I've just got my acoustic guitar, how best to spend my time prior to my lessons starting?

Question

I'm a complete beginner and I already have lessons planned that start next Thursday.

Is there anything I can do in the meantime or should I just chill til I meet my instructor?

I looked on YouTube already and couldn't find anything pertinent.

Any feedback would be appreciated.

Answer 1

Two little things you can do that have very little to do with actually playing the guitar:

1) Learn how to string a guitar. If you have a friend who knows how, that works, but if not, go to the store where you bought it. They'll show you how.

2) Learn how to tune a guitar. You can get an electronic tuner, which is pretty fool-proof, or, if you have a keyboard or something, you can tune to that.

Standard tuning for a guitar, from lowest to highest, is
E-A-D-G-B-E. If that means absolutely nothing to you, you might want to wait 'till Thursday for your teacher to help you.

Good luck with your guitar!

Answer 2

1. Put your first finger just before the first metal bar (fret) on the first string. Push down until you get a clear tone. Put your second finger down just before the second fret and do the same. Put your third finger just behind the third fret and do the same. Put our fourth finger just before the fourth fret and do the same. Go back and forth for about three to five minutes or until your fingers begin to hurt. It won't really matter how in tune your guitar is, as long as the string is tight enough to hear. This exercise is just to get used to our finger pushing down on the strings.

(You can do this with the second, third fourth etc, strings as well

It is going to take a few weeks to build up callouses so you might as well stat today. Don't expect it to sound great the first few days, but this is an excellent way to get to know your guitar.

Answer 3

Look up the major chord forms on the web and begin practicing the chord fingerings and changing from one to the other. To me this was the most difficult part when I was sarting out.

Good luck and stick with it!!

Answer 4

Shine it and then, if you have at least one chord diagram to use, practice forming the chord. Otherwise, begin with pressing your left fingertips against any of the strings to begin the callus-building process. That will be your major stumbling block to playing if you allow it.

Answer 5

Make sure your guitar is tuned, make yourself familiar with musical/guitar terms, try to learn some basic chords, and familiarize yourself with your guitar!
good luck^.^