How quickly can your fretting hand switch from one chord to another? The speed and confidence you have in making chord changes is key to mastering the guitar and successfully playing the instrument.

The key to learning any instrument, like most intricate human activity, is to develop brain and muscle coordination, more commonly called, muscle memory needed to play the instrument. If you picture a basketball player, for instance, the key to a good shooting performance is the proper hand-to-eye coordination in order to bring the ball up, prepare, aim, and throw it towards the hoop. The different muscles of the arms, wrist and hands will learn the right movements and strength needed to score. Constant practice will condition the brain, eyes, and entire body to know the routine of shooting the ball.

This is similar to guitar playing. The muscles involved would be the arms, wrists and the fingers, with the eyes, ears and brain working in unison to relate the movements to the music being read and the notes produced by the guitar. This is the mechanism that works when a guitar player starts to change chords.

Luckily, there are simple techniques that can help the beginning guitar player to develop these muscle memories and ear training for proper chord changes. Read below and you will see that chord changes are not that difficult to do.

When changing chords, first memorize all the chords involved in the song, and then visualize exactly which fingers of the fretting hand are involved in playing the chords. When playing simple barre chords, the most important finger is the index finger, which will squeeze all 6 strings across the fretboard. So as you move towards playing the chord, you have to position the index finger across the proper fret, or place, along the fretboard before positioning the other fingers of the chord. When playing a broken or simple chord, it is usually the index finger that is the most important finger. Primarily, the index finger and the thumb will form a stable anchor on the guitar neck in order for the other fingers to press the other strings of the chord. The index finger is usually played on the lowest fret and the highest string (by pitch, or string 1), where it could more easily find the proper note, and the other fingers can follow to complete the chord.

When playing a particular song, keep time with the music, but anticipate in which bar and on which beat the next chord will continue. For beginners, it would be preferable to practice the entire song slowly from beginning to end, taking care to change to each chord on time and on tempo. When the student can play the entire song like this without chord errors, he can start increasing the speed to the song?s proper tempo. It would also be helpful to identify particularly tricky chord changes. For instance, 2 consecutive bar graphs would be a relatively simple change, because the guitar player needs only to slide his index finger (which is already in the barre position) to its proper position on the fretboard and quickly press in the other strings of the chord. Changes from simple chords to barre chords ? and vice versa ? and chords that are positioned at a far distance from each other along the length of the neck are more difficult to perform. Isolate these difficult changes and practice those chord changes.

If it is still to difficult with the slow tempo, don?t play the last beat of the last chord and use the time to move your fret hand into position for the next fret. Keep practicing these changes until the short passage can be played without error. Afterwards, go back to playing the entire song as discussed above. When you can play an entire song properly, try different strumming styles to accentuate parts of the song, or a particular beat; or alternate strumming and light plucking to give volume and variety to the music of the song. First, it is best to complete the song by actually copying how the original artist played it on the guitar; then you can add your own twists and extra technique according to your ear and taste. This will help you develop your hands for more difficult chords and finger playing techniques.

Do this for every song, and before you know it, you?ll be playing a new song like a seasoned guitarist in a short period of time.

Bill McRea is the publisher of Guitar Warehouse the best place to Buy Guitar and learn Guitar Playing Techniques. Both sites offer free lesson and product sales.

It is no big secret that proper care of your guitar will give you a more consistent quality of sound and an extended for the guitar . If you are at alls erious about playing guitar you will want to get some accessories that are essential for the care of the guitar. A guitar player is only as good as the sound and the quality of the guitar that they are playing.

The first item on th elist would be a hard shell case for transporting the guitar. Many people use what they call soft or cloth gig bag which zip up and protect the exterior surface of the guitar. A major problem with this type of case is that the tuning nuts on the end of the neck of the guitar get out of tune almost every time you transport it as there is nothing to protect them from being knocked which causes them to turn and get out of tune. Also, if there is any kind of impact while loading and unloading the guitar, this could cause cracks or actual punctures in the body of the guitar. A hard shell case prevents these things from happening as there is space between the neck and body of the guitar and the actual case. The case is designed to take impact while holding the guitar securely on the inside protecting the actual body and neck of the guitar and keeping it in tune. It is a bit more of an investment than a gig bag but in the long run it will help to make your guitar last much longer.

