I’ve always found online forums intimidating, regardless of their discussion topics or members. Reddit forums and Quora, to name a few, often require an elaborate understanding of a topic or a comical yet unique view on a topic to make your opinion noticeable to the masses. But the guitar community in these forums has always been welcoming to me, almost as if our mutual love of this beautiful instrument transcends geographical and linguistic barriers.
My first post online was in response to someone seeking help on how to get started on their guitar journey. In brief, they felt overwhelmed by the immensely large database of resources, lessons, and songs online and didn’t know where to start. And I feel that so many other guitarists face this roadblock. But my response was simple: use these overwhelming resources to your advantage.
Guitarists from around the world have begun to collaborate on unheard-of scales; thanks to the internet, like-minded enthusiasts for this art can share songs, sheet music, tips, tricks, and more online. Community-driven sites like Ultimate Guitar as well as innovative, new learning systems like the ChordBuddy are rapidly transforming the way aspiring guitarists access resources.
For guitarists that are just starting out on their journey, these sites can be a lifesaver. Not only can you find new songs, chords, scales, and finger-picking patterns to add to your repertoire, but you are instantly connected to the online community where you can ask any question without judgment and receive a sure-fire response. This has by far been the most useful tool in my personal guitar journey, and I’m sure that it will prove to be the most useful tool for years to come.
But there are roadblocks that aspiring musicians face, especially during this global pandemic. In-person classes and teachers are scarce, forcing an increased dependence on self-motivation and inner-drive to learn this new skill. Furthermore, due to the coronavirus situation globally, normal routines and schedules have been disrupted, making it hard to dedicate a portion of our day to practicing and experimenting with a guitar. Specifically, for kids under the age of 18, on the other hand, this pandemic has freed up a lot of time which most have been using for video games and other recreational activities. And even the committed few who are enrolled in online classes along with online schooling are focusing more on their academics instead of the arts, as the online learning environment hardly is conducive to teaching musical skills.
But the online guitar community is one of the most helpful teachers that students of the arts could wish for. Basic fundamentals like finger-picking techniques, common chord progressions, or even just how to hold a guitar correctly can all be found online. With this foundational knowledge, beginner guitarists can search the internet for specific skills that they wish to develop, such as the meaning of various ornaments or how to slide up the fretboard. This independence is extremely important in our day and age, and it empowers us to advocate for our own learning.
Take barre chords, for example. Barring consists of using your index finger to hold down an entire fret without buzzing and having the mobility to then use other fingers to play additional notes. For introductory guitarists, barring is far too often a strenuous and painful task, especially when the songs being played are have barre chord after barre chord. Without the correct technique, some tips and tricks, or songs to practice with, trying to play your favorite songs can prove to be difficult. But there is no shortage of any of these things in the online guitar community; simply open YouTube and search “how to play barre chords”. The very first video has over 1.9 million views! Think about this, 1.9 million other people from around the world were in the same predicament and we all ended up at that one website.
The same goes for many other crucial guitaring skills. The online platform that we have been provided to share musical insights, songs, and fundamentals on is already influential and far-reaching, and as guitarists joining this community add more of their own voice, it will continue to expand. Here are a couple of exceptional sites to keep your eye on.
Chord Checker — chordchecker.com
With many chords available to users, this guitar learning application is a quick and convenient way to check the accuracy of your guitar chords on the fly. Simply select a chord and record a sample, and an analysis of your recording will be outputted back to you which tells you which notes in a given chord that you need to focus on playing more prominently. Apart from their unique chord-checking software, they also have curated content from YouTube channels on how to play what they deem as the eight most significant chords in guitar, links to various other applications that could help beginning guitarists, and some songs to get started with. Founded in 2020, Guitar Chord Checker aims to help millions of guitarists refine their skills without any hassle. Its mission is to be an easily accessible tool for the everyday guitarist with just one click of a button.
Ultimate Guitar — ultimate-guitar.com
With tabs for over 1,100,000 songs, Ultimate Guitar is one of the fastest-growing guitarist community in the world that creates, learns, and shares tabs with one another. Guitarists simply need to create an account in order to favorite songs they love, put tabs of their own on UG, or post below tabs in the comment section. If you haven’t checked out this website before, I highly recommend giving it a look due to their abundance of materials to help you elevate your guitaring to the next level!
Guitar Tabs — guitartabs.cc
Although it is less popular than Ultimate Guitar, Guitar Tabs is also an exceptional site with some of the best tabs for pop songs. Simply open the website, search for your favorite song by name or artist, and begin playing! Furthermore, you don’t even need to set up an account to submit your own tab and add to the community; just click on the “Submit Tab” button and the rest is outlined by the site. Sometimes, the best sites online are the free, hidden gems, made only with the comfort of their users in mind.
With that, we can safely conclude that the massive guitar community's greatest draw is its own members. Our ability to share, add, and cultivate the plethora of information online has helped shape the future generation of guitarists searching the internet for answers. Although this coronavirus pandemic has significantly altered how we play guitar in the real world, virtually, our community has never been stronger and larger.
