Ravi Singh, Author at Guitar Confidence

Skills an Advanced Guitarist Should Have in the Bag

September 20, 2021 by Ravi Singh Leave a Comment

Do you know what the difference between you and an advanced guitarist is? Learning the craft of playing the guitar is different from no other. You need to consistently keep working on your skills as ‘creativity knows no bounds.’ Here are a few that you can start with and upscale along the way.

Using chord extensions

Chord extensions are a brilliant method to upgrade your regular chord progressions beyond your usual Maj/Min chords. You can experiment and substitute a few of your standard chord choices with some extended chords to explore more voice-leading possibilities and make your playing experience more interesting.

By mastering how to spice things up using chord extensions, you can surely take the level of your playing a notch up.

Using pedals to play with the tone

The sound of an electric guitar, as it is, is incredible, but when you see a top guitarist performing, there’s a lot more to it instead of just using their fingers to create such remarkable music.

An advanced guitarists would have a ton of distinctive tones in their head that they produce using the pedalboard. They will take assistance from several guitar pedals to modify their tone and add aspects they can’t just with guitar and amp alone. Numerous pedals of various shapes and sizes can help you do a plethora of things, from overdrives and distortions to delays, reverbs, choruses, pitch shifters, and more.

Using the Legato

Legato is a technique where you use your fretting hand to play multiple notes without picking each one. It is commonly associated with playing more notes within a beat than the stated timing. You might be familiar with this as hammer-ons, pull-offs, and slides. However, maximizing the use of Legato requires a tremendous amount of practice and strength. So, you should be ready to put in the work for this one.

Percussive guitar and alternate tunings

There are certain skills, the possession of which can be invaluable to acoustic guitarists for achieving the maximum rhythmic and melodic freedom. Mastering alternate tunings require significant effort, coordination, and knowledge. But, the ability to tune your open strings to a chord can help you unlock the acoustic guitar’s full potential.

Two hand tapping

This is probably one of the ‘coolest’ techniques to learn on the instrument for all kinds of guitarists. Here, you need to use both your picking and fretting hands, either independently or in conjunction with one another, to hammer on or tap the fretboard in order to sound notes. Learning how to do this right will open up new opportunities for your solo compositions and significantly improve finger speed and coordination.

Hybrid picking

This is a technique where you do the usual picking with a pick with one or more of your fingers alternately or simultaneously. It will allow you to play sounds that would typically require fingerstyle playing. Developing the hybrid picking skill will unlock a unique approach to playing the guitar and the sounds you can produce.

Irrespective of which one of these skills appeals to you, mastering any would greatly amplify the quality of your music and improve all other aspects of guitar playing. These are just a few, and it never hurts to have some additional talents in the bag when you’re performing.

Choosing the 6 Strings that Work for You: A Guide to Pick the Perfect Guitar

September 16, 2021 by Ravi Singh Leave a Comment

Before you jump in to get your hands on the swankiest instrument you can see, we’d strongly recommend you go through this guide and ask yourself if it is really ‘the one.’ Here’s how to choose the picture-perfect guitar for you.

Getting past the acoustic or electric dilemma

If you are an absolute newbie, going for an acoustic guitar is often the best choice. For starters, they don’t require any additional setup, to begin with, as you can just pick one up and start playing. However, electric guitars operate with a whole package comprising amplifiers, cables, pedals, and more. Due to this reason, acoustic guitars are also comparatively affordable, which can be a vital distinction, especially if you are just exploring your passion for the instrument.

Deciding what type of strings work the best for you

This part is only relevant if you decide to go for the acoustic guitar in the first step as they come in variants of nylon and steel strings. The standard is the steel strings, but they can be hard on your hands compared to the nylon ones. However, one could argue that ‘no pain, no gain’ holds even for budding musicians. Nevertheless, nylon-stringed guitars are suitable for beginners, but they don’t offer much output. They’re smaller and won’t produce sounds anywhere at par with a traditional, steel-stringed acoustic guitar. If you are just starting, it’s entirely up to you to master the craft first or focus on the sound quality from day one.