Another item that should be considered for care of the guitar is a guitar stand. You need this to put the guitar on while you are not playing it. Many people lean the guitar against a wall or couch or some other stationary object when they are not playing it. There are a couple of reasons why this is not a good practice. The first would be that if you do not lean the guitar in the correct manner you can very easily warp the neck of the guitar which makes it much more difficult to play. Warping of the neck increases the distance between the strings and the neck which causes you to have to apply more force on the strings while playing. This can make for some very sore and blistered fingers! Also, leaving the guitar laying around makes it much more available for accidents to happen. Having a stand keeps the guitar in the same location when you are done with it and also supports the neck close to the body of the guitar which totally prevents warping of the neck – a small investment solving some big problems.

The last item that should be considered is an actual tuning device for the guitar. You will find that the longer you play the guitar the better you will become at tuning it by just using your ear. But for starting out, you will want to use something that gives you the exact sound and gives the guitar an accurate tune up. There are many devices that you can get that are very easy to use which will give you the exact tuning you need. When your guitar is not tuned correctly this can be very embarrassing – especially if you are singing along with the guitar!

Ian Williamson is the owner of the learn to play guitar comparison site – Play Guitar at http://guitar.you-can-learn.info.

I, Us and Them

David Gilmour sings the last line of ?Money? and the energy of the song dissolves to a shuffling swing? ?Away?away??

As the track fades, the question and answer calls between Gilmour?s guitar and vocal are joined by fragments from another conversation? ? I don?t know if I was really drunk at the time??

Meanwhile, on the crossfade, a new dawn of colour slowly materialises. Eventually, as a mass of suspensions and densely clustered notes clear, Rick Wright?s Hammond organ settles on the chord of D. The gentle swirl of the Leslie effect wraps around this new glow of consonance then, having waited patiently for long enough, the rest of the band enter to begin the blissfully slow and relaxed instrumental opening to ?Us and Them?.

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This is a landmark moment on Dark Side Of The Moon. Not only does the beginning of ?Us and Them? provide the listener with some relief and respite after the rip-roaring guitar-and-drums feast of ?Money? but it also gracefully announces the arrival of a long-awaited object? Chord I of D major.

This is a significant structural moment as, from here on, throughout the rest of ?Us and Them?, ?Any Colour You Like?, ?Brain Damage? and ?Eclipse?, the music is all harmonically centred around the keynote of D. It marks the beginning of the end. Like seeing a ?welcome home? banner displayed somewhere before you?ve reached your destination.

But how do we know that chord I of D major is ?home? when we first hear it? Perhaps, to see how this happens, we need to take a look at the whole journey?

II and V

There are many wonderful and startling harmonic twists and turns on Dark Side Of The Moon but a great deal of the album?s convincing cohesive quality could perhaps be put down to the predominance of one chord progression in particular.

E minor to A to D (along with its other eleven transposed forms) happens to be one of the most conventional and popular chord progressions in the history of western tonal music. Often it will be used at the concluding moments of a section due to its stable, resolving quality. No surprise then that this very three-chord sequence, referred to by musical analysts as a II-V-I chord progression, is the one used repeatedly and to the same effect on Dark Side Of The Moon. However one statement of the sequence is particularly interesting.

?Breathe?(E minor) to ?Time? (A) to ?Us and Them? (D)? This long-term realisation of ?E minor to A to D? contributes to the overall sense of overall coherence. Spread out, as it is, to form the backbone of the entire album?s harmonic structure.

