Cours de guitare pour débutants | Le cours d’acoustique essentiel

Dan talks you through the best way to go through this course, and how to get involved in our guitar community. Please watch before starting the course!

I know it seems really really basic, but how to hold the guitar can really help with the speed of your learning. So, if you're just starting out, check out the video. 

Just in case some of you guys are using an electric on this course (which is absolutely fine), here we talk about how to hold an electric guitar.

During the majority of this course we will be using a pick (later down the line we'll learn finger-style as well), so it's important to know how to hold a pick. Dan walks you through it nice and clearly here. 

Finally, before we're ready to start playing, let's look at the string names. During the course I will be referring to the string names constantly, using them as an instruction for where to put your fingers. So this  video will help massively. 

If you haven't bought a guitar yet, or any real gear, you may find these links useful before getting started with the rest of the course. 

Our first step is to tackle the Asus2 and Cmaj7 chords, which are nice easy chord shapes to get started with. We'll go through the main techniques you need to master these chords.

Learning the chords is one thing, but to change between them quickly is a whole different ball game! In this lesson we look at a cool method to get you changing quickly. 

If you learn to strum properly now then you will avoid bad habits in the future. It's very simple really, and with one important rule you'll understand how strumming works. 

Let's now tackle these two major chords, which are a step up in difficulty from the Asus2 and Cmaj7.By the end of the lesson, however, you'll be able to play them!

Knowing how to practice is 50% of the battle! We will take you through the exact practice routine you need as well as tips and tricks on getting the most from your practice.

Let's sit back and take stock of what we have learnt so far. I also provide a useful link to view even more bonus content totally free!

We take a big step up here by tackling these three major chords. These are notoriously tricky, but we will break them down slowly and apply them further over this whole section!

Time to step up our strumming skills with this new, full bar pattern. This pattern is the definitive strumming pattern that can be used over most songs, so it's well worth mastering!

Here is the full song that we will be learning. This song has be written and recorded by professional musicians in a pro studio, so enjoy. Your only task here is just to listen!

We start by breaking down the verse section of the song. We look at the chords and strumming and start to play it with a beat. 

We now move onto the chorus section and put the whole song together. I shown you exactly what you need to practice before you move onto the next section. 

Let's sit back and take stock of what we have learnt so far. I also provide a useful link to view even more bonus content totally free!

In this lesson we will take a look at our first minor chord shapes, as well as an open chord version of F major. These will be our final chords for a few sections, so take your time mastering them. 

You can generally divide songs into 'swung or straight' rhythms, with Folk, Blues, Funk & Jazz typically swung, whilst [op, Rock, Metal & Indie are typically straight. We therefore learn how to swing in this lesson!

For our next full song we look at a cool folk / pop song that features a swung rhythm and a variety of chords. Your first task is to simply listen to the song! 

We begin by tackling the verse and intro of the song. This involves learning the rhythm and chord progressions, including the cool new Cadd9 chord!

We complete the song by learning the chorus and put the whole thing together. Once again, our aim is to be able to pay through the whole song in one go, so don't rush this section!

Let's sit back and take stock of what we have learnt so far. I also provide a useful link to view even more bonus content totally free!

We're going to put your rhythm pattern skills to the test now by throwing much harder rhythms your way. By the end of this lesson you will be a real master of rhythm!

For our third song on the course we look at a much more upbeat, pop / funk tune. There are a lot of chords, a riff and a variety of rhythm patterns to have fun with. For now, all you need to do is listen!

We start by looking at the riff, which repeats at various places throughout the song. It's deliberately a bit 'fiddly' to help your finger independence and advance your chord skills. 

Next up we take a look at the verse of the song, which includes a few new chord shapes alongside previous chords we have learnt. It also includes a cool new rhythm for us to learn!

Finally, we take a look at the chorus chords, rhythm and put the whole song together. The aim is to play through the whole song, so learn each section individually before piecing them together. 

Let's sit back and take stock of what we have learnt so far. I also provide a useful link to view even more bonus content totally free!

Our first job is to explain the suspended chords, often referred to as 'sus' chords. This is a very basic theory lesson that will really help!

Let's get started with probably the most commonly used Suspended chords, the Dsus2 and Dsus4. I'll walk you through the chords shapes in detail.

Now we have the D suspended chords, in order to be ready to play our full song, we also need the C and G suspended chords. Here we go!

Let's put our new chords to practice with this super cool Suspended chord song. Your first task, just listen and try to commit some of the song melody and rhythm to memory. 

The verse is the first thing we need to tackle, which includes a range of the Suspended chords we have been working, plus a brand new rhythm pattern!

To complete the song we need to look through the chorus and learn the final rhythm pattern that we need. Then I will take you through the whole song with a drum beat. 

Let's sit back and take stock of what we have learnt so far. I also provide a useful link to view even more bonus content totally free!

Add more spice to your basic E major & A major chords by using the Suspended versions of these chords. We go through all 4 chord shapes in this lesson!

Time to learn our final set of Suspended chords, and this time they're all based around the F major open chord shape. 

We have a real challenge for you here, so don't rush this! This cool song includes a massive variety of chords from this course, and will test your rhythm too! Your first task, just listen and enjoy the song. 

Ok, so now you have heard the song, let's learn the Intro and Verse. We use a variety of chord shapes, including the Asus4 and Gsus2... Many more as well!

Let's complete the song by looking at the Chorus part, which throws in a tonne of new chords, but slightly simplifies the rhythm pattern to compensate. We then piece it all together. 

Let's sit back and take stock of what we have learnt so far. I also provide a useful link to view even more bonus content totally free!

To learn how to play this cool picking technique, we need to break it down into a 4-step pattern. This will help you to understand how Travis Picking really works!

Now we have the basic 4-step pattern learnt, let's start to make it a little musical by adding chords. The trick is to change the bass note when changing chord, which we practice here. 

Our first finger-style song, and it's a really good one! We have added a few more chords to the pattern, and your first job is just to listen and try and recognise the chords and picking pattern. 

Now let's get stuck into this song. The chorus consists of three chords, including a 'slash' chord... Which is a very common type of chord in acoustic music. 

As the song starts with the chorus, it is the Verse that we need to learn second. We have a few more chords now, including a tricky change to D major (As the thumb needs to move to the D string root!). 

Let's sit back and take stock of what we have learnt so far. I also provide a useful link to view even more bonus content totally free!

Let's advance your picking pattern by making it a full 4 beats long (1 bar). This means a slightly different approach, but it's a very musical variation!

7th chords is not something we'll be talking about much in this course, but we need a few of them to tackle the next song. It's a 'peek through the glass' at what's to come in later courses!

Time to tackle the last song on the course! Everything you have learnt is culminated here with a song that plays through a wide rage of chords plus you have your travis picking patterns. Just listen to start with!

We begin with the verse, which includes our travis picking pattern as well as 4 very important chord shapes. Lot's to get through, so let's get cracking!

To complete our final song we are taking on the chorus and then piecing it all together. We more new chords here to put into practice, so take your time!

Let's go over everything you should know up to this point in the course. Wowzers, that's a lot of stuff!

To get al the way through this course is a serious achievement, so it's time to sit back and give yourself a pat on the back! Nicely done.