Why do you think a great number of people want to learn to play guitar? Basically they want to learn to play rock songs. Sure, some were brought up on country or folk music and thus rather play these genres. Still, many of the most aspiring guitarists learned to play guitar so they can “jamb out” to some hard rock. As much as we’d like to, we just can’t simply perform our favorite songs without learning rock guitar. As an April Wine song says: “I Wanna Rock!” This definitely sounds simplistic but it sure has meaning.
Though we have it in our minds to learn some cool rock songs, we usually start out playing children’s songs at first. Apparently, children songs are easy to learn and give newbies the satisfaction of knowing they can play a few songs (not something they want to share with their girlfriends). So they learn to play songs like “Yankee Doodle” and “Amazing Grace”, but feel at some point, feel they’re stuck there. Not to put down children’s songs but, wait a minute, they’ll tell themselves, “This is not why I learned to play guitar!”
There must be some kind of method behind the madness of learning rock guitar. Once one makes up his mind to, he’ll soon move onto simple rock songs. For anyone just learning, they need to start out simple. After learning a few techniques and some basic songs, playing rock music is an option. For some it may seem hard to believe, but with practice and perseverance they’ll move on to a point where they can play anything their heart desires.
You can learn to play rock guitar from a number of sources. Rock lessons are available just about anywhere. Most of them can be found in books or on DVDs but there are a few available online for free. Most private instructors teach rock lessons as well.
Most likely, you’ve heard the term “power chord” used before, but do you know what it is? Power chords are those booming chords you hear in most classic rock songs. They’re technically defined as a chord containing the first root, fifth, and eighth in degree (octave) of the scale. SAY WHAT? I tend to think of power chords as the “meat” of the song. They are what give a rock song a feeling of heavy lifting. Power chords make rock songs sound great when the volume is cranked. If you’re really into hard rock music and are taking rock guitar lessons, chances are you already own an electric guitar. You’ve also found that power chords are among the easiest to learn and play. This is because all you need is two fingers to play them.
When playing power chords you’ll want to consider having a good power amp listen to them on. It isn’t how you play them but rather the size and capabilities of your amp. The small practice amps that beginners usually start out with don’t do justice in playing back power chords. Thus, once your income increases you will definitely want to purchase an amp that can deliver the quality of sound produced by power chords and guitar solos.
Speaking of guitar solos, they are very cool, but playing them can sometimes be rather frustrating. Rock guitar lessons will test your solo abilities. Some guitar solos take weeks to learn and master. One thing you must not forget is that guitar lessons are simply lessons for a purpose. They weren’t created to belittle or demoralize you. Rather, they’re designed to improve your existing skills and teach you new ones. Rock guitar lessons are no different.
Once you master meaty power chords and tricky guitar solos, you just may be ready to begin singing. And if you feel you’re not, at least you’re well on your way to playing and enjoying the tedious nature of rock and roll.
Everybody who buys a guitar does so for a reason: to play it. Anyone who has wanted to play guitar desires to play some particular genre of music. Now that you own a guitar, most likely you want to rock. Now find those rock guitar lessons and learn how to play.
Copyright Liam Gibson (Self Proclaimed Guitar God)