But why call it II-V-I? Well, as any musical analyst will tell you, if ?D? is to be our ‘chord I’ then a visit to the chords of ?E minor? and ?A? immediately prior to it can be seen respectively as a statement of ‘chord II’ (a triad based on the second note of the scale) and ‘chord V’ (based on the fifth) in D major. So there we have it in summary?II-V-I of D major. A softly spoken spell under the surface which embraces the whole of Dark Side Of The Moon and another magical way of convincing our ears of its apparent unity.

A full chordal analysis of the album, song by song, should serve as support to the claims made so far. Not only will it help to clarify the points about coherence due to one particular chord progression but it will serve to expose some other interesting points too about Pink Floyd?s economy with material and a fondness for simplicity behind the mystique and the magic.

The Whole Of The Moon

SPEAK TO ME

Heartbeats, ticks and clanks.
Fragments of speech about madness.
Clare Torry?s scream.

Surely we can?t start talking about chord progressions here at this early point, can we? Or CAN we? It so happens (amid all the heartbeats, talking and screaming) there is a note. A held note. The pitch of that encroaching helicopter-like drone is?B!!!

Pink Floyd, as we will see, are fond of preceding the new key of a song or section thereof with its dominant (or chord V). Unlikely as it may seem, this means of gravitiating to a new ?place? is already in evidence as the opening ?B? drone happens to be the dominant of the next keychord we hear?

BREATHE

E minor – A7 C – B minor – F – G – D7#9 – B/D#

Suffice to say, that opening sequence – E minor to A7 – is the true ?daddy? of sequences on Dark Side Of The Moon. It?s the album?s motif, as we?ll see. After being gloriously repeated more times than I?m willing to count, the hypnotic oscillation of E minor to A7 is only relieved by the second sequence ie. C – B minor – F – G – D7#9 – B/D#, which in contrast wanders unpredictably through a series of secondary dominants before resolving back on E minor. There?s another blissful repeat of the whole thing then the arrival of E minor for the last time marks the beginning of the next track?.

ON THE RUN

Pink Floyd?s clear purpose here is to clear the palette, abandon convention and explore another mode of expression using non-pitch oriented sounds. Harmony is not an issue here. Tension and release is brought about by all manner of effects and events which clash and conflict with each other within the sound collage. And to resolve that ?what else? But an explosion. Out of which, as the dust settles, we hear?.

TIME

Introduction:E – F# minor
Gilmour?s verse:F# minor – A – E – F# minor
Wright?s verse:D – A – D – A – D – C# minor – B minor – E7
Wright?s verse (last time):D – A – D -A – D – C# minor – B minor – F/B

Tickety-tock-a, tickety-tock? CLANG, BANG, etc? After the last several minutes of non-pitch oriented music our ears have been well and truly diverted from any sense of keynote left dormant from earlier. What brings us back to the path? A single, bold E? And so, we take up from where we left off at the end of ?Breathe?. Except things are certainly about to take a different turn.

That return of E sounds like an ominous new beginning rather than a reassuring return. It lingers, decays then is followed by an equally bold, single F sharp (a fresh keynote to a chord not yet heard on the album so far) that also lingers and decays. With each return to E then F sharp again, Rick Wright exposes more of the new harmony in his light, improvisatory tinkling on the keyboard and, as he does, the E turns out to be the keynote of E major. So subtle. Just a light sprinkle of E major in Rick Wright?s right hand part and our perception of the path forward has shifted. At last, a gravitation away from the key of E minor (chord II of our overall harmonic structure, remember!) last stated at the end of ?Breathe? which will ultimately take us to the next significant point in our long-term II-V-I realisation?A major?although not until the verse sung by Rick Wright.

So much else happens in this song (as with all the songs on the album!) but for the purpose of this analysis, let?s forward to the end? Only when Wright?s verse returns to end the song do we gravitiate away from A major again with dramatic harmonic effect. In fact, it?s perhaps the most intense moment in the harmony so far. That is, a chord of F with B in the bass during the line ?thought I?d something more to say? which leads us to a monumental sonic precipice. We lean over the edge?.and DOWN we land. Back on the opening chord of ?Breathe? again?.

