Notes on the fretboard
See 'em, feel 'em, kiss 'em, learn 'em!
By playing this exercise you will learn to name all the notes on the fretboard and warm yourself up very slowly. This will help you locate any note on the neck of the guitar.
To help you name all the notes on the fretboard you must do two things: learn the notes of the first two strings by heart and apply the two triangles to find these same notes on other strings.
Two notes per session
In this exercise play the same note on each of the six strings. Start with the metronome at 40 beats per minute. Practice each note for 2 minutes and add two new notes at each practice session!
At the beginning of the exercise check that you still know the notes from the previous exercise. If you are unsure of your expertise in a note from previous exercises don't add new ones but practice the old ones until they come very easy and naturally.
Just to help you, look at the fretboard diagram for the F note and the tablature at the bottom to see where you should play.
When you reach notes that are higher than the 12th fret play them 12 frets lower. This scenario is illustrated in the below fretboard diagram and tablatures for the A note.
- Play this exercise very slowly! You may speed it up in a couple of weeks once you are proficient with all the notes.
- Think of the name of the note while you are playing (or say it out loud)! You will learn them faster this way.
- When playing a note visualize the next one you have to play - this is an important skill!
- Don't look at the tablature or the fret diagram while practicing - you must learn the notes by heart!
- Variate the exercise by starting each note on the first string!