Choosing the appropriate size

It is a no-brainer as to be able to play correctly, you need to pick an instrument that you can handle. Most guitar manufacturers offer smaller variants of their standard models, and there are a ton of companies just catering to the younger demographic. You can also pick up a guitar starter kit that would comprise everything a beginner might possibly need.

Stay within the bounds of your budget

Guitars are the kind of commodity that range from a few hundred dollars to thousands of dollars. A reasonably priced guitar might fit perfectly for your needs, while you might not enjoy playing an exclusive, expensive one. So, it is best to pick the best guitar that you can afford.

Aesthetics might not be the priority, but they are still indispensable

The ‘cool’ factor of owning and playing the guitar has always been the dominant force of attraction towards the instrument. However, a guitar should always fit within your musical checklist first, and once it does, you should pay some attention to the non-musical elements. You need to buy an instrument that plays well and the one you like playing.

This guide is just the start, and these are indeed not the only factors to consider. But if you like an instrument, it’s imperative to do thorough research. Visit a music store, ask your friends who play the instrument, or dig up tons of information online. Whether you are buying your first guitar or the nth, it shouldn’t be a decision that you might end up regretting.

Understanding the Anatomy of the Guitar

September 6, 2021 by Ravi Singh Leave a Comment

Assuming you’ve got your hands on a guitar, that’s ‘the one’ for you, but what’s next? You cannot possibly start learning to play the instrument without understanding how it functions or how its different parts work in harmony to create the beautiful sound that we all love.

Also, whether you are taking online lessons or you’ve got a tutor who’s teaching you physically, you must be aware of specific key terms to comprehend what they’re talking about. So, let’s explore the structure comprising several components that make up a guitar.

In brief, a typical guitar incorporates the following parts:

Headstock
Tuners
Tuning pegs
Nut
Neck
Fretboard
Frets
Body
Soundhole
Bridge
Saddle
Bridge pins

Furthermore, acoustic and electric guitars differentiate significantly in terms of functionality and purpose. Therefore, their anatomy differs as well. So, let’s dig deeper and understand the structure of these distinctive guitar types.

Anatomy of an acoustic guitar

The guitar’s foremost or top section is called the ‘headstock,’ which houses ‘tuners’ and ‘tuning pegs.’ The tuning pegs enable you to tune your guitar by tightening or loosening the strings.

The first strip right on the edge of the headstock is called the ‘nut.’ Beyond the nut is the ‘fretboard’ that houses the ‘frets,’ which help you find the right spots to put pressure on while playing. The entire narrow section from the top right until the ‘body’ makes up the ‘neck’ of the guitar.

The body is the most prominent part of the guitar, and the hole in the middle of it is called the ‘soundhole.’ The ‘bridge,’ ‘saddle,’ and ‘bridge pins’ hold the strings firmly in place on the body.

Anatomy of an electric guitar

The ‘neck’ of an electric guitar is pretty much the same as the acoustic one. But, the body houses some additional components.

Pickups
Potentiometer
Pickup selector switch
Input jack

The ‘pickups’ capture the string vibrations and convert sounds through amps. The ‘potentiometer’ helps you control the volume and the tone. The ‘pickup selector switch’ selects the pickups and determines the sound. And, you plug in your keyboard through the ‘input jack.’

Let’s not forget the string numbers and names

There are six strings on a guitar. Amongst these, the thickest one and the one closest to you is called the ‘sixth string,’ while the thinnest one and the one furthest from you is called the ‘first string.’ Understandably, the ones in the middle in their respective order are the ‘fifth,’ ‘fourth,’ ‘third,’ and ‘second’ strings. In terms of alphabets, they are denoted as E, A, D, G, B, where ‘E’ is the sixth string and ‘B’ is the first.

These are the basics that you must be aware of to start playing the guitar. But there’s a lot more to explore with this beautiful instrument which you shall throughout your fantastic learning journey. Good luck!

The Rise of Electric Guitar

August 9, 2021 by Ravi Singh Leave a Comment

Adolph Rikenbekerom and George Beauchamp, in 1931, built the first electric guitar. Since then, the electric guitar has taken the music industry by storm. Musicians can play blues, rock, pop music, or jazz using an electric guitar. The electric guitar must be plugged into an electric amplifier for sound to be heard as the guitar sound is produced by the amplifier and not the guitar itself. Most of the electric guitars have a solid body, use steel strings with no sound holes. The strings used in the electric guitar are thinner than the acoustic guitar.

