Using a triadic approach to mapping the fretboard can help you break out of ruts and develop a deeper understanding of the guitar and music in general.
Here are some of the evocative sounds you can create using chord voicings with notes that are close to each other—just a half step or whole step apart.
The rest stroke—similar to the fingerstyle approach used by classical guitarists—is a plectrum technique in which each downstroke lands on an adjacent string rather than passing over it.
Learn to use three-note, three-string triads — you probably already know a lot of these chords, and in this lesson, you’ll find ways to repurpose them.
This Weekly Workout will help you develop your frame of mind and confidence in solo fingerstyle improvisation on guitar via Tárrega's “Etude in E minor.”
In this guitar lesson you'll learn economy picking, which includes alternate and sweep picking styles, as well as legato techniques for your fretting fingers.
Contrapuntal lines are not necessarily intuitive for most guitarists, but the approach is certainly worth the investment and yields dividends equivalent to sonic gold.
If you look to the masters for inspiration—without copying them note for note—you can produce blues verses and solos that sound fresh and exciting on guitar.
In this guitar lesson, these arrangements of two songs by Mother Maybelle Carter will help develop your technique and understanding of the flatpicking idiom.
Learn how each type of harmonic—natural, harp, percussive, and pinch—is produced and how it can be used to add textural interest to your guitar playing.
The study of prewar blues includes a heavy amount of time playing in first position—between the nut and the first four frets of your guitar. However, as you learn more and more songs, you might be asking yourself, “What comes next?”
Lines based on thirds present great material for picking- and fretting-hand exercises, and also provide a solid foundation for melodic ideas and solos.
Slide/bottleneck guitar can evoke flavors ethereal and lyrical or aggressive and bombastic. From Santo & Johnny’s “Sleepwalk” to Elmore James’ “Dust My Broom” and on to Debashish Bhattacharya’s Indian slide musings, this approach delivers a wide spectrum of sounds, emotions, and cultural touchstones.