Learning how to play guitar really starts with the strings. Beginner guitarists need to know the difference between a high E and a low E string, and how to fit these into your musical foundation.
Our owner and lead instructor John walks us through the video below with a basic understanding of how open strings figure into learning guitar.
In a nutshell, here are the basic strings on a 6-string guitar
- 1st string – High E string (thin)
- 2nd string – B string
- 3rd string – G string
- 4th string – D string
- 5th string – A string
- 6th string – Low E string (thick)
Here’s how it looks from a guitarist’s point of view.
Some guitarists use the pattern E-A-D-G-B-E to make up a memorable acronym, or a funny rhyme. In the clip, John creates this phrase using the thick-to-thin E-A-D-G-B-E string letters – “Eddie Ate Dynamite; Good Bye Eddie.”
Once beginner guitarists fully understand the string sequence in its basic form, it will help down the line. As skills get developed, guitarists can try to change the tunings into different sequences, such as “Open D” tuning or “Open A” tuning. But that’s a subject for another blog post.
If you’re excited about learning the guitar, but need some help ramping up, try Scottsdale Music Academy – the HOTTEST music school in Scottsdale, AZ. Every instructor at SMA helps teach music basics on guitar, bass, piano, drums and vocals for a solid foundation. Contact us to learn the the kind of music you want to play!