Learn About Lead Guitar Lessons
Learning how to play lead guitar can be one of the most frustrating elements of playing the instrument for many guitar players. Often times, players will learn how to play chords and rhythm guitar in the beginning, only to find that lead guitar is a completely different animal. Many people spend hundreds of dollars on expensive guitar lessons learning how to play lead guitar, but the fact is that this is not necessary. It is possible to learn to play lead on your own; the secret is to let your ear do the work.
When learning to play chords, there are specific hand configurations that must be learned. While there is certainly a lot of room for creativity, it is still somewhat rigid in that you have to learn rudimentary skills in order to play your first chord. Rhythm guitar playing can be equally rigid, as you are expected to keep specific time in your playing throughout a song. Lead guitar, however, opens up doors that the former styles do not. No longer are you bound by rigid chord progressions or hand configurations. All you have to do is play something that sounds right.
This brings up an interesting notion - playing something that sounds "right." Many people will say "how do I know if it sounds right or not?" The answer is simple - you just will. There are certain notes that will sound extremely dissonant when played over a specific chord progression, and these are the notes that you will want to avoid, unless you are specifically going for an avant-garde sound. This is where your ear comes in. As an exercise, play a lead guitar solo over a bare chord progression without looking down at the neck. Each note you hit will resonate with your ear, and chances are you will hit one that doesn't quite sound "right." Look down, and you have found the note that is not a part of the scale you are soloing with.
Now, onto scales. Scales are very important, and perhaps the most important thing to master if you are looking to improve your lead guitar playing. At first it is rote method, but after a while it will become ingrained in your playing and you won't even realize that you are playing a scale. Perhaps the most important scale you can learn is the most basic - the 8 note, major (or minor) scale. Play, with a metronome, over each chord in a progression, and you should not hit any notes that don't sound "right." Master this scale and your lead playing should become second nature.
The rest is accomplished with your ears. Now that you know which notes are alright to play and which aren't, experiment by creating melodies with the scales you've learned. Think outside the box, skip strings, everything it takes to experiment and boost your creativity. Your ear will tell how if what you're doing sounds good. This is a crucial part of playing lead guitar.
Of course if all of this sounds hard or too complicated, using good guitar lessons can help boost your ability to be able to play lead guitar more quickly. There are many courses out there that can easily help you learn while having fun. So take your time and investigate these options further if you think it can benefit you.
