Blues Turnaround Tips | Elixir Strings
Sponsored by Elixir® Strings: Once you’ve mastered the basics of 12 bar blues, adding turnarounds at the end of a chord progre... Read More...
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NEW GEAR
Review: The Hill Guitar Company Companion Is an Exemplary Parlor-Sized Crossover Nylon-String Guitar
The Hill Guitar Company Companion is designed to be a professional-quality travel instrument for a classical guitarist or a crossover guitar for the steel-string player.
Review: The PRS SE A20E Angelus Cutaway Acoustic-Electric Boasts Versatility and Affordability
In this review of the PRS Angelus SE A20E acoustic-electric guitar, we were impressed as much by its easy playability as its bright yet flexible tonal range.
MORE GEAR
Steve Nall Steps into a Big New Role at Collings Guitars
Steve Nall recently took over selecting tonewoods and voicing the tops and backs of all Collings acoustic guitars after working for decades with mentors Bill Collings and Bruce VanWart.
Finding and Fixing Rattles and Buzzes on Acoustic Guitars
Here is an end-to-end approach for for finding and fixing those annoying rattles and buzzes on your acoustic guitar.
FROM THE LATEST ISSUE
Guitar Lesson: Add Some Swing to Your Fingerstyle Blues with Walking Bass Lines
In this guitar lesson you will learn to play a 12-bar walking-bass blues in the key of E major, adding some swing to your blues playing.
SPONSORED LESSON
Sponsored by Elixir® Strings
PLAY LIKE YOUR FAVORITE GUITARISTS
Learn a Gypsy Jazz Masterpiece: Django Reinhardt’s Arrangement of “Tea for Two”
I discovered that there were 17 of these solo Django Reinhardt pieces. At first I learned the tunes by ear, jotting down notes about how to play them.
Roots Guitarist and Educator Happy Traum Teaches a Few Songs from His Storied Career
At 83, the guitarist Happy Traum is remarkably youthful—still playing concerts & teaching. Here is a retrospective of his life in music as captured by 6 songs.
The Guitar-Tuning Odyssey of Joni Mitchell
The melodies and harmonies of Joni Mitchell's music rarely unfold in ways that our ears have come to expect. Here's a look at her guitar tuning Odyssey.
Video Lesson: A Look at Richard Thompson’s Stunning Acoustic Guitar Style
When Richard Thompson plugs in his Stratocaster, fireworks regularly ensue. But his playing is equally brilliant when he picks up a Martin, Ferrington, or Lowden and goes unplugged.
NEW BOOK ALERT
The world of popular music is filled with singer-songwriters who are not just brilliant wordsmiths but distinctive guitarists, and this eclectic guide covers some of the very best. Learn how these musicians support their songs with inventive accompaniments in a wide range of styles, tunings, and techniques—so many cool ideas that you can borrow for use in your own songwriting. Learn more.
HERE'S HOW
How Do Guitarists Practice?
By Adam Perlmutter Practicing is one of the most important things you can do as a guitarist, whether you’re an absolute beginner or seas... Read More...
GET STARTED ON GUITAR
Between the Lines: All About Guitar Notation
Here you’ll learn how guitar notation evolved into the sophisticated tool it is today, how it’s prepared for publications like AG, and most important, how you can use it to learn new music, whatever your style.
FEATURED LESSON
Learn to Play D Major Chords Up and Down the Neck | Chord by Chord
Welcome to the third installment of Chord by Chord, a series designed to build your fretboard familiarity and understanding of harmony. Today I’ll show you how to play a D major chord in a few different places on the fretboard, with the note D always at the bottom. The Work The D chord is a ... Read More...
CHORD BY CHORD
What is Chord by Chord? Introducing Acoustic Guitar’s How-To Video Series
Welcome to Acoustic Guitar’s Chord by Chord, a series of 62 brief lessons designed to build your fretboard familiarity, chord flu... Read More...
SESSIONS
John McCutcheon | Acoustic Guitar Sessions in Place
Playing his “favorite guitar in the world,” his trusty Huss & Dalton MJC, John McCutcheon deconstructs his song "Peekaboo" and shows how to play it slowly and up to speed.
Elijah McLaughlin Performs Two Stunning Fingerstyle Pieces | Acoustic Guitar Sessions in Place
For this AG Session, Elijah McLaughlin and Jason Toth of the Elijah McLaughlin Ensemble perform two fingerstyle pieces from the ensemble's latest album
FEATURED SONG
‘Super Moon’: Learn a Barn-Burner From Molly Tuttle
From the January/February 2020 issue of Acoustic Guitar | BY ADAM PERLMUTTER On her latest outing, When You’re Ready, Molly Tuttle’s guitar plays a secondary role to the songs, but her six-string is front and center on “Super Moon,” a bright, dropped-D instrumental from h... Read More...
NEWS & REVIEWS
‘Once Upon a Harp’ is a Sparkling Collection of Turlough O’Carolan Pieces by Steve Baughman
Steve Baughman’s guitar playing on Once Upon a Harp has the perfect combination of a light touch, rhythmic surety, and deeply melodic sensibility.
POPULAR STORIES
Great Acoustics: A Loyal Customer Inspires a Bold New Big Hollow Jumbo
When a repeat customer asked Big Hollow Guitars' Bevan Frost to build a large-bodied guitar with unique inlays, the luthier rose to the challenge.
Cristina Vane’s Slide Guitar Takes Center Stage On ‘Make Myself Me Again’
On Christina Vane's album Make Myself Me Again, the slide guitarist is exploring what it means to reconnect with herself in a new, unfamiliar city where she seems to fit right in.
Learn a Blues Lick in Drop-D Tuning
This beautiful little piece fits nicely into a 12 bar blues progression.
Using Slash Chords to Strengthen Your Bass Lines and Chord Progressions
Slash chords are a small change to a chord voicing that can have a big impact on the sound of a progression, as we’ll explore in this guitar lesson.
Remembering Roots Musician Steve James 1950–2023
To his colleagues at Acoustic Guitar, Steve James was not only the knowledgeable, reliable author of 185 well-regarded articles and reviews, he was a cherished friend, close collaborator, and the source of endlessly entertaining tales from the road.
Ask the Expert: How to Cure Your Guitar’s Wintertime Humidity Blues
Maintaining your guitar’s humidity level is key in avoiding lots of headaches, from a fluctuating setup to potentially expensive structural repairs.