Guitar players regularly looked for ways to boost the sound of guitars in the early days. This journey for guitars producing louder noise intensified during the 1920s when big music bands and music recording companies were all interested in inventing loud guitars.

At the end of the 1940s, Leo Fender, a radio repairman, introduced a mass-produced Spanish-style solid-body electric guitar. This guitar model was replicated by Gibson, which Les Paul himself endorsed in 1952.

The popularity of the electric guitar rose during the 1950s and 1960s when it became the most important musical instrument in pop music. The electric guitar was a musical instrument that was capable of producing varieties of sounds and styles. It was instrumental in advancing pop music, rock music, electric blues, rock and roll, and different other categories of music.

In the 21st century, electric guitar features in almost all types of music played around the globe and are loved by all.

If you feel that you would love to learn this wonderful instrument, give GuitarConfidence.com a call. Our instructor Rex has now been doing online guitar lessons during this COVID pandemic. Get a Free Trial Class today!!

Guitar Confidence offers easy-paced guitar training especially for online students

July 24, 2021 by Ravi Singh Leave a Comment

Guitar Confidence conducted a research to understand what guitar learning enthusiasts would like from an online guitar class. Based on the analysis, Guitar Confidence has designed online courses which cover all the aspects of guitar training, giving students the confidence to master guitar in the real world.

Crafts like how to hold the guitar, how to operate the knobs on the head, what part and which finger should be hitting the string, among others, are included in the newly designed classes, especially for online students. Guitar Confidence’s trainer Rex through online courses, provides students all the necessary instruction, demonstration, and exercises for the very basics of operating a guitar so that they can master them quickly and move on to taking their guitar learning skills to the next level.

Figuring out how to play the guitar, especially with no musical background, is a bit of a journey. Rex will always encourage you to start this musical journey with tiny little steps. Most beginners who have tried to learn how this musical instrument with Rex has found that a slow and easy-paced approach was the best for them at the beginning of their guitar learning career. There is no falling behind when you practice with Rex, you may or may not race through, but if you need to drill on the basics, if you need more explanation on the very fundamentals, then Rex will always be there to provide you with all the help which you might need when you learn how to play guitar.

Rex’s online guitar teaching system is great for beginners and accomplished guitar players. He uses different sets of online methodologies for teaching both beginners and accomplished players. And the best part about Rex is that these online classes are private and one-to-one. So whether you want to play for pleasure or like to learn guitar, Rex will help you with your dream and provide you with one-to-one online lessons.

So, if you are a beginner or know about playing guitar and want to continue learning, then contact Guitar Confidence, and Rex can help you learn guitar at your home. Rex has been providing guitar lessons for many years. Guitar Confidence covers over 30 cities in the East Bay and South Bay areas; including Benicia, Berkeley, Clayton, Concord, Crocket, Danville, Dublin, Fairfield, Hercules, Lafayette, Livermore, Martinez, Moraga, Orinda, Pleasant Hill, Pleasanton, San Ramon, Vallejo, & Walnut Creek, CA.

Guitar Confidence Offering Free Online Trial Class

July 15, 2021 by Ravi Singh Leave a Comment

There was a time when the ability to play a musical instrument was considered an essential part of our education. But since the 2000s, electronic diversions like music-playback machines and video games have taken over this wonderful ability. Many times, we still think of learning a musical instrument but sadly most often they stay hidden.

But it’s never late to start anything, so if you had planned in the past or if you are planning then implement that plan today. Guitar Confidence is providing online guitar lessons in these testing times. OUR KEY MEASURES TO ENSURE SAFETY DURING PANDEMIC: Best Safety Standards || No-contact classes || Regular self-screening and diagnosis

If you are a total beginner, I suggest learning on an acoustic guitar. That’s because if you can play on a steel-string acoustic guitar, you’ll be able to play any guitar without problems, which won’t be true for an electric guitar. If you learn on an electric guitar, you may or may not be able to play an acoustic guitar comfortably. If you like it quiet and soft then you will love the naturally soothing, calmer tone of the acoustic over the distorted, amplified electric guitar. And then you would not need to buy any cables, or an amplifier to start playing, so it saves your pocket.

