Do you play the guitar? (2 Viewers)

[SoCal]

I have been wanting to get an electric guitar for quite some time now and I finally got one about a month ago. It is difficult to try and keep motivated to keep learning to play because I am really bad at the moment and my progress is so slow but I am slowly progressing. So, who else here plays the guitar (acoustic, electric or bass), how long have you been playing it for, what was the first song that you learnt to play completely and what is the hardest song you can play now?

 

[guy]

eh, most commited people get to a stage where you can play any song, its just how well you can play it. except some spanish stuff
just do little excersizes scales and chords while you watch tv

 

[cro_angel]

i would love to learn to play the guitar
or.. theres this little croatian instrument called a tambura (http://www.kroatiehrvatska.com/img/cult_tamb.jpg)
its cool how people can just play after hearing the tune.. like in my dancing group when they play their instruments, theres no music!
theres a religion teacher at my school who has a guitar, he comes along to all the camps and things and plays songs so we can sing along.. so cute

 

[2003HSC]

i play a cue stick

 

[Mojoman]

i have been playing/teaching myself wif tabs for about 6 months, and i can play a few songs, the first song i learnt to play was 3 libras by a perfect circle, its pretty easy and sounds cool
but yeah my guitar is a mates guitar i borrowed off him, and its heaps small for me and is outta tune, so it aint the best guitar to play, but it goes alright

 

[Mike iE]

I played bass for a year and then started guitar, i found it easy to transfer. Been playing guitar about 2 years, never had lessons, just learnt off tabs. I can't "solo" very well, but i pick up chord progressions and melodies by ear really well after one or two listens.
I was in a Punk/rock band, so i bought a Marshall Stack amp and i had an epiphone guitar until i dropped it and snapped it. Now im stuck with a beginner Ibanez model which plays horribly.

First song was probably an Everclear song, "sant monica".
As far as hard songs go, it depends on style, probably Stairway to Heaven or something like that.

 

[Sarah168]

i've played an acoustic electric for two years now. im still trying to keep up to date with music thoery coz its quite limiting to simply read from tabs because they miss out on so many things.
Mike iE: i just learnt the intro to "stairway to heaven"!!!! i love that song! i've never played an fully electric guitar though.....

 

[Mike iE]

Sarah168: It's a great riff to play and everyone knows it, so its handy for parties and stuff.
Tabs do miss alor of the theory, but i did music in year 9+10 so i picked alot of it up then.

 

[J0n]

I've played guitar for about 5yrs. The first song i played... i don't remember - it probably wasn't even a proper song. The best song i can play is probably also Stairway to Heaven.

 

[J0n]

Originally posted by Sarah168
i've played an acoustic electric for two years now. im still trying to keep up to date with music thoery coz its quite limiting to simply read from tabs because they miss out on so many things.

If you think the tabs are limiting, get powertab. It lets you play song as a midi file, and it even shows you the transcript so you can see the timings of the notes, and other stuff that usually wouldn't be on a tab. It is about as complete as you can get. I do agree, that learning music theory is good though.

 

[inasero]

umm been teaching myself for 4 yewrs off tabs....so i dont know guitar properly. um first song was romance...hardest song is classical gas

 

[CasaNovo]

I used too before, but when i was tuning the E string, i wasn't paying attention and it ripped.
>.<

 

[Gregor Samsa]

I play guitar. I also play the fool.

I've been playing guitar for about 2 1/2 years now, mostly from tabs. (Sadly, my ear may be somewhat tonedeaf..), First songs I learnt were;

Nirvana-Something In The Way.
Radiohead-Motion Picture Soundtrack.

Not sure what the hardest song I can play is..Maybe;
Augie March-The Good Gardener (On How He Fell)
The Smiths-There Is A Light That Never Goes Out. (Simple chords, but have to switch at an annoyingly rapid pace.)

My best advice is just to practise.

