Music Theory 1 for Guitarists! You can jump around through these lessons but I advise to follow them in order so you don’t have gaps in your learning. Have your Guitar in your hands and go through what your reading as you read it. So go pick it up and lets get started. I want to keep these lessons short and easy to grasp. If you have questions leave me a comment and I will help.
This is where it starts. Thick E string… From the open Fret to the 12th Fret. This is one octave. From the open string to the 12th fret you have 12 notes. They are… E, F, F#, G, G#, A, A#, B, C, C#, D, D#, and E again. REMEBER THIS!!! E and B have NO Sharps, NO #’s. This is important. Its not hard just remember it. E and B have no sharps. Play each of these notes and call out the names as you go. Starting Open, play each note sliding up one each time. E, F, F#, G, G#, A, A#, B, C, C#, D, D#, and E again. You have just played One octave. This is a scale, its called the chromatic scale and in my mind it is the most important scale to know. All other scales are created from this scale. All chords are created from this scale. In fact EVERYTHING in music is taken from this scale. In my mind it is the most important scale to know. As you will find out in the coming lessons this scale is very important to know. Seems easy just sliding up and down the neck but then Music Theory is VERY easy. A lot of intellectuals and music teachers make it seem hard and take you the long way around but music theory is VERY easy.
So does this make sence? 12 notes = 1 Octave. E, F, F#, G, G#, A, A#, B, C, C#, D, D#, and E again. Its called the chomatic scale. E and B have no sharps.
Now for the practice. This is an important scale and will be used more than you could ever imagine. Play it, up and down. Dont worry about how you play it just slide your finger up and down and learn the names of the notes. I cant stress how important it is to know the names of these and where they are. We will use it to name Chords, Scales, Start positions, Ending positions, so many different things.
Some points to help learn these notes… Open is E… The first dot on top of your neck is the 3rd (on most Guitars) This is G… The 5th is A… If you slide up 1 fret from the A your playing A#. If this seems really simple its cause it is. Music Theory is not hard at all. Its all very simple. Just take your time and make sure you practise.
If you think this is too easy for you thats great. Stick with this and you will learn more than you could imagine. With in a very short time you will be playing different inversions, modes, embelished chords, understanding Harmony and Theory and composing complex music. All lessons are this short and this easy. All Music Theory is easy. And this is all aimed for Guitarists. Remember at any stage if you have a question, chances are someone else is thinking it so ask here in the comments section and I will answer.