As an aspiring guitarist, the road to accomplishment may seem tough to travel as you begin your journey. Knowing where to start can be a large part of the battle when you are new to guitar. Many new students dream of a moment in the spotlight when they will be able to showcase their talent and skill while playing onstage. Some students dream of their first great guitar solo and the accolades it will bring. Soon they realize that dreams of becoming an accomplished guitarist are great but the problem becomes, how does one get there.



It goes without saying that a certain amount of natural skill and talent, which comes from God, is part of the equation. Having conceded this point, it is also very obvious that no matter how talented you are, a certain amount of work and preparation is also a factor. Proper planning, study, practice and execution will make all the difference in success or failure for the aspiring guitar player.

It is important for the new student to study and gain knowledge regarding music theory and how it applies to the guitar. Many resources and publications exist that will provide useful tools for guitarists. Music courses and online resources are a great place to begin.

Two very important tools for the beginner guitarist are guitar tabs and chords charts. Using these tools in tandem can help a new guitar player gain insight into musical structure and theory. More importantly, using both tabs and chords together will help the musician understand the association between music theory concepts and the guitar. Developing skills which revolve around guitar tabs and chords will familiarize the student with the fretboard and teach additional fretboard concepts. Combining guitar tabs and chord studies will help the musician understand key structures, scale structures and also relative key and scale mode variations. Mastering the use of chords and tabs and understanding their relation to the guitar fretboard will prepare the student for solo work as well as playing with other musicians.

Using guitar tabs to map various scale modes on the fretboard will be very beneficial in regard to understanding your lead and melody work on the guitar. Using guitar chords ( i.e. movable chord types, open chords and chord variations ) will be very beneficial for learning the keys of music and their relative keys. Combining the two will give a guitarist the versatility they need to to be a very important part of any musical group or solo effort.

The process of using guitar tabs and guitar chord studies to further your knowledge as a guitarist will take commitment and dedication. Becoming an accomplished guitarist is not something one can do overnight. Taking the time to learn basic music theory will help you lay a foundation which will guide you as a guitar player for the remainder of your life. When the proper foundation is laid in the beginning, the process of becoming an accomplished guitarist will be naturally accelerated.