 

[guy]

my best advice is to get lessons everyone
i always meet these guys who are like "i wanna be able to say i taught myself when i am famous" but theres nothing wrong with getting tuition and learning cool guitarists and gaining a better knowledge of everything guitar. GET LESSONS
at the moment i get lessons, practice heaps hard, take a while off (to do martial arts/work/hsc) then when i feel like i'm not improving get lessons again for a while

 

[ND]

I started about 8 years ago. I wasn't really dedicated for the 1st two years (i.e. i just learned songs i wanted to learn, when i felt like playing). My first song was Nirvana-Smells like teen spirit. After i got into metallica i started becoming more serious about guitar playing, i started practicing scales and started learning music theory. When i was about 14 i became really serious about guitar playing, i practiced for at least 2-3 hours a day (on weekends, i had the guitar in my arms all day, i used to noodle even while watching tv). By this time i was listening to Yngwie Malmsteen, Jason Becker, Dream Theater, Symphony X etc. (i.e. guitar virtuosos), and all i did was practice stuff like scales, sweep arpeggios, spring skipping, legato etc. (oh and i also began sightreading). By the time i was 16 i could play almost anything by any of these guys (if you don't believe me, i'll post up some clips i recorded when i get back home). I stopped playing about a year and a half ago... stupidest thinhg i've ever done.... I was planning on becoming a session musician to get some money while i do uni, but i'm not good enough anymore.... Hardest song i could play? Hmmm, most technically difficult would probably be Seranna by Jason Becker (crazy sweeps in that song), but by the time i'd finished learning it i could play it without even thinking... the hardest song for me to play would probably be Metropolis pt 1 by Dream Theater - that middle section is killer.

 

[SoCal]

Originally posted by guy
my best advice is to get lessons everyone
i always meet these guys who are like "i wanna be able to say i taught myself when i am famous" but theres nothing wrong with getting tuition and learning cool guitarists and gaining a better knowledge of everything guitar. GET LESSONS
at the moment i get lessons, practice heaps hard, take a while off (to do martial arts/work/hsc) then when i feel like i'm not improving get lessons again for a while

I would get lessons except I cannot afford it at the moment.

Originally posted by ND
I started about 8 years ago. I wasn't really dedicated for the 1st two years (i.e. i just learned songs i wanted to learn, when i felt like playing). My first song was Nirvana-Smells like teen spirit. After i got into metallica i started becoming more serious about guitar playing, i started practicing scales and started learning music theory. When i was about 14 i became really serious about guitar playing, i practiced for at least 2-3 hours a day (on weekends, i had the guitar in my arms all day, i used to noodle even while watching tv). By this time i was listening to Yngwie Malmsteen, Jason Becker, Dream Theater, Symphony X etc. (i.e. guitar virtuosos), and all i did was practice stuff like scales, sweep arpeggios, spring skipping, legato etc. (oh and i also began sightreading). By the time i was 16 i could play almost anything by any of these guys (if you don't believe me, i'll post up some clips i recorded when i get back home). I stopped playing about a year and a half ago... stupidest thinhg i've ever done.... I was planning on becoming a session musician to get some money while i do uni, but i'm not good enough anymore.... Hardest song i could play? Hmmm, most technically difficult would probably be Seranna by Jason Becker (crazy sweeps in that song), but by the time i'd finished learning it i could play it without even thinking... the hardest song for me to play would probably be Metropolis pt 1 by Dream Theater - that middle section is killer.

You sound like you are really good ND. Why did you quit?

 

[Sarah168]

there isnt any time for lessons this year...

Edit: i quit 3 weeks before my first round of HSC assessments...

 

[ND]

Originally posted by Merethrond
You sound like you are really good ND. Why did you quit?

Was very good. I stopped because after i began actually doing work at school, i couldn't be bothered practicing afterwards. I also began going to the gym which made me even more tired at night. As i said before, stupidest thing i've ever done... I was panning on re-learning (after all, it should only take about a month to get my ability to where it was) these holidays, but i never got around to it. I'm definately gonna do it after 2nd semester...

 

[babyslug]

i can play a bit o'bass...if that counts.

 

[BlackJack]

...
am a very 'weekend' player.
Started somewhere in the middle of year 12. Oh it was a delightly horrible mess.
First song was superman, had the sheets for 'em. I can't quite listen -> play though, even though I've got perfect pitch.
Fingers were too short to play hardcore though.