BREATHE REPRISE

E minor – A7
C – B minor – F – G – D7#9 – B/D#

?Home, home again?.? The relief, after the hiatus of F/B at the end of the last song, is palpable. Here we are?home again on good old ?Eminor to A7? for another visit of the opening song to close the ?first act? of Dark Side Of The Moon. Yet, despite reaching this closing chapter, there is still the promise of a sting in the tail. More on that in a moment but first? Time to take a breather and summarise what has happened harmonically so far.

Mid-Session Summary

The chord progression – II-V-I – which serves as the backbone to Dark Side Of The Moon?s overall harmonic structure is well underway?. II is represented by the song ?Breathe? which is in the key of E minor (chord II of D major). V is represented by the song ?Time? which is in the key of A (chord V of D major). We still await the arrival of D?our chord I.

Even though a chord of D appears gloriously at the beginning of Rick Wright?s verse in ?Time??garnished as it is with flanged female choir, message-laden lyrics and the fresh sound of Rick?s lead vocal?we are yet to reach D (our ultimate chord I) as a keychord. Why not? Well, because this moment only constitutes a ?visit? to D. The chord that follows it, A, is clearly the home chord for the song (so the D before is actually chord IV of A major!). A firmer, resolutory D (as chord I of D major) will appear later, of course!

As well as this long-term album-spanning statement of a II-V-I progression, we have also had the beginnings of the II-V-I progression suggested on a more local level. The chief example being the ?E minor to A7? progression of ?Breathe? which imprints itself on the listener?s brain in readiness for a resolution on D that is yet to come. Another more sneaky suggestion of II-V-I, albeit in a different key, is used as a device in ?Time?? to get from Wright?s verse back to the ?F# minor – A – E – F# minor? sequence for Gilmour?s fantastic guitar solo. Note how B minor (on the line ?no one told you when to run..?) followed by E (on the line ?you missed the starting gun?) could have been followed by A to complete a II-V-I progression but teasingly it resolves on the relative minor, F sharp, instead.

And now, back to that sting in the tail at the end of ?Breathe Reprise??

To close the song, the C – Bminor – F – G – D7#9 – B/D# sequence does not resolve on E minor as it did first time at the end of ?Breathe?. Rather surprisingly (or crudely, some would say), from D7#9 to B/D# (which prepared our ear for the return of E minor both times in the earlier song) we land unpredictably at B minor. The band freeze in their tracks as if startled by the lack of preparation. The new ?surprise? key chord fades?

GREAT GIG IN THE SKY

Wright piano:B minor – F – B flat – F/A ?G minor – C7 – G minor – C7 ?F – B flat – E flat – C minor ?F – B flat – E flat – B flat ?? Torry vocal:G minor – C7 ?G minor/D – C#dim – F#7 – Bminor ?? Wright & Torry:B minor – F – B flat – F/A ?G minor – C7 – G minor C7

Rick Wright confirms the new harmony with his opening piano chord. But there are soon plenty of further surprises in the pipeline as Wright?s introduction creates a sublime diversion from our main harmonic path with a ?round the houses? series of secondary dominants. Carrying the ear to somewhere completely new and alien. And yet, this is not wholly unrelated to the whole design…

Note how there are realisations of new, transposed II-V-I progressions as miniature motifs of the big, main one (yet to be completed, of course!) during Wright?s piano introduction. First of all, G minor -? C7 – F. Secondly, C minor? – F – B flat. Both are good examples of how the II-V-I progression smoothly transports the listener from one musical corner to the next. Also, both exemplify Pink Floyd?s fondness for the progression itself on this album.

