Why G Guitar? Guitar Lesson
Why G Guitar?
Jessica Baron discusses "Gentle G Guitar" and explains why it is such a great learning method for beginners.
Taught by Jessica Baron in Basic Guitar with Jessica Baron seriesLength: 9:12Difficulty: 0.0 of 5
Supplemental Learning Material
Basic Guitar with Jessica Baron
Found in our Beginner Lesson SetsJessica Baron, founder of Guitars in the Classroom, brings her very own unique series to JamPlay. In this highly interactive, easy to follow set, Jessica invites students of all ages to journey through fun, song-based instruction taught in ways she feels we best learn.
Lesson 1
Introduction to Gentle Guitar in G
Jessica kindly introduces herself, her background, and her approach to this series.
Length: 6:48 Difficulty: 0.0 FREELesson 2
Breathing & Visualizing
Jessica takes a moment to share a breathing technique. Then, she asks you to envision who you want to be as a musician.
Length: 5:30 Difficulty: 0.0 Members Only
Finding Rhythm
In this lesson, Jessica starts talking about the first building block of making music: rhythm. Using yourself as a drum, you will feel the beat and find the rhythm within yourself.
Length: 9:46 Difficulty: 1.0 Members Only
Rhythm & Your Guitar
In the first part of this lesson, Jessica takes some time to explain all the parts of your guitar in detail. She then flips it upside-down and makes a bongo out of it! Grab your guitar and enjoy drumming...
Length: 14:36 Difficulty: 1.0 Members Only
The Right Guitar
Jessica takes some time to talk about finding the right guitar for you. She explores different sizes and talks about the correct and most comfortable sitting position.
Length: 10:03 Difficulty: 0.0 Members Only
Why G Guitar?
Jessica Baron discusses "Gentle G Guitar" and explains why it is such a great learning method for beginners.
Length: 9:12 Difficulty: 0.0 Members Only
Tuning to Open G
In this lesson, Jessica Baron explains how to tune your guitar to open G with or without an electronic tuner.
Length: 12:31 Difficulty: 1.0 Members Only
Guitar Stringing Part 1: Steel String
In this lesson, Jessica Baron shows how to string a steel string guitar.
Length: 11:34 Difficulty: 1.0 Members Only
Guitar Stringing Part 2: Classical
In part 2 of Jessica Baron's restringing lessons, you will learn how to string your classical guitar, which is a little different from a steel string.
Length: 9:36 Difficulty: 1.0 Members Only
Ear Training & Singing in Tune
Jessica Baron delights in sharing a fun lesson that is all about ear training and singing in tune.
Length: 21:24 Difficulty: 1.5 Members Only
Vocal Warm-up Part 1
Jessica Baron shares some fun and effective vocal exercises to get you warmed up before singing. This is very important for those of you who would like to sing while playing.
Length: 14:15 Difficulty: 0.0 Members Only
Vocal Warm-up Part 2
Jessica Baron shares part 2 of her vocal warm-up lessons with some fun new exercises to prepare you for singing.
Length: 16:07 Difficulty: 1.0 Members Only
Strumming
In lesson 13, Jessica Baron introduces you to strumming technique.
Length: 15:03 Difficulty: 1.0 Members Only
Your First Chord
Jessica Baron introduces your first easy chord, Gsus4.
Length: 2:47 Difficulty: 1.0 Members Only
All About Chords
Jessica Baron talks about patterns and chord charts. She also provides more exercises for the C note you learned in the previous lesson.
Length: 19:57 Difficulty: 1.5 Members Only
Simple D
Jessica Baron introduces a new chord she calls the "Simple D" and provides a song exercise for practice.
Length: 9:07 Difficulty: 1.5 Members Only
The Old Chisholm Trail
Jessica Baron teaches techniques in the context of "The Old Chisholm Trail." Learn about the pluck-down strum, practice changing from "Open G "to "Simple D," and learn about capos.
Length: 29:51 Difficulty: 0.0 Members Only
Simple C
Jessica introduces the "Simple C" chord and incorporates it into two fun songs, "Camptown Races" and "The Green Grass Grows All Around."
Length: 21:33 Difficulty: 1.5 Members Only
Fun Strums
Jessica takes some time to show you a variety of different strums to use in your playing. She teaches the song "I'll Fly Away" to demonstrate the different feel of each strum.
Length: 19:37 Difficulty: 1.5 Members Only
Two Finger C Major
Jessica Baron teaches the C major chord using only 2 fingers and provides some fun song exercises for practice.
Length: 9:21 Difficulty: 0.0 Members Only
Your First Minor Chord
Jessica Baron introduces your first minor chord! Learn the beautiful E minor chord and play along to "This Little Light of Mine."
Length: 17:28 Difficulty: 2.0 Members Only
The Earth Is Our Mother
In this lesson, Jessica Baron provides some good, fun practice using a traditional Native American chant called "The Earth Is Our Mother."
Length: 6:53 Difficulty: 2.0 Members Only
3/4 Time
Jessica Baron explains time signatures with a focus on 3/4 time. She uses fun and interactive song exercises for practice.
Length: 11:11 Difficulty: 2.0 Members Only
I'm On My Way
Jessica Baron teaches one final song in open G tuning called "I'm on My Way" before moving on to standard tuning.
Length: 8:52 Difficulty: 2.0 Members Only
Standard Tuning
Jessica Baron introduces standard tuning in this lesson! Be ready to tune your guitar and learn "You've Got to Move" for practice.
Length: 19:45 Difficulty: 2.5 Members Only
A Minor
Jessica Baron introduces the A minor chord in standard tuning and invites you to play along to the fun song "Drunken Sailor."