Most importantly at the very beginning of your guitar journey, your only aim should be to learn the basic guitar techniques, that you will be building on later, although you’ll be playing the acoustic or electric guitar.

Acoustic guitars have their own way of mesmerizing the crowd. The sound this guitar produces is bright, brassy, deep, and forceful which gives sheer pleasure to everyone’s ear. The guitar’s body is made of wood and the sound is produced from the vibration of the strings while the hollow wooden body acts as an echo chamber. These guitars are available in two variants, one is the steel-string and the other is classical. The steel-strings guitars produce a metallic sound that is a constituent of several trendy music styles while the classical guitars have a wide neck and utilize nylon strings. But know that steel-string guitar will be louder than the classical guitar. Whether steel-string or classical, playing acoustic guitars will strengthen your fingers as you press down on the strings to make chord shapes. So, it is one of the best guitars to start your guitar learning process. Music style acoustic guitar supports are folk, country, ragtime, blues, and pop.

If you want to add guitar to your life by learning to play, then just visit my website guitarconfidence.com and give me a call. I’m Rex Bell and I have been doing mobile guitar lessons for many years. But now because of Covid-19, I am providing online guitar lessons. Get a free online trial class today!!

Use Music to Keep Yourself in the Best Mood in this Pandemic

June 24, 2021 by Ravi Singh Leave a Comment

Listening to some of your favorite Music can instantly rejuvenate you, but did you know that Music has health benefits? Music is everywhere; we listen to a romantic song when we are in love, play inspirational Music to increases the motivational level of athletes before a match and even play sad Music when we are not ok to go with the mood. And in this COVID-19 situation, Music can become a great healer.

Music is great medicine for the brain and reverses the aging of the brain. Research conducted has found listening to Music improves cognitive function. “If you want to keep your brain engaged throughout the aging process, listening to or playing music is a great tool. It provides a total brain workout.” – Charles J. Limb, M.D., Johns Hopkins otolaryngologist

Music can free yourself from stress, in this pandemic environment, grabbing your guitar or any other musical instrument can help relieve stress. According to a study at Loma Linda University School of Medicine and Applied Biosystems and Mind-Body Wellness Center, stress can be reduced on a genomic level by playing a musical instrument. Rocking out reverses your body’s response system to pressure. Playing guitar is a form of relaxation as it acts as a form of natural medicine. Playing guitar improves your focus. All your energy and focus are concentrated on only the instrument and the music it produces, relieving you from your everyday pressure. So, if you are looking to escape from your day to day pressures, you should learn guitar today.

If you enjoy your exercise with some music, then you would be pleased to know that workout and Music make a very good team. According to research at Brunel University, it has been found that listening to music while workout increases the endurance of the body by up to 15%.

Both, listening and playing Music has great benefits. Music can reduce stress, blood pressure; and improve the quality of sleep, people’s mood, and, most importantly, mental health.

If you want to learn to play guitar apart from listening to it to stay doubly fit, then visit guitarconfidence.com for more information on our online guitar classes.

Rex’s Beginner Series for Guitar Enthusiasts

May 30, 2021 by Ravi Singh Leave a Comment

Welcome to Guitar Confidence. I am Rex founder of Guitar Confidence. I receive a lot of emails and phone calls from people who want to learn how to play guitar but are not sure where to start. I have written this blog for people who have always wanted to learn to play guitar but just have not started it yet.

There are many who doubt if they can play guitar, so let me tell you right away that anyone can play guitar. The two most important things needed to learn to play guitar are patience and practice. If you think you can manage that, well then, I can guarantee you that you call to learn to play guitar fluently.

You are not alone when it comes to learning guitar, there are many more out there looking specifically for guitar lessons rather than any other musical instrument lessons. Don’t hesitate to take up your guitar. Listening to the music coming out of a guitar is the easy thing but creating it is the difficult part. Create music and the joy you feel will be priceless. Learn it, play it, and in no time the guitar will become your best friend.