Other than that, note that the repeated G minor to C7 sequence which takes up most of ?Great Gig In The Sky? and serves as a platform for the main event – Clare Torry?s truly remarkable vocal solo – is a transposition of another prominent two-chord progression heard before on the album?namely, the repeated E minor to A7 sequence which takes up most of the song, ?Breathe?. Note also that, whereas that two-chord sequence in ?Breathe? isn?t yet followed by its third chord to complete a II-V-I progression (yet!), the transposition of that sequence as used in ?Great Gig In The Sky?, is ie. Gminor – C7 – F. This is a hint of what is to come surely.

Interesting to note further that, despite featuring Gminor? – C7 – F somewhere as a II-V-I progression, ?Great Gig In The Sky? ultimately ends on G minor to bring the song?s recurring two chord oscillation to rest and Side One of the album to a close. This is a transposition of what happens at the end of ?Breathe? where, after so many repeats of E minor to A7, matters comes to rest on E minor.

So much recycling going on here? ?Breathe? and?Great Gig In The Sky? may seem like two very different songs but harmonically there is so much in the latter that is recycled from the former (albeit in transposed form) which again helps to form connections and cross-references between distant points on Dark Side Of The Moon. As well as that, there is no doubt about how effectively this recycling pays off in the hands of Pink Floyd. So much drama comes from the later visits as here in ?Great Gig In The Sky?.

So, Side One ends. Things are about to get a lot simpler.

MONEY

Verse:Bminor Turnaround:F#minor – Eminor – Bminor

If Dark Side Of The Moon had been composed years later when the music would not have to be divided between Side One and Side Two of a vinyl long-player, then the probability is that Pink Floyd may have done something different here harmonically to smooth things over. G minor, the last chord heard at the end of Side One, is a world away from the B minor which opens the first track of Side Two. Nothing inherently wrong with that. Just that it clearly marks a division of sorts due to the limitations of the format for which it was recorded.

Anyway, just as ?Great Gig In The Sky? constitutes a diversion from the main harmonic path, ?Money? delays the return to the main road a little longer with its ?blues in B minor?flavour. With regard to harmonic progression, there really isn?t much else to add to that. It?s a monster of a track. Rip-snorting guitar solos, thundering drums, great bassline? But, for the sake of this analysis, we can ?fast forward? to the end where something very significant happens?.

US AND THEM

Main sequence:D – D6 – Dminor#7 – G/D
Bridge:Bminor – G – C

As described at the beginning of the article, this is a sublime moment on the album where we suddenly get taken ?home? harmonically with the arrival of chord I of D major.

Against the fading, retreating B minor of ?Money?, Rick Wright superimposes the upper end of a suspended dominant seven without its keynote, A. Like a clearing of mist, the ?home? chord of D emerges. A truly magical transition and one which answers all questions asked by the use of harmony so far on the album. Here is the album?s chord I. And, as if to celebrate and make the most of it, the D remains at the foot of the texture throughout most of the song while the upper harmony notes change. The melancholy effect of the Dminor#7 chord enables Rick Wright and Dick Parry to add some delightful turns during their solo. For all its dynamism and power, the bridge sequence – B minor to G to C – is merely a sidestep. D is ?home? from here on and the end is in sight?

ANY COLOUR YOU LIKE

Dminor – G7
Bflat – Aminor – Eflat – F – C7#9 – A/C#

Yet again, this shows Pink Floyd?s fondness for revisiting and recycling earlier material. Yet again, it?s done creatively. This time as an instrumental featuring an enthusiastic exchange of solos between guitar and keyboards over several repeats of D minor to G7 (another transposition of the E minor to A7 sequence from ?Breathe?).

Unlike earlier transpositions, this two-chord oscillation somehow does not suggest the beginnings of another II-V-I progression. The D minor is simply prolonging the keynote of D as our ?home?. We feel at rest harmonically. And yet?the concluding sequence to the song (again a transposition of the second sequence from ?Breathe?) resolves this time surprisingly in the major. ?That is, the opening D major of the next song.

