How to learn the fretboard

[Robert]

A couple of my students are having problems learning the fretboard. I have covered CAGED and other methods and tips, but they seem stuck. I need to figure out how I can get them to have enough patience and discipline to just sit down and work slowly on it until they can figure out how to find the notes on the fretboard.

Most of my students have gotten the idea well about learning shapes on 1 and 2 strings at the time, and then building on that, learning intervals and arpeggios and so on. However, these 2 guys have a hard time progressing.

Any suggestions?

 

[bigG]

Robert, if you can't motivate 'em, I don't know who can! Near as I can tell, they just don't want it bad enough...

Maybe threaten to whack their peepee's w a ruler?

 

[Robert]

I am going to start a memorization practice routine every week with my students until they get it. Let's see if we can learn one note all over the neck per month or per 2 weeks. Then it will take 6 or 12 months to learn all notes everywhere on the neck.

 

[aeolian]

A couple of my students are having problems learning the fretboard. I have covered CAGED and other methods and tips, but they seem stuck. I need to figure out how I can get them to have enough patience and discipline to just sit down and work slowly on it until they can figure out how to find the notes on the fretboard.

Most of my students have gotten the idea well about learning shapes on 1 and 2 strings at the time, and then building on that, learning intervals and arpeggios and so on. However, these 2 guys have a hard time progressing.

Any suggestions?

Since I'm not much of a player I don't understand what you are asking them to learn. Are you saying you want them to know where a C on the 5th string, or a G on the 4th string are?

 

[Robert]

I want them to learn where every note is, anywhere on the neck.

 

[aeolian]

I want them to learn where every note is, anywhere on the neck.

I have not memorized that without having to do a bit of counting for some notes. A few things that have helped me are:

The 1st string and the 6th string are the same note 2 octaves apart, so knowing notes on the 1st string is the same as knowing notes on the 6th string.

At the 7th fret the notes on the 6th string through to 3rd string are BEAD. I memorize the word 'bead', and since the 1st and 6th strings are the same I now know 5 out of 6 notes at the 7th fret. The note on the 2nd string happens to be F#, which I have to remember separately. Now I have essentially divided the first 12 frets into 2 halves: from the nut to the 6th fret and from the 7th fret to the 12. So now if I have to figure out the position of a note on any string I don't have do as much counting to find it.

The third thing is to know the octave position relations between strings, e.g. between strings 6th and 4th. Since B is at the 7th fret on the 6th string, I know B (one octave up) is at the 9th fret on the 4th string. That helps too.

I'm not a guitar teacher, but these are things that help me know where notes are. I understand the ultimate is to know where a note is without any counting, but I'm not at that level of memorization.

 

[sumitomo]

I have trouble with this also,and I have tried that fret board wizard,but I cheat on that cause I'll just count from the nut or the 12th fret and to me that's not knowing.So I will be glad to hear all these suggestions also.Sumi

 

[marnold]

How new are these students to guitar? If they are brand new, learning all the notes on the fretboard is going to be an exercise in frustration.

 

[hubberjub]

Didn't someone post a link to an online fretboard test a few months ago? It might have been Mark Wein. I thought that was pretty interesting.

 

[Robert]

Marnold, I am not expecting them to learn this in a week or two. It takes a long time, but by spending a little with this at every lesson, over a number of months, I am convinced they will get it.

 

[Carlström]

well ok i might be abit odd but i havn't learnt all notes as such, but i know them all.

that doesnt make any sense at all right?

yeah thought so, here's how i think:
I know the octave and where all notes are in that. so i always know the next note etc.
I got some "quick" access points on the fretboard that I instantly know the note off (open strings, 5th fret, 12th on all the strings and then it varies from string to string a couple more). So I kinda think of C like "3 away from A" for example.

Sounds like seriously slow way but i know the things instant but this is how i learnt to keep track of them so it's not like i actually think about it anymore but when i was learning i did.

kinda shows that i didn't take lessons but learnt this instrument on my own lol

 

[Skyblues]

When I was learning the notes on the guitar neck, I found this small program invaluable ...

http://www.tonart.com/idg20/

It has a Fretboard Module you can customize that quizzes you on the guitar neck. It has a few other features but the fretboard module is all I ever used it for.

Great forum, by the way.
Jim

 

[tunghaichuan]

This book looks like a winner:

http://www.amazon.com/Guitar-Fretbo...=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1247426370&sr=8-1

I've got a copy and plan on working through it as soon as I get some other things under control.

tung

 

[ZMAN]

Thanks Tung I just ordered it from Amazon Canada. I need to know the fret board more intimately, and I think this will help. Good reveiws for sure.

 

[tunghaichuan]

I've had that book for a couple of years now, but have been too lazy to dig in and work with it. It is probably the librarian in me, but I hate to mark in books, even books that are supposed to be marked in.

tung

Thanks Tung I just ordered it from Amazon Canada. I need to know the fret board more intimately, and I think this will help. Good reveiws for sure.

