Aladygma – News

Acoustic Blues guitar lesson spice up that bluesy playing

The internet is a truly wonderful resource. It is often said, but still very true, that young people today don’t know how lucky they are to have easy access to the worlds knowledge on the internet.

I’ve been playing guitar for well over thirty years having started out with the classic Bert Weedon’s ‘Play in a Day’ book, way back in the 1970′s. I could never afford guitar lessons so I would take every opportunity to obsessively study the playing techniques and styles of every guitarist I managed to see.

Modern technology has revolutionised the way that people learn to play the guitar. Tuition DVDs, for example, can be played repeatedly, unlike face to face guitar lessons. And the internet provides an ideal platform for the presentation of guitar tutorials.

There are an abundance of guitar teaching websites but my favourite place for guitar tutorials is Youtube. You can find instructional videos on everything from choosing guitars to making your own electric guitar. There are videos for every level of learner from beginner through to old guys like me who want to learn a few new tunes and techniques.

Learning some new techniques, tunes and licks has become my favourite hobby. Often when its raining I’ll stay indoors and learn a new tune or two from Youtube. Its safe to say that my guitar playing has progressed more in the past five years, thanks to Youtube, than it did in the previous twenty years.

Another useful feature is that the system is interactive. When I find a video that I like I will always make it one of my favourites and maybe drop the performer a comment to say thanks. I will often ask a question or two and the video maker will generally come back with a helpful answer. It’s a bit like having every online guitarist in the world available as a personal guitar playing consultant.

I can’t help but feel a little envious of the young people who are just starting to learn today. I like to think that if I’d been born later, at a time when all of these great learning resources were available, I’d have been playing better than Eric Clapton by now.