BRAIN DAMAGE

Verse, part one:D – G7
Verse, part two:D – E/D – A7 – D (D7 when going to Chorus)
Chorus:G – A – C – G
Bridge:G – Bminor – Eminor – A

We may have stayed at ?home? with the prolongation of D but here?s another twist. The first part of the verse – D to G7 -? is yet another transposition of ?Breathe? but in the major key!

Note how the second part of the verse confirms our global II-V-I sequence for the album in true form and at a local level with the sequence of E/D (that?s E with D in the bass) to A7 to D. Most significant of all though, to end the song we hear a final, confirmatory statement of the II-V-I progression which (as I?ve said often enough now!) is the backbone to the whole thing. As a fitting conclusion to the album, this track links with the next via E minor to A to?..

ECLIPSE

D – D7/C – Bflat – A7

Celebrating our ?home? chord of D for one final time, this circular sequence draws Dark Side Of The Moon to a close with all the stateliness and pomp that such a huge journey deserves. Finishing on (what else?) a final, resounding D.

Vinyl Thoughts

So there is more contributing to our sense of Dark Side Of The Moon?s coherence than just the recurrence of ideas such as heartbeats, loops, spoken word fragments, lyrics about madness and mortality etc.etc?. And it arguably comes down to one of the most tried and tested sequences in western music. Yet this is done without us taking much notice and across such a long span of time.

Eagle-eyed readers may have noted how the four chord progression which straddles the final moments of ?Brain Damage? and the beginning of ?Eclipse? – namely, B minor to E minor to A to D – matches the progression from ?Speak To Me? to ?Breathe? to ?Time? to ?Us and Them? if we include the B of the opening helicopter drone! So maybe the signature chord progression was VI-V-II-I all along! I?ll let you argue that one out amongst yourselves?.

To finish, I want to draw attention to how the long-term harmonic structure of Dark Side Of The Moon organises the shape of the album into neat symmetrical proportions. ?Breathe? and ?Breathe Reprise? bookend the opening sequence of songs where our chords II and V dominate. In turn, this forms a bookend balanced by another at the other end of the album where the latter four songs of the album are centred round the harmonic keynote of D (chord I). Between these two ?song suites? seemingly bound as they are by harmonic relationships, ?Great Gig In The Sky? and ?Money?? function as a spectacular interlude to the process.

Creating bookends to an album was something that seemed to be a signature trait of the 70s Pink Floyd from here on? Wish You Were Here of course was bookended by ?Shine On You Crazy Diamond Parts 1- 5? and ?Shine On You Crazy Diamond Parts 6-9?. Animals was bookended by ?Pigs On The Wing 1? and ?Pigs On The Wing 2?. Something even more ingenious, of course, was used on The Wall to create that sense of departure and return. That is, by making the beginning of Side One follow on from the end of Side Four so that ?this? would be where ?we came in??.

Beat that for coherence!

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?2006 David Sanderson

Dave Sanderson is a musician/songwriter/teacher with his own website promoting his latest album ‘Songbook’. For more details visit http://www.flowerbedmusic.com.

Classes that involve piano for beginners would include an introduction to reading and understanding the keys, chords and how to read musical notes. The piano is unlike any other instrument and sounds wonderful as stand alone music or as part of a group. The intense sound of a piano is one that captivates audiences with power or soothes them with serenity.

Budding musicians always find it exciting to explore the world of piano for beginners. Whether this is their first venture playing the piano or being used as a reminder of forgotten skills, piano for beginners is a terrific way to develop or improve skills.

The most popular place to find a piano for beginners class would be a local high school or college university music department. Occasionally, instructors will offer piano tutoring to non-students. Students, on the other hand, will have a variety of choices within the music curriculum. Otherwise, a quick visit to a local specialty music store may provide leads on potential instructors.