 

[sumitomo]

All that has been mentioned is great,but putting in the time and payin' your dues is always needed no matter what method you use! Sumi

 

[ibanezjunkie]

i havent even learnt it properly yet..

here goes...low E

E, F, F#, G, G#, A, A#, B, C, C#, D, D#, E, F, F#, G, G#, A, A#, B, C, C#, D, D#.

am i right? its been a while.

 

[sumitomo]

Very good IBjunkie now with your eyes closed.Sumi

 

[kiteman]

Very good IBjunkie now with your eyes closed.Sumi

and your hands tied behind your back.

 

[ibanezjunkie]

my guitar teacher was like...here learn it...and you get chocolate

 

[Robert]

What's wrong with chocolate?

 

[ibanezjunkie]

nothing!

i learned the entire fretboard...because i was offered chocolate...

and because i want to know it.

gotta be motivated (or compelled) to learn it, it does take time.

tell your students they gotta committ to it.

who else works out where the notes are using octaves? it does make it easier...root and 8th...8th note of the major scale...etc.

 

[Robert]

Did you gain weight after all that chocolate? Or maybe you are a fast learner.

I use the octaves method with my students. I learned that way myself, and always found it helpful.

Keep in mind there is no magic way of learning the fretboard inside out. It takes time and focused effort, but is necessary if you really want to know your instrument well. For example, sight reading is hard enough as it is, but if you don't know where the notes are on the neck - nearly impossible!

 

[Tibernius]

I want them to learn where every note is, anywhere on the neck.

I should really learn that as well, but since I use so many alternate tunings I'd have to learn it about 10 times so I keep putting it off.

In the last week or so, I've used:

Standard
Drop D
DGDGBD
D Standard
Drop C
C Standard
Drop B
Drop A#
Drop A

Are there any particular techniques you can use to adapt it to different tunings, or do you have to learn it again for each of them?

 

[Robert]

Good question, Tibernius. I don't use open tunings very much, but when I use Open E, I just kind of think "one fret higher for G# instead of the normal G", for the G-string, etc. I'm thinking of the tuning as a chord, and the intervals that come with the inversion of that chord.

 

[ibanezjunkie]

basically, aslong as you know the note of the open string you can still work the rest out

for example, DADGBE.

the A, D, G, B and E strings will be the same, but the low D will go up in he usual order from the open string.

D, D#, E, F, F#, G, G#, A, A#, B, C, C#, - - - - and so on

i think.

 

[Trailer Park Casanova]

A couple of my students are having problems learning the fretboard. I have covered CAGED and other methods and tips, but they seem stuck. I need to figure out how I can get them to have enough patience and discipline to just sit down and work slowly on it until they can figure out how to find the notes on the fretboard.

Most of my students have gotten the idea well about learning shapes on 1 and 2 strings at the time, and then building on that, learning intervals and arpeggios and so on. However, these 2 guys have a hard time progressing.

Any suggestions?

I know I'm 5 months late on this post Robert, but one of our kids was struggling and I sent him in to his lessons armed with a Mini Strat.
It has half the Frets and is very easy to handle.

His instructor was floored, and now has incorporated it into some of his instructions with some students.

It changed everything:

A great, first step beginning instrument and ya certainly don't have to be a kid to use it.

E bay $50 bucks U.S.,, new usually about a bone.

 

[Robert]

Thanks, not sure how it will help learning the fretboard though?

 

[deeaa]

Why would it be important to know where all the notes are? I have never learned any of that notes stuff and it never kept me from playing in bands and making lots of music

Seriously, I think it's quite enough to know your basic chord names and then that when the melody is based on, say E, whereabouts you will find the notes to go along with that, i.e. which frets from to solo.

Most of the time I have no clue of what the hell the chords are or notes I play, I just play them by ear.

Like my newest song, I woulda thought it is something D based, but if I check them chords from this software, it seems to go:

Ab sus4 > F7 aug5 > F aug5 sus4.

Now if somebody told me to use said chords I would have no clue as to what they are. But I don't see how it would help me to know that stuff. Doesn't stop me from making music based on it...more like because I don't know the 'normal' chords and notes, the music might get more interesting.

 

[sunvalleylaw]

I don't know if it is considered important or not to a lot of players, but I want to know, and think it will help me. I am starting working through the Fretboard Workbook book that Mark Wein recommends. It just showed up yesterday, and it looks like a good method. I am doing it, along with Mark's Foundations book, as part of a return to basics that I am doing. I want to clean up bad habits I have picked up in the first three years of seriously playing, and overall improve my basics, as I believe it will help me move forward with more confidence.

Maybe I don't NEED to know all the notes on the fret board, and I certainly can play by just finding notes by ear as I go, but I think it will give me more tools to work with.

http://www.mwglstore.com/category.sc?categoryId=7

I think motivation to work through it and spend the time with it until you have it is key. Robert, your students you mentioned in the opening post did not have that I guess. I did not at first either, but i want to move on to a higher level of understanding and playing so have more motivation now.