Music - learn to play an acoustic guitar-Beginners
Course aims
This course will teach you basic finger picking techniques on an acoustic guitar so that you can play melodies independently and when accompanying other players.
During the course you will look at key skills for employment within the field.
Include elements of research and development into your working projects.
Consider how to develop and transfer your subject knowledge for community/ citizenship use.
Will I gain a qualification?
No - this is a non-accredited course.
Course length
The course is for between 6 and 24 weeks. Please check the BAES web site www.learnbaes.ac.uk , BAES Learning Directory, visit or telephone one of our adult learning centres for details.
Who is this course for?
This course is for anyone who wants to learn finger picking techniques on a 6 string acoustic guitar.
Do I need any prior knowledge, skills or qualifications?
You will need some experience of playing a guitar for this course, but you don’t need to know how to carry out finger-picking, or how to read music. The course involves a small amount of reading and numerical sequences, so you will need to have basic literacy and numeracy skills. You will have a short initial assessment at the start of the course to ensure that it is suitable for you
What will I learn?
- Basic knowledge of major and minor scales.
- How chords are formed.
- To be able to finger 5 major chord shapes and 3 minor chord shapes.
- To be able to play a 3 chord progression fluently.
- To be able to play 3 finger picking patterns using thumb, fore finger, middle and ring fingers.
- To be able to tune and use a guitar safely and correctly.
What could this course lead to?
This course could lead to Acoustic Guitar at Intermediate Level.
How will I learn?
- Watching and listening to tutor demonstrations and instruction.
- Exploring the mechanics and construction of the guitar.
- Practise playing set tasks independently, in pairs and part of a whole group.
- By producing a small workbook you can refer to when practicing.
- By practicing at home.
Your responsibilities as a learner on this course
To ensure that you gain maximum benefit from your course you will need to attend all sessions, be punctual, and bring your guitar to each session.
Important Information
You will need to bring your own acoustic 6 string guitar (strung for right handed, or left handed players as appropriate). If you are unsure about where to purchase, your tutor will advise you at the enrolment session.
