Mark Phillips - Getting Started Playing Guitar For Dummies, Enhanced Edition

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Getting Started Playing Guitar For Dummies,

Enhanced Edition

by Mark Phillips

Director of Music, Cherry Lane Music

Jon Chappell

Award-winning guitarist and author

Getting Started Playing Guitar For Dummies, Enhanced Edition

Published by
John Wiley & Sons, Inc.
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Copyright 2011 by John Wiley & Sons, Inc.

Published by John Wiley & Sons, Inc., Hoboken, NJ

Published simultaneously in Canada

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ISBN: 978-1-118-13321-7

Manufactured in the United States of America

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Introduction

S o you wanna play guitar, huh? And why wouldnt you? Playing guitar can put you out in front of a band, where youre free to roam, sing, and make eye contact with your adoring fans. Or playing guitar can make you the star of the vacation campfire singalong. And playing can bring out the music in your soul and become a valued lifetime hobby.

About This Book

Getting Started Playing Guitar For Dummies, Enhanced Edition provides everything the beginning to intermediate guitarist needs. How do you access this information? Easily (at least we tried to make it so)! Consult the following list for tips about how this book starts you playing and developing real guitar skills quickly:

Look at the photos. Fingerings you need to know appear in photos in the book. Just form your hands the way we show you in the photos. Simple.

Read guitar tablature. Guitar tablature is a guitar-specific shorthand for reading music that actually shows you what strings to strike and what frets to hold down on the guitar for creating the sound thats called for. Tab (as its known to its friends and admirers) goes a long way toward enabling you to play music without reading music. Dont try this stuff on the piano!

Listen to the audio clips. You can listen to all the songs included in the book, which is important for a couple of reasons: You can figure out the rhythm of the song as well as how long to hold notes by listening instead of reading.

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Audio intro (0:24)

Watch the video clips. The videos show an actual guitarist actually playing chords, licks, and what-have-you. Watch and imitate (well be flattered).

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Video intro (0:11)

Look at the music staff as you improve. To those who would charge that this book doesnt give you diddley in terms of reading music, we respond: Not so, Fret Breath! The music for all the exercises and songs appears above the shortcut methods. So you get the best of both worlds: You can associate the music notation with the sound youre making after you already know how to make the sound. Pretty cool, huh?