Length: 9:29 Difficulty: 2.0 Members Only
A Major
Jessica Baron introduces the A major chord in standard tuning. Practice it with the catchy song "A Tisket, A Tasket."
Length: 11:35 Difficulty: 2.0 Members Only
D Major
Jessica Baron teaches the D major chord and "Down By The Riverside" for practice.
Length: 14:32 Difficulty: 2.5 Members Only
Over the River and Through the Woods
Jessica Baron is excited to provide more practice changing from D to A7 with the fun song, "Over the River and Through the Woods."
Length: 8:29 Difficulty: 0.0 Members Only
The Crawdad Song
Jessica Baron teaches a new chord, B7, with "The Crawdad Song" for practice.
Length: 7:31 Difficulty: 2.5 Members Only
G Major
Jessica Baron helps you play the full G major chord by using the song, "I've Been Working on the Railroad."
Length: 12:02 Difficulty: 2.5 Members Only
Full C Major
Jessica Baron is excited to finally teach the full C major chord with the bluesy song "Sometimes I Feel Like a Motherless Child" for practice.
Length: 16:52 Difficulty: 2.5 Members Only
Composing Part 1
Jessica Baron takes all the knowledge you've learned throughout her series and helps you express yourself through your own compositions.
Length: 8:05 Difficulty: 3.0 Members Only
Composing Part 2
Jessica Baron continues her discussion on composition with a songwriting exercise. In addition, she also takes a closer look at finger picking with one last picking pattern.
Length: 11:46 Difficulty: 3.0 Members Only
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Member Comments about this Lesson
Discussions with our instructors are just one of the many benefits of becoming a member of JamPlay.I don't know if making standard tuning seem like to much work is the answer.
Jessica, I have a question. Is it possible to still be able to play chords such as those used in the CAGED system in Open G tuning?
I am thinking about tuning to open G because my hand is hurting from the standard G and C chords, which I am just learning. However, I don't sing so my goal is to play fingerstyle with a melody. Where will I go to learn that in the open G? I don't see anything on jamplay. Will it be too confusing to work with simple chords in standard tuning as well? I have 2 guitars.
what an interesting approach to learning guitar......quite a teacher jessica is......a great find for jamplay
Thank you for your kind words. I studied child development and child psychology and really thought a lot about why people try to learn guitar and quit, and just applied child development and learning theory to the guitar rather than accepting the traditional tough-it-out approach. Seeing so many musical people say they tried and quit just broke my heart so I found another way around. I am so glad you are interested in trying it!
Hi Jess, Open G is certainly a different way to start, but when do you introduce music reading and how does that relate to learning the notes on the fret-board.
Hi, Boulez, my approach is auditory and kinesthetic and teaching reading is super slow this way. We'll get into rhythm notation and chord charts, but the whole focus is on feeling, hearing, and getting physically comfortable with playing. I can add more about note reading in chats though. A lot of folks who feel attracted to this approach may be less visually oriented- or may have been so visually dependent on the musical page that they have been scared to go "off road" and just play by ear. For you, I will handle note reading in a chat when I learn to do that chat thing. Soon! Thanks for asking. Cheers, Jess
Fascinating approach! Sounds like this is a perfect for people who want to play Hawaiian Slack Key with Mark Nelson in Phase 2. Never really got the hang of open G and what to do with it. So still sticking around and learning. Thanks for being here Jess!
Thanks, and YES this is a great intro to Mark's lessons- so cool you put it all together! My lessons help your hands get comfortable and help you develop smooth transitions, and he can get you sounding like a Slack Key Kahuna! Sounds like a Hawaiian vacation might be in your future! Cheers, Jess
How do we get more info/lessons on open G. I really want to try it, but I don't even know how to tune my guitar to it. Is Jess going to be teaching more about open G?
Hi, there! Yes, a lot of these lessons are in G. They stay pretty basic since the goal is to help folks get comfortable playing and singing at the same time and build skills to make a smooth and easy transition to standard. I would LOVE to get more into lesson in G sometime- thanks for that suggestion. If you visit my non-profit website at www.guitarsintheclassroom.org, you can look under the resources header for Tune Your Guitar in Open G. And I am also sending in a chart to JamPlay that you can download with step by step instructions on how to tune to G. Sorry to be a little behind- I did not know these were up- running GITC keeps me pretty swamped! Peace, Jess
While looking around on JamPlay I found that in the intermediate section one of the genres is Hawaiin Slack Key taught by Mark Kailana Nelson. Even though most of it is too advanced for me right now the first few lessons which includes tuning the guitar to open G and an introduction in Hawaiin finger style to the tune Brother John was great!
get-tuned.com website includes open G in its tuning.
Thanks!
Yes, in the very next lesson! It will be posted this afternoon or tomorrow morning so keep an eye out. =)
Hi Jessica. You are a great teacher. Can't wait for additional lessons!
Thank you! You are a great student!
interested in open g now where do we go from here?/
If your guitar is in G and you want to have fun, you can use the open strings as a sort of drone and play a melody with one finger going up and down any string. Explore and see how it goes... listen for what you like. The second (B) string is a good one to play down the neck (toward the body) on. Move 2 frets down at a time, explore going back up the neck, and then try it on string 3 (G)! I think you'll have some fun. Strum all 6 strings, by the way. There are no bad notes! Best wishes, Jess
Jess, I am really intested in trying this approach. I am impatient for the next lessons. What kind of schedule are you looking at for adding content.
Hello! Going forward, I would expect a steady 2-3 new lessons from Jessica per week.
Yeah, Nessa will be going through Jessica's lessons until they are done, so you shouldn't have to wait too long :)
I tuned my guitar to open G, and am waiting for next lesson :)