When learning piano for beginners, its important for hopefuls to select the best instructor by evaluating his/her experience, educational background and accomplishments. The most commonly sought instructors will possess some type of music degree or an equivalent amount of musical experience. A potential instructor should be interviewed regarding their history in music, fee requirements, length of classes, policy on missed sessions, etc. If the learners schedule is particularly hectic, he/she may wish to enlist the help of a private tutor as opposed to a group instructor. Music lessons offered in a group will be scheduled by the instructor and will be less flexible toward each individual learners schedule. This is not to say that group lessons are not an excellent way to learn piano for beginners because they are. Simply put, private tutors are better for anyone with a hectic or unpredictable schedule. For example, a private tutor will have a more flexible schedule and may be willing to work around that of the learners daily routine. Whereas group classes are often held at the same time on a certain night, or nights, each week, a private tutor can be scheduled at any time during the day or evening without having to abide by a preset schedule. Internet courses, on the other hand, offer learners with the option of learning piano for beginners in the comfort of their own home at any time during the day or night. After all, where else could you learn piano in your pajamas?

Perhaps that most fun way to learn the piano for beginners is to just start playing. Some of the worlds most famous musicians are self-taught, so dont be afraid to go solo until you get comfortable with the keys and each of their unique sounds. Professional instruction is certainly the most desirable, but there is nothing wrong with a little practice before signing up for class. In fact, the more familiar you are with the piano, the sooner you will be on your way to the Grammy awards. Hey, you never know!

Ian Williamson is the owner of the learn to play piano comparison site – Piano Lessons at http://piano.you-can-learn.info.

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Knowing how to choose the right guitar and how to identify a bad one, will save you from countless headaches, not to mention finger aches.

Acoustic guitar bodies come in basically the same hourglass shape, with some variations, but they do vary in size, color, wood-type, style, and extra features. You can even buy an acoustic guitar so small that fits into a hiking backpack.

Guitars come in a very wide range of prices, but when it comes to instruments, in general, you get what you pay for, especially when you buy new. Theres a real difference between getting a bargain and buying cheap.

But whether you buy new or used may be determined by many personal factors including your budget, and each has their own pros and cons.

Buying new, gives you a warranty and, hopefully, a return period, if for some reason youre not totally satisfied with your purchase, or something goes wrong.

Under usual’ circumstances, a used guitar can usually be purchased cheaper and has already gone through its break-in period.

Commercially built guitars are usually mass manufactured. Custom-made guitars are exactly that. They are custom built and tailored to your specifications by a highly skilled guitar maker.

Prices for a custom-built guitar vary considerably, depending on the skill level of the craftsperson you contract the job to, but, as a rule, they are generally quite higher than a commercially built guitar of similar quality. Each custom built guitar is unique and therefore hard to compare in price to a commercially built guitar.

FOR THE TECHIES

Understanding some of the parts of a guitar will definitely help you when it comes to the Pre-Purchase Checklist.

BODY: This is the part with the sound hole in the front. It is where the strumming is done, and it can vary in size. The actual size, shape, type of wood, coating, and general build of the body also affects how the guitar will sound, whether its a rich and warm sound, or a thin and twangy sound. The body tends to be the part that also gets scratched, damaged, and generally banged-up the most.

NECK: This is the long piece extending from the body and ends at the head of the guitar where the Tuning Heads are, also known as machine heads. The strings travel from the Bridge on the body, across the sound hole, along the Fret Board, which is attached to the front-side of the neck, and finally arriving at the tuning heads where they are wrapped around tuning posts. The tuning heads are then turned by hand, which then turns the posts, making the strings tighter or looser, thus affecting their tuning. Necks tend to warp and twist if not looked after, or if the guitar is left propped against a heat source.

BRIDGE: The Bridge is normally located on the front of the body, by the sound hole, and on the side of the hole opposite to the neck. The strings are usually fed through the bridge first before they cross the hole and travel up the neck to the tuning heads. The bridge is like an anchor-point for the strings. Metal bridges are best, but on most acoustics they are either hard plastic or wood. Bridges have a tendency to crack and split over a long period of time.

