The guitar is one of the most popular musical instruments in the world. Whether you’re a child or adult and regardless of whether you have previous experience with a musical instrument or not, you can learn to play the acoustic guitar in no time at all. Taking an acoustic guitar lesson is the best way to go about it, to learn the basics and get off on the right foot. There are different tips and strategies you will learn with these lessons, including on using a pick and in which cases this is most suitable.
This is a decision that most people are not sure about and find difficult to make. You see some guitarists using picks and others not, so which way is better? There are different styles of guitar playing and the sound of a guitar will change depending on the pick used. Flamenco guitarists for instance will rarely use picks because it does not produce a sound suitable for their style of music.
For people who want to play faster songs, using a pick is almost always necessary. Even if you’ve had experience playing the guitar and have toughened up your fingers as a result, trying to play fast leads and scales could be so hard it may even cause your fingers to bleed. You’re a lot more limited when you’re not using a pick because there are only so many melodies that you can play. In the basic acoustic guitar lesson a pick will be used.
When you’re just strumming slow acoustic songs it doesn’t hurt to use your fingertips but for faster songs it could actually make your fingers bleed. Choose the right songs when you’re not using a pick and you should be fine. Now it’s just a matter of choosing the right size and style of pick. Common materials for picks include plastic, nylon and tortex.
The size is also important and the smaller a pick you choose the lighter sound you can play with your guitar. If you’re just getting started with playing the guitar it’s best to stick to a larger pick as it will be easier for you to handle. If you want to get more of a mandolin sound then stick to smaller sized picks like Carlos Santana. This is just one acoustic guitar lesson and there are many others you need to learn before mastering the guitar including how to hold the guitar, how to tune the guitar and how to strum.
