Fender Presents: Getting Started on Electric Guitar -- A Guide for Beginners

Fender Presents: Getting Started on Electric Guitar -- A Guide for Beginners

Fender Presents: Getting Started on Electric Guitar -- A Guide for Beginners
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DVD details

Actor: Keith Wyatt
Brand: Fender
DVD: Region Code 0
Audio: English (Original Language)
Format: Color, DVD, NTSC
Picture Format: 1.33:1
Running Time: 225 minutes
DVD Release Date: 2002-03-01
Audience Rating: NR (Not Rated)
Model: 320293
Studio: Hal Leonard Corp
Product features:
  • Over 3 hours long50 interactive music lessonsCovers:TuningEssential chords and scalesMusic referencePractice tipsRhythm techniquesPlay-along tracks with a band3-D fretboard graphicsInstrument care tips from Fender's Custom ShopIncludes 5 languages: English, French, Spanish, Japanese, and German

DVD Reviews of Fender Presents: Getting Started on Electric Guitar -- A Guide for Beginners

DVD Review: Excellent learning material, if you take time to practice.
Summary: 5 Stars

If you are reading this, you're probably thinking about buying this DVD for someone (yourself or someone else) who is interested in learning basic guitar techniques. To sum up my otherwise lengthy essay here, if you are the person that I described in the first sentence, I highly recommend this DVD. Feel free to read the rest of this if you want my consumer opinion (or don't...whatever).

Caveat Emptor: If you are a beginning guitar player:

1. You will not conquer this DVD in a short period of time.
2. You will not master the guitar just by watching this DVD. You must spend time practicing the things the DVD teaches you.
3. You will not benefit from this DVD if you only watch the lessons one time. Be prepared to use it as a reference and watch the lessons several times. Also, use the practice tracks.
4. You will not breeze through this DVD. Some lessons are harder than others and take more time to learn. Put the DVD away for a while (if necessary) and practice your technique, learn a few songs, and have fun. Then come back later when you are hungry again.
5. You will get out what you put in.

I've been playing bass off and on for the better part of 20 years, but I never felt comfortable with guitar. The different fingerings for the chords looked like spaghetti to me, and it was intimidating. Then there is also the lack of patience when I was younger, and lack of appreciation for different styles of music. Simply put, being a guitar player was well beyond my wildest dreams. One day I decided "enough is enough". I bought a cheap Washburn and ordered a used DVD to learn from.

I got lucky! I read a lot of reviews for several different DVD's before selecting this one. I could not have picked a better DVD to start with. Before I get started, I would like to add that I have read the 1 star comments, and I simply do not agree with any of them. Despite my limited experience with "learn to play" DVD's, I cannot see how this DVD can be ineffective for anyone unless they simply do not use it.

This DVD is divided up into two basic sections: "First Step" and "Play Electric"

Keith Wyatt, the instructor, has a warm and friendly demeanor, and addresses the audience with courtesy and encouragement. While he does spend a little time showing you how he jams, he does not make it a habit to show-boat, and he teaches you step-by-step how to play everything he plays on the DVD. Mind you, some of the techniques he uses are advanced, and the beginning player must work up to a level to play these parts, but they are definitely attainable to the person who puts in the effort to learn.

The DVD itself is well produced, and covers pretty much everything a beginning guitar player would like to know including tuning, strap length, how to properly hold a pick, and even a few tips on selecting a guitar if you do not already own one.

The "First Step" section is where this DVD really shines, in my opinion. After a brief introduction, Keith teaches about tuning, and then it is on to the first chords. The DVD pretty much teaches you 2 or 3 chords at a time, and also suggests that you play along with the practice tracks to build your skills, finger strength, and callouses. Keith made learning chord fingerings easy for me to understand, as he pretty much uses a ladder-logic approach to teaching.

Personally, after I learned the first 5 major triads and first 3 minor chords, I put the DVD away for a few months and played around with the multitude of available songs I could learn using just those chords. For example, pretty much every hair-band has a ballad that uses some sort of G, D, C progression. Seriously, it's sickening. Gun's and Roses, Skid Row, Whitesnake, etc...etc...all have hit songs based on just those three chords, but I digress.

I came back to the DVD when I wanted to learn more about barre chords (moveable chords). The lessons about moveable chords were well explained and demonstrated, and accompanied with more practice tracks. Keith also teaches some basic scales that are used for different types of rhythm playing and soloing.

I played with the "First Step" for the better part of a year before moving on, but I had other grown-up obligations like a job and graduate school that kept me from playing as often as I wanted.

The "Play Electric" section is where you really start putting together many of the things that you have learned, and consequently, things get more complicated. I think this may be where people get frustrated. the lessons in this section cover rhythm and solo techniques, as well as some brief discussion about amps and effects.

The three main parts to the "Play Electric" section are specific lessons in Rock, Blues, and Country. Each style has two parts; rhythm and solo. Each part has a demonstration where Keith jams for you, then a lesson where he teaches you how to play the demonstration song. After the lessons, there are more practice tracks for each lesson.

The practice tracks in the "Play Electric" section are much more difficult than the ones in the "First Step" section, and I found that I could not keep up. I had to turn off the DVD and play with my metronome at about 65 BPM (that's really slow, for those who do not know) in order to get the fingerings correct, but as Keith asserts and reassures, "speed is a by-product of accuracy."

The DVD also has some other extra bits like how to care for a guitar, more about the Fender guitar company, other things of that ilk.

All in all, I think that anyone who really wants to learn guitar can benefit from this DVD so long as he or she is willing to put forth the effort and patience required.

Thanks for reading. I hope this is helpful to someone.
More Fender Presents: Getting Started on Electric Guitar -- A Guide for Beginners reviews:
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Description of Fender Presents: Getting Started on Electric Guitar -- A Guide for Beginners

Getting Started on Electric Guitar offers a complete course for the beginning electric guitarist. Step-by-step lessons incorporating clear, easy-to-follow 3-D graphics and unique play-along tracks teach the viewer the essential chords, scales and techniques used by electric guitar players in every popular style, including rock, blues and country. This DVD is separated into two major sections.

Part 1 ¯ The First Step covers: tuning methods · string names · essential chords and scales used by all players · musical reference section (notes, rhythms, chords and scales) · practice tips · fretting-hand technique · picking-hand technique · backing tracks for play-along · an animated fretboard · plus much more.

Part 2 ¯ Play Electric! covers: right-hand technique · left-hand technique · rhythm parts (muting, alternate picking, arpeggios) · soloing technique (string bending, vibrato) · rock, blues & country styles · rhythm and solo ideas for each style · backing tracks in each style for play-along · sounds (amplifiers and effects) · caring for your instrument · and tips from the Fender Custom Shop.

Special DVD features include: bonus footage, including a tour of the Fender factory! Also: looping capabilities · web site links specifically for beginning guitarists · a multi-language feature so you can view the DVD in English, Spanish, German, French or Japanese.

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