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Articles & Books From Hal Leonard Corporation
A one-stop resource to the essentials of owning and playing the guitar If you’ve just bought a guitar, or you’ve had one for a while, you probably know it takes some time and effort to learn how to play the popular instrument. There’s so much to know about owning, maintaining, and playing a guitar. Where do you even begin?
The key to fast and fun piano proficiency! Whether you’re a wannabe Mozart or are an experienced hand at tinkling the ivories, the latest edition of Piano For Dummies has what you need to take you to the next level in making beautiful music using this much-loved and versatile instrument. Working as an introductory course—or as a refresher to keep those fingers nimble—you’ll find information on getting started, improving your technique and performance, and the best ways to practice until you hit finely tuned perfection.
Cheat Sheet / Updated 03-10-2022
Learning to play the guitar is a lot fun. Use this cheat sheet to help you get started with your guitar finger placement and guitar chords. If you need help with finger placement on your guitar, use tablature (tab) and fingerboard diagrams.Practice playing the most common open-position chords on your guitar to get that “jangly” sound, and make sure you know the notes on the neck of your guitar to change starting notes in scales, chords, and arpeggios.
Cheat Sheet / Updated 02-16-2022
On this Cheat Sheet, you find handy reference material that you can print and place conveniently in your practice area. Included are an explanation of guitar notation as it translates to actually playing the guitar, 24 common guitar chords, a fingerboard diagram showing all the notes on the guitar up to the 12th fret, and a list of essential tools and accessories that facilitate trouble-free and versatile music-making on guitar.
Article / Updated 03-26-2016
Probably the greatest invention ever created for lead rock guitarists is the pentatonic scale. Its construction and theory have spawned countless theoretical discussions, but for rock guitar purposes, it just sounds good.
Staying at home position
The main position for the pentatonic scale is in 5th position. This is the home position of the pentatonic scale in C major or A minor.
Article / Updated 04-06-2017
Although lead guitar is a studied craft with an established orthodoxy (that is, you can buy books on the subject), rhythm guitar is a universe without any rules. No one can say for sure what makes up a good rhythm guitar part, but you sure know one when you hear it.
The best rhythm players in rock — such as Pete Townshend, Eddie Van Halen, and Keith Richards, just to name a few — all play in a style that’s hard to label or analyze.
Article / Updated 03-26-2016
Although more than 99 percent of all rock playing on the guitar is played with a pick, occasions for fingerstyle do pop up occasionally. Fingerstyle, as the name implies, means that you pluck the strings with the right-hand fingertips. For these times you can put the pick down or stick it between your teeth; whichever allows you to grab it the fastest after the fingerstyle passage is over.
Article / Updated 03-26-2016
How a guitar is built defines what type of guitar it is and (generally) what type of music it's used for. Consider just two examples:
A solid-body electric guitar is used for rock. It has no holes in the body — which adds to its sustain (the guitar's ability to increase the amount of time a plucked note rings).
Article / Updated 03-26-2016
Knowing guitar theory is one thing — applying it is another. To become a strong guitar player, you have to practice and play. This article includes suggestions to help you implement an understanding of guitar theory in your playing. The following are some of the best ways to practice along with tricks to help you take advantage of every playing opportunity.
Article / Updated 09-16-2022
A triad is a set of three notes stacked in 3rds. Playing in 3rds on the guitar means that you start on a scale degree, count it as “1,” and then move to the scale degree that is three away, “3.” For example, the G major scale is G-A-B-C-D-E-F♯.If you start counting from G, then the 3rd is B (G-A-B, 1-2-3). If you start counting from A, then the 3rd is C (A-B-C, 1-2-3).