Woodstock Chimes Kid's Guitar, Tuning And Playing Instructions

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Holding the Guitar
Sit in a straight-backed chair (one without
arms), and place the curve of the guitar on
your right leg. The
neck of the guitar should
extend to the left in a horizontal position (so
it’s even with the floor). Rest your right arm
over the top of the guitar so that your right
hand falls naturally near the
sound hole . This
is the hand that will strum or pick the strings
of the guitar.
Your left hand presses the strings to the
fingerboard to change the notes. Press firmly
with the tips of your fingers, making certain
not to touch the neighboring strings. If your
fingertips get sore at first, don’t worry. They
will get tough soon and develop calluses,
which are pads of hard skin that protect your
fingers and make it easier to play. To get the
best tone, press the strings down just behind
the fret, but not touching it.
To the Left-Handed Player
If you are left-handed, you can choose to
play your guitar as described above, or you
can reverse the guitar so that your left hand
becomes the strumming or picking hand
and the fingers of your right hand press on
the strings. If you choose to play this way, you
will probably want to reverse the strings on
the guitar. If you reverse all of the strings --
so that the thickest string is at the top of the
guitar as you hold it and the thinnest at the
bottom -- then the rest of the instructions on
tuning and playing will be the same as for
a right-handed player. S omeone at your
local music store will be able to show you
how to restring your guitar.
The Pick
You have received a plastic pick with your
guitar. You can use this to strum the strings,
or you can use your fingers. The guitar can
be played either way. If you use the pick, hold
it between your thumb and first finger with
the pointy part facing the guitar. Grip it just
tightly enough so that it doesn’t slip out of
your fingers. Try not to strike the strings too
hard.
Tuning Your Guitar
Guitars need to be tuned each time you
play them, so it’s important that you know
how to do this. It’s not easy, so you may need
the help of your parent, teacher or other
grown-up to get it right at first. Unless your
guitar is in tune, the music will not sound
right even if you are playing everything
correctly.
When you pluck a string, that string makes
a musical sound we call a note. When you
tighten that string by turning the
tuning
peg one way, the note will sound higher than
before. If you loosen the string by turning the
tuning peg the other way, the note will get
lower. Try doing this yourself.
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2017 WCCG Songbook (175mm x 168mm).indd 4 3/6/17 9:23 AM