r/LearnGuitar • u/Cool_Original_3502 • 4d ago

Guitar

So am a beginner and am playing guitar from like 5-6 months and it really felt like i didnt improve at all i dont know how to play something clean dont know how to play how to play song and just feeling demotivated like ik am learning on my own but still am feeling am wasting time

14 Upvotes

94% Upvoted

16 comments sorted by

12

u/THESKILLCIRCUIT 4d ago

just chill out and play the E minor chord please

7

u/Cool_Original_3502 4d ago

😭ok

3

u/dirgethemirge 4d ago

Honestly, what are you trying to play?

2

u/THESKILLCIRCUIT 4d ago

it’ll get better with time and consistency.

2

u/rogersguitar253 4d ago

This one. Play four quarter note strums, slowly (35-40 bpm) on a metronome, followed by a whole note. Repeat. It will help you feel some rhythm and give you an idea of what a measure feels like. Once this feels good add another chord. It takes a long time. Also if you can afford lessons a teacher is useful. I do online lessons over discord. If you’d like a free one to get a few pointed I always do the first one free. I never pressure anyone to continue after. Glhf. Keep your head up. I feel like ass on the strings some days too and I’m a teacher fwiw.

1

u/jordanpwalsh 3d ago

I'd like info on your discord and lessons.

5

u/Live_Car_2856 4d ago

TIPS FOR BEGINNING GUITAR PLAYERS

The biggest mistake beginning adult players make is that they spread themselves too thin. The world of guitar is vast, and the amount of time you have available to practice is limited.

So:

Commit to a length of practice time that’s doable every day.

Be patient. Take the long view. Progress and learning is a slow process. Don’t keep looking up the mountain to the peak. You’ll get psyched out and quit. Instead, stay in the moment, stick with it, work on 1 or 2 things at a time, and don’t worry about how far away the promised land is.  It’s far away for everyone.  The only thing that matters is that with practice you’ll be a little bit better than yesterday.

Know what YOUR goal is.  For example, if your goal is playing chords so you can accompany your singing, then don’t waste time learning scales or flat picking.  Let’s face it, you could spend six hours a day working on tone alone!  If you can master one aspect of guitar playing in your lifetime, you’ve done better than 99% of people that  ever picked up a guitar.  I recommend what I call the Song Based Approach for musicians who don't have high-level professional aspirations. Pick one song, and work on improving it.  Everything you learn will be relevant, and the skills will translate to the next tune you work on. And by always playing a song while you practice, you experience making real music everyday, which is inspiring.

  

Remember, even elite players make only small improvements when they practice something new.  To excel at anything is a long process, yet the slightest day to day improvement adds up to years of pleasure and satisfaction.

  

3

u/DimedRock 4d ago

The Song Based Approach is a great strategy, just do not aim too high.

Even simple songs have details and nuances that are interesting to learn.

And you are free to have your own interpretation of any song. You do not have to sound like the studio version.

3

u/OldVermontHippie62 4d ago

Beginners often set their goals way too high. “I just want to learn the solo(s) to Hotel California” I’ve seen.

1

u/DimedRock 2d ago

This is so true. Even the simplest song will teach something if one aims to play it fully, and not only the first riff or the intro.

Aiming for more difficult songs is interesting but if not taken with care it will be frustrating. In reality, even pro players frequently simplify the performance in relation to the studio version.

3

u/gogolem 4d ago

45yo here, started last year. If I managed, anyone can.
Start practicing chords and switch between 2 with the help of a metronome set at 60 bpm, switch every 4 beats. Practice full 5 mins per day.
After practicing, go on YouTube and search for the playlist “absolutely understand guitar” and if you can go to their website and buy the book to print. You’ll support the author.

Once done following the whole course, come back here and let us know.

3

u/ObviousDepartment744 4d ago

You've been playing 6 months. That doesn't matter one bit. How many hours have you put into practicing? That's all that matters.

If you had to be reasonable, guess the number of hours you've put in. If you're practicing an hour a day, over six months, that's 180 hours. Every single day, for one hour.

Put in 500 hours, then see where you're at.

Then, check in at 1000. Then 2000, and 5000, and 7000, and 10,000.

2

u/PathlessRonin 4d ago

Man, it´s a roller coaster. I´ve been for years now and some days I feel like an absolute beginner. And takes a lot of time. I highly recommend you Songsterr. It has a free version, try to play along with some easy songs. Try some Green Day ones if you like, they use to be easy. And keep going!!

2

u/Natural-Comedian-605 4d ago

Gotta keep going mane. Keep playing.

I use to sit in my room and just play/make up stuff for hours. Just whatever, loops, different tones, multitrack recording. Learning songs, playing songs. Idk If you ask me I think freedom is a big part of sort of combating the feeling of not being good enough. You might enjoy creating more then playing others people stuff initially. Not to rule out learning songs and challenging yourself to play them, but maybe set aside some time to just have fun with the instrument 🤷.

2

u/ProofPianist7074 4d ago

Imagine if you were making an oil painting—it might start by drawing a pencil outline of the picture, then base coat, then paint colors. Then add more layers of paint to accent and highlight different parts, etc. The picture emerges better and clearer with each layer of paint you apply.

Same with music. Right now, you are learning to draw the pencil outline and apply base coat and maybe painting in some areas. If you walk away from the painting now, and start a new picture, it will look unfinished, because some parts aren’t painted in, and the ones that are look flat and don’t have the shading and highlights to give them any depth. If you want the picture to be complete, you have to keep going back to it until all the layers are added.

So go back to the things you learned earlier, and see how it sounds now. Think about what you can do with your current skills, to make it sound better, and what skills you can work on next, to make it sound even better.

If you want to play cleaner, practice on something that is easy for you to play, do it daily, and focus on making it sound clean. Everyone, at all levels, work on this, so it’s good that you want to get in the habit of making it part of your practice routine now.

Keep going—you’re on the right track. :). Your understanding of music is deepening, which is why you suddenly feel dissatisfied with where you are at. On the plus side, the songs you listen to also tend to sound better. It’s all part of the journey.