When you learn guitar scales online or offline what you are really doing is learning to play the different individual notes on the guitar. When playing a scale you will play one note at a time, unlike playing chords where you will hold down the different strings and play several different notes together.
A scale is made up of 8 notes which together are called an octave plus the 9th note which is the same as the first but one octave higher. You may have heard these sung as doh-re-mi-fa-so-la-ti-doh. This is known as a major scale. You will also learn chromatic scales which are a little different.
When you are playing guitar to sing along to or to entertain others you will very rarely play a full scale but it is important to know where all of the notes are. So playing scales is an exercise that all guitarists must do sometimes. It will also get your fingers used to moving from one note to another on the fretboard.
The best way to practice guitar scales is to do a little each day. For example you could start your practice or learning session with a couple of scales to get your fingers warmed up. Then move on to chords and songs.
Learning to play guitar online is great because you have your teacher there with you all of the time. You can follow along with all of the exercises and you will hear when you have it right or wrong comparing to the online recording. Some sites have ‘jam sessions’ that you can download and play along with. A good online course in how to play guitar will include major and chromatic scales.
Guitar scales are useful for all guitarists but if you plan to learn classical acoustic guitar, they are even more important. You will find that at first, it takes some getting used to. Finding each note and moving from one to the next can be slow and awkward when you are new to it.
But with practice, this will become much easier. You will get to know automatically where the notes are and your fingers will become more supple and accustomed to the fret bar. So do not worry if you mess up often at first. A little practice of your scales every day and you will soon make progress. Just give yourself time to learn guitar scales online and be patient.
I agree with what you say about practicing major scales online. I will use this post for future lessons with clients. Thank you.
Comment by Major Guitar Scales — February 12, 2009 @ 2:01 am