Progressive Beginner LEAD GUITAR assumes you have no prior knowledge of lead guitar playing, although some basic knowledge of guitar playing would be useful. Progressive Beginner GUITAR is recommended as a primer. In the course of Progressive Beginner LEAD GUITAR you will learn all the essential techniques of Lead Guitar along with how to read traditional music notation, guitar TAB, and rhythm notation. By the end of the book you will be ready to play Lead guitar in a band and be competent in a variety of musical styles.
The book begins with the most common scale used by lead guitarists - the minor pentatonic scale - and shows you how to use it in all keys, before moving on to important rhythms, picking, slurring, slides and note bending. Extended fingering patterns are then introduced, allowing you to play all over the fretboard in any key. The examples and solos demonstrate a variety of styles including Rock, Blues, Fusion and Funk. The accompanying CD contains all the examples in the book so you can enjoy playing along with them as you learn. At the end of the book, and on the CD, there are also several Jam-Along tracks to help you practice your improvising.
The best and fastest way to learn is to use this book in conjunction with:
- Buying sheet music of your favourite recording artists and learning their songs.
- Practicing and playing with other musicians. You will be surprised how good a basic drums/bass/guitar combination can sound even when playing easy music.
- Learning by listening to your favourite CDs.
In the early stages it is helpful to have the guidance of an experienced teacher. This will also help you keep to a schedule and attain weekly goals. To develop a good feel for timing right from the start, it is recommended that you practice everything you learn with a metronome or drum machine.
Electronic Tuner
The easiest and most accurate way to tune your guitar is by using an electronic tuner. An electronic tuner allows you to tune each string individually to the tuner, by indicating whether the notes are sharp (too high) or flat (too low). An electric guitar can plug directly in to the tuner.
There are several types of electronic guitar tuners but most are relatively inexpensive and simple to operate. Tuning using other methods is difficult for beginning guitarists and may take many months to master, so we recommend you purchase an electronic tuner, particularly if you do not have a guitar teacher or a friend who can tune it for you. Also if your guitar is way out of tune you can always take it to your local music store so they can tune it for you. Once a guitar has been tuned correctly it should only need minor adjustments before each practice session.
