There is so much cool, free stuff online these days that we can be learning more about our instrument every time we sit down at the computer. There's no need to wait until your next lesson to get inspired, when you could watch virtuosos shredding it up on YouTube, or downloading tab and theory discussions from an endless parade of music instruction sites, or testing yourself with online ear-training drills. Here are some of the cool things I've discovered, and if you have found some cool things, please share them with me!
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Man, this is such a cool podcast! Subscribe through Itunes and they'll take you note for note through all kinds of guitar tricks and styles. If you have an ipod, share some of the those gigabytes with this video podcast and woodshed while you're in line at the grocery store. I've been using this podcast to learn shredding (trying to, anyway!) as well as play some tasty blues licks, so i can keep ahead of my students!
This is such a great tool. No more whining that "I couldn't practice because i lost my metronome!" Now, look no further than your PC!
What i really like about this one is that you can choose subdivisions - you can hear 16th beats behind the quarters - this will really help you get a feel for what different note values feel like. And it's free!
So go get your instrument, find a good tempo, and work those scales!
About.com is a wonderful site. You can learn to do just about anything here. Here's just one video example of some finger picking styles I found on their site. Go hunt around there for more beginner tips, including how to buy a guitar and take care of it.