Rex’s Beginner series includes the most important things a beginner would require knowledge to be successful at playing guitar. The Beginner series first, covers the basics like what are the various parts of a guitar, how to tune a guitar, how to hold a guitar, etc. Next, Rex will teach various guitar-playing techniques like how to make first chords, how to strum, and how to play a beginner’s first song.

At the end of the Beginner series, a learner will know the various parts of an acoustic guitar, how to hold, tune, and play important guitar chords, strum the guitar, and combine all these to play his or her first song.

At the end of these online lessons, a guitar learner will have a solid foundation for future guitar playing.

I am Rex and I teach aspirant learners at all levels and ages guitar, banjo, mandolin, ukulele, and electric bass for over more than 40 years. I have the experience and confidence to help you discover and hone your guitar skills. If you want to be in a band, I can help you with all you need to know to be in a successful band – I’ve played with many well-known artists and bands. If you want to increase your music reading or writing skills, I can help you here as well. I can also share many tricks of the trade and insights I have gained in touring with bands around the world. If you are looking for guitar lessons in San Ramon, in the convenience of your home then visit guitarconfidence.com.

Importance of Music in the Current Pandemic Situation

May 20, 2021 by Ravi Singh Leave a Comment

Sometimes listening to our favorite songs can quickly rejuvenate us. Music not only lifts our mood but also has a positive effect on our well-being as well. And during the current COVID scenario, it only looks more apt to add some music to our life. Here are a few benefits of music and how it helps us in our well-being.

Music can help with pain management which can be a welcome note for many with the COVID situation. Music helps patients suffering from pain in a physical, mental, and emotional way. A study found that patients experienced less chronic pain subsequent to listening to some of their favorite music.

Music can free you from stress. Grabbing your guitar or any other musical instrument can help alleviate stress and anxiety. Playing guitar can actually reverse a body’s response system to pressure. Playing guitar is a form of relaxation as it acts as a form of natural medicine. So, if you are looking to escape from this anxiety and stress, then learn to play guitar.

If you enjoy your exercise with your music, then you would be pleased to know that workout and music make a very good team. According to a study at Brunel University, it has been found that listening to music while workout increases the endurance of the body by up to 15-20%.

Music is great medicine for the brain and reverses the aging of the brain. Listening and playing music have great benefits. Music can reduce stress, blood pressure; and improve the quality of sleep, the mood of people, mental alertness, and memory.

Why not learn and play music, and at the same time enjoy the healthy benefits of music. If you want to learn a musical instrument, visit guitarconfidence.com.

Guitar Confidence provides online guitar lessons, which you take from the comfort of your home. Visit our site and get a free trial class today!!

From Mobile to Online – Guitar Confidence

May 10, 2021 by Ravi Singh Leave a Comment

Guitar Confidence guitarconfidence.com was founded by Rex, who has been providing mobile guitar lessons for many years. Rex would travel to learners’ homes to give them private guitar lessons at their homes. Guitar Confidence covers over 30 cities in the East Bay and South Bay areas, including Danville, San Ramon, Dublin & Pleasanton.

But with the start of COVID-19 lockdown, Guitar Confidence has shifted to providing online guitar lessons. Rex now provides personal one-on-one online guitar lessons which learners can take at the comfort of their home. Guitar Confidence covers Dublin, San Ramon, Pleasanton, Livermore, and all cities in the east and south bay.

Guitar Confidence provides you with the opportunity to get your guitar out of your closet and start learning this beautiful musical instrument at the comfort of your home. Our private online classes will save your time, and you don’t have to think about traveling outside with the current COVID-19 situation. Isn’t that cool!

Rex looks at all the things that give students the confidence to master something in the real world. From basic stuff like: How do I hold it? How do I operate the knobs on the head? What part of my finger should be hitting the string on the upstroke? to advanced things like playing complex songs with ease are all taught by me. At Guitar Confidence, Rex will give you all the necessary instruction, demonstration, and exercises for the very basics of operating a guitar so that you can master them in literally no time, and quickly move on to thinking about taking your guitar learning skills to the next level.

You can get your online guitar lessons on:

Skype
Zoom
Google Hangout
Google Duo
Watsapp

You will also get a Free trial class when you schedule an online session with Rex. Visit guitarconfidence.com for more information.

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