As opposed to the usual thumb-index finger grip, Eddie Van Halen tends to hold his using his middle finger and thumb. However, Metallica front man James Hetfield uses his thumb, fore finger and index finger. Pat Metheny holds his like Hetfield does, except he uses the round end rather than the pointed end, and he is not alone in this; George Lynch does the same, as does Stevie Ray Vaughan. The reason for this isn’t entirely clear, but Stevie was once cited as claiming that this method allows for more ‘string attack’. Beating all others for ingenuity however has to be Jimmy Rogers and Freddie King who were both able to use two picks at the same time!

The next thing that I noticed about pick preferences was the motion itself. Personally, I always thought circle picking was a little OTT and probably should have seen the end of days along with the end of glam rock, however it does seem to keep appearing. I think that in terms of effect, it is difficult to immediately spot the difference between alternate and economy from a distance. However, since I have now progressed from air guitar to real guitar, I have to say that economy picking is what has prevailed for me as my natural choice. I understand that this has been the choice of many others as well, including I’m pleased to say some of the greats!

Discover the right picking style for you and learn how to play guitar.  We highly recommend Jamorama to beginner and intermediate guitar players. Jamorama includes 252 pages of lessons and 148 step by step videos that will teach you to play guitar quickly and easily.

Renaissance and Baroque guitars aren’t really modern guitars; they are in fact the pre-runners of the today’s classical guitars. They are quieter than today’s species and tend to have 4 or 5 strings.

The Ten-string guitar is a modern guitar created in the 1960s by a Narciso Yepes to follow a musical logic that would create the ability for all 12 tones of the chromatic octave to be created. He introduced the C, A?, G?, and F?, strings which will resonate when those tones are played on other strings allowing for all 12 tones to have string resonating support. This should not be confused with multi-string guitars, some of which do have 10 strings, but does not create the same effect.

The Portuguese guitar has 12 strings, while the guitar called the 12 string guitar is a steel stringed instrument used mostly in folk, blues and of course rock n’ roll. This type of guitar does have 12 strings but set in 6 courses of two strings per course.

The flat top guitar which is also called the steel-string guitar has many similarities to the classical guitar but it usually has a larger body than the classical and a reinforced narrower neck. This type of guitar is used largely in folk and blues, but is also very popular in jazz and country as well.

Then there’s the archtop guitars which are also steel stringed but have a violin-type f-hole feature, and tend to be curved rather than flat. The archtop guitar usually has a deeper body than most making it closely related to the mandolin, and can be either acoustic or electric.

Honestly, this isn’t even the tip of the iceberg – the guitars just keep on coming!

When I decided to learn guitar, I thought it made a lot of sense to do some research on the options I had as far as teachers were concerned. I found out what quite a few others like me must have found out during their searches – that getting a teacher who fit your requirements to a “T” was not all that easy. I discovered the advantages of learning guitar online, and have, since then, advocated the same to anyone I come across who is in the same position as I was. One of the things I tell people is to do their research well before choosing a website, as not all websites are the best in terms of approach or content.

This is  where JamDojo.com steps up to the plate. We’ve researched the online guitar training courses and found one that we highly recommend for beginner guitar players and it’s called “The Beginner’s Guide to Unlocking the Guitar”. Learn more about how to play guitar using this excellent training method.

Ready to learn yourself? Try our “Unlock The Guitar”

How about another great online guitar training course that I just love - it’s called “Jamorama” and you may have heard some things about it. Believe every good thing you hear because it it true! The course offers almost 150 video lessons and 2 e-books crammed with lessons for the beginner and the intermediate player. Ready to try Jamorama? Click here to pick up a copy

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I myself was a drummer before I decided to learn the guitar as well. And there is an interesting story I must tell here. Once out of college, I got around to playing in a band, and lost touch with all my college mates for the past one and a half decades. Recently I met up with one of my friends, and he looked like he had seen a ghost! When I asked him why he seemed so perplexed to see me, he said someone had told him that I had died (and gone to hell, mostly) a long time back. The reason - I had apparently overdosed! We shared a good laugh at that one.

The thing about this incident is the stereotypes that people tend to create. I have never had even a joint in my life (the occasional drink, yes, but no drugs), and yet I was branded an abuser, and a dead one at that, by my own college mates!

I really look forward to the day when all musicians start behaving a bit more respectably, so the remaining brethren are spared these kinds of branding. Being a skilled musician and being a debaucher should be two different things. Sadly, today, the two are intertwined, and only the musicians themselves can change that perception.

Beginner guitar play? This will work for you

Even today, localized, country-specific musical cultures are flourishing all over. One only has to take a look at the different music festivals organized by the different governments, and even by private organizations (though many of these private dos end up propagating western musical influences). Every government today has a department or division that recognizes the threat of their local musical culture being marginalized or made extinct, and therefore organizes events in different countries to promote these cultures.

I would say along with that, there is a larger need to increase awareness among the local populace about the importance of their own musical roots. So while the guitar is becoming one of the most popular musical instruments, it is wise for it to be able to learn to co-exist with other instruments. And I do not foresee this as being a problem, because music is not about domination or ego, it should not be. It should be about sharing expressions and experiences with fellow human beings.

You’ve got to try out this cool guitar training method

There could be many reasons for this, and we could spend a lifetime debating on the practicality of such a situation. However, the fact remains that even today, you will find rock bands in Japan, India, and even Pakistan. This influence can be easily gauged by the fact that in nightclubs in Tokyo, you could find Elvis Presley look-alikes. You could find western musical influences in the musical compositions of Indian movie composers as well. Some did not take that much trouble and simply lifted the tunes of famous English numbers, plagiarism be damned. It does not take a nuclear physicist to figure out the apparent improbability of global success for a, say, Japanese or an Indian rock band. However, the fact remains that such bands exist.

While this may not speak too much about the fondness of people for their native culture, it does speak a whole lot of the popularity that the guitar – that iconic representation of western music – commands over global audiences. One would rather be seen gyrating with a guitar on stage, than sitting placidly with a sitar, that wonderfully melodious stringed instrument from India. Like it or nor, the guitar has, very rightfully, staked claim to be the single instrument that can connect the world musically.

Are you a struggling guitar player? Try this out

I found an excellent new guitar training method that taught me how to play a cool song in just a couple of days. Unlike a lot of the crap you’ll find online these days, this simple method walked me right through the whole learning process and it was super easy. I’m not ready to play in a rock band after 2 days but I’m well on my way.

The method is called The Beginners Guide to Unlocking the Guitar and it was fun and easy to follow. You can read more about how to play guitar here.

I encourage you to give it a try and then get back with me with your results. I might post them here as inspiration for others.

Jam soon,

Jam Master Sinsei