If you are thinking about learning blues guitar, you must be thinking about being as good as BB King or Eric Clapton. For sure, you must have been inspired by some great blues performances or you might be thinking of great music to accompany you during some sad moments, although you do not have to be sad though to learn blues guitar.
If you really are interested in learning blues guitar, you need to have a few things to consider and learn first. Starting from the very basic, you will first need an electric guitar or an acoustic guitar. Make sure you are not having the one with nylon strings. Leave those to classical music.
A basic knowledge on some simple chords is important if you are interested in learning blues guitar. Of course, if you have the interest to play blues, you must have learned the basic guitar chords, but if you still don’t, you may start back with the basics and learn simple chords like D, A, E and so on. You also have to know how to read tablatures. This will help you in learning the different techniques in blues music, and being able to read tabs helps you in learning songs easily and efficiently.
You might need to have a CD of your favorite blues musician. You can also find their performances online and learn to listen to them play. The first thing you might want to listen to is the rhythm of the blues music. Familiarize the tempo and the rhythm. Most blues song has a timing of 4/4 so it can be easy to learn. You might also want to have a metronome to help you with the practice and the timing.
Aside from mastering the rhythm, you have to master the blues scales too. This is important in learning blues guitar especially if you want to play solo, as it gives the blues guitar an authentic sound. Other techniques you may want to learn especially if playing solo are techniques like string bending, vibrato and the slides.
It is also important to learn the blues licks to start playing solos. Blues licks are sets of notes that seem to express a single expression. In playing blues guitar, you can use the blues licks as your base and you can add them with other notes to have your own style or combine them. You can also get ideas from other musicians and from there, you can make your own style.
Another basic thing you can also learn easily is the 12 bar blues, which means that a song is divided into 12 measures with a chord pattern, and that you just need to repeat it over and over until the end of the song. You can actually find a lot videos where you can learn this technique easily.
You can find a lot of ways in learning the blues guitar. You can actually choose to have a private tutor in learning blues guitar, although this can be a little expensive. You can also learn through CDs and DVDs where you can learn to play at home, and you can have the convenience of repeating the lessons as you like.
Carolyn Anderson is a music lover and a lover of the blues guitar. To find out the secrets to easy blues guitar playing, check out Blues Guitar Secrets. Also check out Guitar Mojo, a website with everything you need to know in playing the blues guitar.