How to choose your first guitar

It may be a good idea to choose your first guitar based on its appearance and ease of play.

In my case, I started with folk guitar.

Next was the electric guitar.

Folk guitar? At that time, that was what the acoustic guitar was called.

So I practiced things like three fingers, arpeggios, and Carter family picking.

When acoustic guitars were called folk guitars

There was a time when acoustic guitars were called folk guitars.

Probably from the late 1960s to the late 1970s.

Many teenagers at that time would play guitar by pressing down chords such as Am or C.

It seems to have the nuance of playing the guitar = chord strumming.

Some of them used chord strumming as if they were hitting the strings with all their strength.

This is not a recommended playing method as it can damage the guitar body.

It’s probably influenced by Shigeru Izumiya.

By the way, Shigeru Izumiya mainly plays chords with his wrists, so when I saw him live, I wondered if he could really break the strings with that.

I wonder if he has considerable wrist strength?

While I was thinking about this, he cut the strings.

It seems like his wrists are strong as expected.

Tips for not cutting guitar strings

The trick to not cutting your guitar strings is to use a soft pick.

It is desirable to use a pick that is moderately soft, as the pick will break if it is too soft.

I use nylon picks.

It also wears out smoothly, so it lasts a long time.

I once used a tortoiseshell pick, but it scraped off a lot after one stage.

A metal pick is relatively easy to cut guitar strings.

I used it for a while, but my guitar string broke on stage, so I stopped using it after that.

Electric guitar for beginners

Now, this is an electric guitar for beginners.

In the case of an electric guitar, in addition to the guitar itself, the following items are required.

It’s better if your guitar amp has a headphone jack.

This is because there are only a limited number of homes that can play loud music.

It would be a good idea to purchase an amp simulator.

It’s convenient to have as it can also be used for home recording.

Therefore, it is better to assume that it will cost 20,000 to 30,000 yen more than the price of the guitar itself.

If the strap is too cheap, you will get tired easily.

If the cable is too cheap, it will easily generate noise, which is certainly a problem when practicing live or in the studio.

Therefore, I think it would be a good idea to expect the total cost to be around 20,000 yen.

that? What about the tuner?

If it’s a multi-type effector, it’s standard equipment.

So I want you to feel safe.

Tips on how to choose your first guitar

Now, when it comes to choosing a guitar, look and playability are important.

Beginners may not understand how easy it is to play.

Most of the staff at music stores are good at playing guitar.

The truth is, even if I try it out, I don’t know because I get nervous.

I think it’s fine if you focus on appearance.

You can decide, like Yui Hirasawa (K-ON!), “This guitar is cute.”

Even if that guitar is a Gibson Les Paul.

Summary

Playing the guitar is never easy, but once you learn how to play it, it’s fun.

It seems like you can improve quickly if you use YouTube.

I want everyone to enjoy playing the guitar while overcoming finger pain.