Progressive Guitar Method is a series of books designed to take the guitar student from a beginner level through to a professional standard of playing. All books are carefully graded, lesson by lesson methods which assume no prior knowledge on your behalf. Within the series, all styles and techniques of guitar playing are covered, including reading music, playing chords and rhythms, lead guitar and fingerpicking.
Progressive Guitar Method Book 1: Notes, Chords and Rhythms assumes you have no prior knowledge of music or playing the guitar. Starting with the different types of guitars available and the different styles of playing, you will:
- Be introduced to the notes on each of the six strings, together with basic elements of music theory, including time signatures, note values, sharps, flats and the chromatic scale. This theory is essential in helping you understand the guitar. It can also be applied to solving practical problems which will help speed up your progress.
- Be introduced to all the important open chord shapes for major, minor and seventh chords.
- Learn to play over many chord progressions, including 12 Bar Blues and Turnaround progressions.
- Learn to play rhythm patterns using "easy read" rhythm notation.
This book also has special sections on tuning, how to read sheet music, and fretboard chord charts.
This book will provide you with a solid understanding of guitar chords and rhythms. You can use other books in the Progressive series in conjunction with this book to learn about lead guitar playing, fingerpicking, bar chords, slide and classical guitar styles, as well as music theory and different styles such as Rock, Blues, Country, Jazz, Metal and Funk. All guitarists should know all of the information contained in these books.
The best and fastest way to learn is to use these books in conjunction with:
- Buying sheet music and song books of your favorite recording artists and learning to play 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 favorite songs and albums.
It is also helpful to have the guidance of an experienced teacher in the early stages. This will also help you keep to a schedule and achieve weekly goals.
