a 'minor 3rd' note. So if you count up 3 from your root note (usually the letter name of the chord such as C or G) then this note is the 3rd of the chord.
For example, for a C chord, the 3rd is E. If the chord is a minor chord, the E will be an Eb. If it is a major chord it will just be a plain old E.
When you hear a minor chord it often sounds sad or lonely, whereas a major chord sounds happy and bright in comparison.
Which Chords Should I Learn First?
You should learn G C and D first (when there is no 'minor' or number after the name of the chord it means it is a major chord). Then move on to learn the CAGED chords. For more on learning these guitar chords click here.
So that's your quick start guide to learning guitar chords. Remember, you don't need to know a ton of chords to get started. In reality, most guitarists don't know that many chords - trust me, you'd be pleasantly surprised.
Anyone Else Confused When It Comes To Learning To Play Guitar?
Rock and roll is here to stay, and anyone who loves rock'n'roll music loves the guitar. Most good musicians make playing a tune on the guitar look effortless, so when you pick up your first guitar and expect to be proficient in a matter of minutes, do not be disappointed if you are not. It may take you a little longer to get really good, but if you give yourself a chance you too can learn guitar.
But what is the best way to go about learning to play guitar?
There is more than one way that you can learn guitar, and depending on how you learn one method will undoubtedly work better for you than others will. So take a minute to figure out which method works for you and you will be surprised at how quickly you actually can learn to play your guitar.
Books on Theory
There are literally thousands of books written on guitar theory that take a little more cerebral approach to teaching you to play your guitar. These books are written in simple and more complex styles, and it is a good idea to check out the book before investing in it. Sometimes, the lesson is lost before it ever gets off of the page, so while the idea of learning from a book may sound great, sometimes it falls short in the execution.
Lessons on Video
Videotapes and DVDs are a wonderful way to learn any musical instrument, and they are available in music stores. With the advantage of being able to see and hear the lesson sometimes this medium translates more easily for learning how to play the guitar. By making the process easier to understand, using a video may help you be successful enough to make practicing fun. However, if you are having a problem understanding something, you cannot ask the video a question, so that is where a teacher might prove to be a better choice.
Individual Lessons
If you are really serious about learning to play the guitar, you may want to invest in some private lessons. You will learn more quickly because the teacher can tailor the lesson directly to your style of learning. By having lessons and music that can offer almost instant success you are more likely to stay enthusiastic and engaged in your instrument. A private instructor can also help you keep from developing bad habits that will only need to be corrected at a later date. However, they'll be expensive.
Listen and Learn
If you have a good enough ear to learn to play the guitar this way you can really have a lot of fun. By using technology to help you hear and feel the vibration of the notes, you may actually be able to learn guitar just by listening.
Always remember that you are playing the guitar because you enjoy it. If it gets too stressful or difficult, you may need to rethink your method of learning. Sometimes mixing methods will yield the best results and will help to keep it fresh. Remember as you practice that there are any number of ways to learn guitar and have fun, so if your practice sessions are becoming more of a chore than a joy, perhaps it is time to switch learning gears.
Online Lessons
Learning guitar online has a number of benefits not available from other mediums. I would recommend online learning as the best way to go if you're starting out. Here's why:
- Online courses will generally cost you about the same as one or two real world lessons from a teacher.
- Most good online guitar teaching courses have multiple facets to their content. For example, there could be a blues section or a special module on writing songs. Usually, the content covers not just beginners lessons but also intermediate and sometimes expert skills.
- You can learn at your own pace.
- There is a community element to provide support. Often there will be a forum where you can ask questions of and help other students. Even the tutor might hang out in these forums.
- They employ multiple learning mediums. Most good online courses will include text, PDFs, videos and audio. Everyone has a different learning style and a good course will cater to all different styles.
- One of the best online learning systems is Jamorama. It's a software system so you don't have to wait for delivery of DVDs - you can start straight away. Read more about Jamorama here.
10 Secrets To Learning Guitar Like Crazy (part 2)
You can see part 1 of this article on learning to play guitar here
- Play along with the TV - If you're watching TV and you've already done your 10 minutes a day practice, then try playing along with TV theme tunes. Try to work out the them for The Simpsons on your guitar, simply by trial and error. If there's someone else in the room and you're annoying them, then tell them you'll give them a backstage pass when you play at Glastonbury in return for letting you annoy them.
