Acoustic Electric Guitar

Acoustic Guitar Help?

I have had an acoustic guitar for 4 or 5 years now and i have been playing it on and off, more so recently.

First, saying your have to small hands to play Barr chords is complete bull.
I met little kids who can play them, so your fine. Make sure your index finger is completely flat and turned a little to the side. Press down hard (it will hurt at first) and try and get a clear sound. Then start trying the different shapes.

Second, you can pick with your fingers or a pick, It doesn’t matter. If you think it sound too aggressive with a pick your probably picking too hard. Try strumming lighter, and using a thinner pick may help.
The picking pattern depends on the song. Some songs may just be a simple up-down-up-down
However, some might have their own pattern. When learning a song look how the it is being played, look at youtube clips of people playing it and watch how there doing it.

Now you have the basic chords down, start looking into chord construction. This will give you endless possibilities of chords. Start learning your scales (start with Major, then move onto the Minors and Pent). Learn the notes of the fret board will help you find chords.

Try this website for songs:
http://www.ultimate-guitar.com/

Lastly, unless you have a really expensive guitar, with locking tuners etc. Then your more then likely going to have to tune your guitar everyday.

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Picks! (Book) $6.99 by Will Hoover Miller Freeman Books Imagine a world with no guitar picks. Nothing but muted mandolins and bare-fingered banjos. No sounds of Doc Watson, Chet Atkins, or Stevie Ray Vaughan. You might as well imagine a song without a tune. This eye-catching book full of stunning color photos looks at the history of the pick and includes fantastic picks of every shape, design, and material. Also incl…

Fretfunk black slide-on guitar strap pick/plectrum holder – suitable for all picks $2.99 Fitting most guitar straps, be they fabric or leather, the FRETFUNK plectrum slides onto the edge of the strap and provides a secure, accessible location to hold and quickly retrieve your plectrums. Unlike dispenser-style holders, all picks are instantly and easily accessible. May not fit some thicker or st…

Using the right guitar pick (also called plectrum) for whatever genre you want to play will make playing the guitar much easier. Don’t just select your picks based on color and shape, there are several things you need to take into consideration.

Triangular Guitar Picks

• Standard, triangle shaped picks are the most common. The wider part allows for grip, the narrow part for picking. The end of the narrow part will slide off of the strings, offering a mellow sound.
• Sharkfin picks can be used as standard picks, and by quick rotation, they can also be used to add multiple contact to the strings with their multi-point edge, creating a different tone.
• Teardrop shaped picks and Jazz picks are usually more rigid than Standard plectrums with the same thickness,, and will therefore offer a brighter tone and faster response.
• Equilateral picks form a perfect triangle, and are thus easier to hold, since you can grip them at either equilateral side. This also makes them last longer, since if one point becomes worn, you can just use another point.

Thumb and Finger Picks

For those of us that like to play fingerstyle, but have short fingernails, these picks offer the perfect solution. They are attached to your finger tips, and act as a fake nail, allowing for a much crisper sound, than plucking a string with just the tip of your finger.

Other Guitar Pick Shapes

The shape and form of picks has naturally evolved to suit the taste of different guitarists. Some are larger, some have inline grooves, some fit into your entire palm, there are even brush picks which practically comb against your strings. Experimenting with these non-standard picks can be fun, and often offer better sound for a given genre.

Material

The most common material of picks is plastic. Other materials include wood, rubber, stone and metal.

Thickness

Guitar picks range from very thin to very thick, offering different sound and tone. The thinner the pick, the more flexible it will be, but the easier it will break or crack. Thicker picks are more durable, and will give a brighter sound as opposed to their thin counterparts. Plectrum thickness is measured in millimeters. Generally, thinner picks are better for quick strumming, while thicker picks are used more often for solos and runs.

So which plectrum will you chose? It will always depend on the type of music you want to play. The sound you achieve will be dependant on the pick material, shape and point, thickness, and how you hold it. 

It’s always a good idea to experiment with different types of guitar picks. You’ll see that each type will offer a different sound, and therefore be more or less suitable to play a given genre. Picks are inexpensive, so go ahead, visit your local music store or an online guitar shop, buy a couple, experiment and have fun!