Guitar Basic Info
Types of Guitars:
The most common types of guitars are classical guitars, steel-string acoustic guitars, and electric guitars.
Classical Guitars
By the name alone one can assume classical guitars are used in ‘classical music’, though they are also heard in many other genres as well. These guitars have a wider neck than their acoustic guitar relative and use nylon strings instead of metal. Classical guitars are also referred to as Nylon String Guitar or Spanish Guitar. Though classical guitars are mainly heard in classical and spanish music some pop artists such as Jason Mraz have incorporated classical guitars in much of their music.
Steel String Guitars
These types of guitars are the most commonly played acoustic guitar, they can be heard densely in country music, and acoustic rock music. They are known for there metallic sound which is heard in a lot of popular music today.
Click Here to see a comprehensive list of other types of guitars
Electric Guitars
Want to rock? This is the guitar for you! Similar to the steel string acoustic guitars, electric guitar also use all metal strings, but because they not hollow they do not project sound far and sound best when plugged into a guitar amp.
Buying Guide
What Guitar to buy for a beginner?
If you are new to playing guitar I would recommend purchasing an acoustic guitar and specifically a classical guitar instead of the steel string guitar because the strings are much easier on the fingers due to the fact that the strings are made of nylon instead of metal.
Yamah FG800 - Steel String Guitar (199.99)
This is a good price for a steel string acoustic guitar with solid spruce top, which will only sound better with age. If you are wanting/needing a guitar with a pickup, for $100 dollars more you can buy the Yamaha FGX800C.
Epiphone Les Paul Player Pack - Electric Guitar ($209)
This is a good electric guitar starter pack. It comes with a guitar amp, guitar cord, strap, and tuner. Everything you need to start rockin’!
Online Resources
Guitar Tuners
First thing you need to learn before learning to play guitar is how to tune your guitar to the correct notes. Here are a few Guitar tuners I have used.
Guitar Tuna (Free)
Free Tuner App for both the Android, Apple and Window markets
Free Online Tuner (Free)
This site teaches you how to tune your guitar by ear and match musical pitch
Korg GA1 Guitar & Bass Tuner ($6.99)
If you are wanting a physical tuner than I would recommend checking out the Korg GA1
Learning to Play
Ultimate Guitar (Online FREE / App Purchase)
With a 800k+ catalogue of chord charts and tabs this site is the best resource for learning new songs plus it’s free to use. The app is a great resource as well though it is not free like the online version.
Hal Leonard Guitar Method Book 1 ($6.99)
I use this book in conjunction with other resources for many of my beginning students. It’s inexpensive and easy to understand. For $4 more you can purchase this book with a CD and get access to the online resources through the Hall Leonard website.