How to Learn Guitar Fast

fastOf course you want to know how to learn guitar fast… everyone does. The good news is that indeed, you can obtain some basic skills in a short period of time. But in order to do that we have to set one thing straight.

For example, there’s a big difference between being 90% fluent in Spanish language, and being 98% fluent. While the former can be achieved in 3 months, the latter will take you 10 years.

Same thing with guitar playing. You can be quite decent at it after just a couple of months of practicing, but in order to be a “master guitarist” you will have to devote your whole life to it.

If you’re still here, despite my discouraging opinions, and you still want to know how to learn guitar fast, then I’m happy to give you a simple roadmap that will get you to “90%-guitarist” in a short span of time.

First Step – Equipment

That’s obvious. You can’t start your career without owning a guitar and other crucial stuff. Visit this site to get some basic info on what you should buy on your first visit to the music store: What Guitar Equipment a Beginner Electric Guitarist Should Own? (the magic of the internet these days – you don’t have to leave your home to visit a music store anymore).

The Basis – Learn Guitar Chords

Yes, if you want to be able to play some cool, popular tunes you have to start with the basis. The most basic thing of them all is learning how to grab and play various guitar chords. To get started you can visit one of the pages on this blog (first check this out: where to start, and then: learn guitar chords here) to get a list of basic guitar chords.

If you prefer a printable PDF version, feel free to download my charts of 101 Basic Guitar Chords.

Master Guitar Scales

Guitar scales are great for all kinds of things. First of all, once you memorize them and feel comfortable playing them, you can use them while improvising on some popular songs. But before that, they are a great exercise for both your right and left hand.

Playing various scales will improve your memory, strengthen your palms and fingers making them more agile at the same time. You can find many guitar scales by visiting this page: learn guitar scales.

Guitar Tabs

Tabs are the simplest way of saving guitar music in a written format. They are easy to read (unlike musical notes) and very clear. Check this post to learn how to read guitar tabs.

Basic Guitar Techniques

Guitar can produce a lot of different sounds. Simply strumming a string while holding it down on a given fret is not the only way around… there are many more techniques every guitarist needs to master.

Hammer-ons, pull-offs, and bends are a good starting point. Also, work on improving your left hand skills to be able to perform these techniques smoothly.

Finally, all these techniques have a different representation on some advanced guitar tabs. Here’s a post that explains this more in-depth: How to Read Guitar Tabs: Advanced Techniques.

Rinse and Repeat!

Just keep practicing! (I’m sure that’s no surprise for you.) Let’s make a simple challenge though.

From now on try to learn one new chord each day and one new scale each week. It’s not that much work, but I assure you, after a couple of months your skills will improve significantly.

Of course, don’t forget to practice playing the scales and chords you already know. Work on improving your speed and precision by performing different exercises. You can visit YouTube and search for something like “guitar exercise” to get some cool tutorials and training.

Finally, if you just want to impress your friends, try to learn how to play guitar by ear, or simply learn some 4 chord songs (how’s that for a shortcut?).

Tell me what you think. What advice do you have on how to learn guitar fast?

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