The Note A
To play the note A, place the second finger of your left hand just behind the second fret of the third string.
This is an A note. The note A is written on the second space of the staff.
When a black dot is written on a guitar fingering diagram, it tells you the position of the note and where to place your left hand finger. Place your finger just behind the fret. Do not place your finger on the fret. Be sure to press down hard, and use the tip of your finger. If you do not do this, the string will make a buzzing noise.
This exercise contains four bars of A notes.
This exercise contains both A and G notes.
To make this exercise easier to play, keep your second finger near the second fret, so that when you have to play an A note you do not need to move your finger very far.
The Half Note
This is a half note.
It lasts for two beats.
There are only two half notes in one bar of * time.
This exercise contains four bars of half notes, using G and A.
The big numbers 1 and 3 tell you to play the note. The small numbers 2 and 4 tell you to hold it until the next note.
This exercise uses a mixture of half notes and quarter notes. Because of the * time signature, there must be a total of four beats in each bar.