FRET BOARD: The fret board is glued to the front of the neck. This is the part you press the strings onto to make chords or play individual notes. Because its glued on separately, a fret board can be made of a wood thats different from the neck.

The strings travel over the fret board and the distance they are above the fret board makes a difference to the playability of the guitar. If the strings are too far above the fret board, then they will be hard to press down, making the guitar hard to play.

When a beginner plays a guitar, initially his or her fingertips are very soft and need to be hardened. A guitar with the strings too far above the fret board, also known as having a high action, will cause the players fingers to hurt so much that they are likely to put the guitar away in discouragement and possibly stop playing altogether.

STRINGS: Acoustic guitar strings, come in a wide variety of flavors. They can be made out of nylon, brass, steel, or a combination. Nylon strings are usually only found on Classical guitars and Student guitars, because theyre easier on the fingertips. They have a rich, warm sound to them.

Strings sets come in different weights, or sizes. Strings that come from a package marked Heavy are usually quite thick in size and sound beefy. Strings that are light, or extra light, are very thin and usually have a brighter sound to them, but are also quieter sounding than heavy strings.

String choices are purely personal taste. Light strings are easier to press than heavy strings but also sound quite different. The more often strings are played, the dirtier they get. If a cloth isnt run over and under them, from time to time, the sound becomes very dull

THE PRE-PURCHASE CHECKLIST

- Before you buy a used guitar, cost-compare against the price of a new one, unless the guitar is quite old. You could also compare its used price to other used prices by going to an online auction and either searching for the same or a similar guitar.

- Check the overall condition of the wood for cracks, scratches, splits, dents, chips, etc.

- Also check the lacquer finish for cracks and splits.

- Check the neck/fret board for warping and twisting. You can do this by holding the guitar flat on its back, with the sound hole facing upward. Bring the guitar up to eye-level, with the neck running away from you and the edge of the body almost touching your face. Let your eyesight skim across the front of the body and down the fret board. You should be able to see if the neck is twisted or bowing.

- Tune the guitar, or have the seller tune it for you.

- If you know how to play about five or six chords then play them. If you dont know how to play, ask the seller to play them for you. This check ensures that the neck of the guitar is not warped, even though you couldnt physically see it. If the neck is warped, and the guitar is properly tuned, then some of the chords will sound good, but others will sound as though the guitar is not tuned. If this happens, check the tuning again. If it persists, then dont buy the guitar.

- Check the bridge of the guitar. If its made out of wood or plastic, make sure its not cracked or splitting. The bridge needs to be rock-solid, as a lot of pressure is exerted on the bridge by the strings.

- Check the tuning heads. Do they turn easily, or are they very stiff and hard to turn. Even with the high tension of the strings, a quality guitar will have tuning heads that are fairly easy to turn.

- Check the action of the guitar. Are the strings a fair distance from the fret board? Are they easy or hard to press down at various points on the fret board?

- If you are buying the guitar for yourself, and you know how to play, even if youre a beginner, then play the guitar.

- How does it feel?

- Is it easy or hard to play?

- Can you fit your hand around the neck/fret board comfortably to play chords?

- Is the guitar a comfortable size and shape for your body? Is it easy to hold?

- If you plan to play standing up, ask for a guitar strap.

- Do you like the sound, the color, etc?

- If you dont play, have someone else play it for you so that you can judge what it sounds like.

WHERE TO BUY

Buying a guitar from a physical retail music store allows you to test drive the guitar and ask more questions up front. Buying online or from a catalog may bring you more cash savings.

No matter where you buy your guitar, if you know what to look for, and spend a little extra effort in your search for that perfect guitar, not only will your fingers thank you, but also your ears, and all those who will come to join you around the campfire, or even go to see you in concert. Who knows

Ian Williamson is the owner of the learn to play guitar comparison site – Play Guitar at http://guitar.you-can-learn.info.

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