the fretboard

[darknailblue]

howse it going guys.... this is my first post so im trying to make it worth while... alright, a huge draw back in my playing is my lack of fretboard knowledge, meaning where the hell are the notes?! Can you guys give me some advice on how i should go about learning the notes?

~thanks

[Bongo Boy]

Welcome--very happy to have you here.

Great question, DNB. I won't try to advise you on how to become familiar with the fretboard--I'm struggling with that myself. But, here are just three ways you can at least know what notes are sounded by the strings when fretted at the various positions.

1. Learn the intervals between the notes--that is, memorize the fact that a) the interval between any two natural notes is a full tone, with the exception that B-to-C is a semitone (a half tone), and that E-to-F is a semitone, and that b) a sharp is a semitone higher than a natural and c) a flat is a semitone lower than a natual. Then, realize that the frets are set up one semitone apart--meaning that the pitch of any string fretted at any fret 'n' is exactly one semitone lower than the pitch of that same string fretted at fret 'n+1'. Finally, couple that with your knowledge of the notes of the open strings (i.e., E, A, D, G, B, E).

Example: Your lowest, open 6th string is 'E'. First fret up on that string is one semitone higher, which is F (because E and F are one semitone apart).

Example: The open 5th string is A. First fret is one semitone higher, or A# (Bb). Second fret is two semitones higher (or a whoe tone higher--same thing), so that's B.

Example: ANY string fretted at th 12th fret will sound 12 semitones higher than that same open string. Twelve semitones is a full octave, so any string fretted at 12 gives the same note name as the open string.

2. Look at guitar tablature (i.e., 'TAB') and notice the string and fret number (given in the TAB notation under the staff) that corresponds to the note written above on the musical staff. If you can't read music notation and don't know what a note's name is when you see in on the staff, then you'll need to learn that first.

3. Get a book (or other source) that shows musical scales on the staff and also shows the fingerboard pattern (that is, where to put your fingers on the fingerboard) that corresponds to the notes of that particular scale.

Many (if not most) beginner books for guitar will provide all three of the above pieces of information, but the best resource I've found for learning about intervals is on this site, written by Guni. While none of the 3 approaches above will alone solve your problem, I think you'll find you need to know all the stuff they imply in order to get anything out of almost anything that's published anywhere.

Others here will provide even more perspectives--but don't 'fret'...many of us here are going thru the same challenge you are.

[Sentinel]

You could also download Fretboard Warrior. It's free and a pretty good way to learn the notes. I can't remember the website address right now, but a quick search on Google would find it. :)

[Danster]

hey there darknailblue, welcome to ibreathe! Here's what I did. I first learned the sixth string notes on frets 1-12 (spent one week on six string). Then fifth string (one more week). I learned the "white key" notes first (no sharps or flats), and then learned the "black key" notes relative to the adjacent "white key" notes.
Then I went to musictheory.net and used their guitar trainer utility for all strings. It's a great little program that keeps score for you so you can monitor your progress. This has been very recent that I learned the notes. And OK, don't everybody laugh at me, but I only realized about a month ago, after playing for almost two years, that at frets 12 and higher, the notes and dots (or other markings on the fretboard) repeat themselves. Dang that's embarassing to admit. How many notes did I think there were in a western chromatic scale anyway?:o

[Bongo Boy]

Originally posted by Danster
This has been very recent that I learned the notes. And OK, don't everybody laugh at me, but I only realized about a month ago, after playing for almost two years, that at frets 12 and higher, the notes and dots (or other markings on the fretboard) repeat themselves. Dang that's embarassing to admit. How many notes did I think there were in a western chromatic scale anyway?:o [/B]A little while back a member was asking us to write what we felt were pros and cons of forums such as this one for learning things. Danster's comment here makes me think of a 'pro' I wish I would have included in my response: that is, folks are often quite open about these sorts of embarassments--and I think it's encouraging to all us beginners. I recently had a similar 'epiphany' playing C maj in two adjacent positions--as embarassing as it is to admit, I didn't realize 'till recently I was playing the same notes (same pitches) of the same scale.

Double Duh.