- Noodle - I know some guitarists who hate this practice. indeed I do find it quite annoying myself but it's also great at building up dexterity and finger strength. Noodling is when you switch off your conscious mind - again sometimes easier when you're watching TV - and you simply play a stream of notes without worrying if it sounds good or bad. Usually it sounds bad but your subconscious will try to make it sounds good - just let it flow. It's a bit like meditating.
- Become a copycat - Copy as many riffs and songs as you can. Pick a favourite guitarist and copy their style. Once you get it down as close as possible, choose another guitarist and do the same. Do this 3 or 4 times and you will combine the styles to something that you can call your own.
- Fake it 'till you make it - Be confident in your playing even if you know you sound crap. This is a psychological trick that will get you to your goal quicker. If you act as if you're a great guitarist, you will start to take on the attributes of a great guitarist. Just remember not to become too big for your boots and deluded. Always take a reality check and be aware of your true abilities.
- NEVER give up - it's a sad fact that most people give up on things just as they are about to succeed. Sometimes it can feel like you are making no progress whatsoever but believe me, you are. If you just keep going, you'll get there. It took Edison 999 attempts at inventing a light bulb before he made one that actually worked. Making mistakes is good for you because by recognising those mistakes and rectifying them is how you get better when you're learning to play guitar.
I hope these 10 tips help you. Even if you just take 2 or 3 and make them part of your daily life, you'll see great improvements in a few weeks. And remember, try not to make it feel like a chore - that's the sure way to failure. If it's not fun, change what you're doing and adjust it. Maybe 5 minutes a day is more suited to your nature than 10. So be it. These 10 secrets aren't set in stone.
Use them as inspiration and enjoy.
10 Secrets to Learning Guitar Like Crazy
If you're looking to learn a musical instrument quickly and inexpensively you've chosen the right instrument my friend.
The guitar is easy to pick up and easy to make sound half-decent within a few days. But don't be under any illusion that learning to play guitar to a high standard is a walk in the park.
Sorry.
But do not panic! My goal is to give you a toolkit of techniques and tricks to help you speed up your efforts when learning to play guitar. I'd also like to suggest a few things that you can do to make your guitar learning as inexpensive as possible.
Whether you've decided to learn guitar online or look for the best guitar lessons in your neighborhood taught by a professional teacher, these tips should help you out either way.
Here are 10 secrets to learning guitar like crazy.
- Become immersed in all things guitar - Just as you learned how to speak your first language, immersing yourself in words, sounds and visuals of a discipline can really sky-rocket your learning. This is as true for learning to play guitar as it is for learning language. Instead of listening to the radio, try playing guitar CDs in the car - either tutorials or the albums of the greats - Stevie Ray Vaughan, Chet Atkins, Wes Montgomery are good ones to start with. Also make sure you buy a guitar magazine every so often. I'm not saying every month - they're expensive - at least 2 or 3 times a year.
- Get a band together - This is how I really learned to play in time and gain performance confidence. The key to getting a band together though is to make sure it's fun. Better to be in a less musically proficient band with your mates than in a very professional outfit that feels like being at school. Franz Ferdinand front man Alex Kapranos knew this when he put a bass guitar in the hands of his mate and told him how to play it.
- Record yourself - Listening back to recordings of yourself is one of the quickest ways to eliminate any sloppy playing or habits that you don't notice when you're playing. Yes, it can be a bit uncomfortable at first but stick with it and keep trying. The first time you do it, you'll sound crap. But your shortcomings will become obvious and therefore easy to correct. Better to fix them in the privacy of your bedroom than on stage in front of people.
- Practice 10 minutes a day - Every journey is just a series of small steps put together. And if you make a small ten minute conviction to practicing every day, those ten minutes will add up over the months to one big giant practice session. Make it easy on yourself and break your journey into bite size chunks of ten minutes a day. Otherwise, you'll feel overwhelmed.
- Believe in yourself - Create mental pictures of yourself achieving your guitar goal. Whether that is playing songs at the next party or playing on stage at the busiest club in town. Try and feel the emotions that you will feel when you achieve your end goal. This will condition your subconscious to believe that it is going to happen and so you will feel compelled to take the necessary steps to make it happen - i.e plenty of practice and dedication.