Learning how to play a flamenco guitar will feel different from most other guitars. For example, you'll notice you get a different type of sound from the instrument. These guitars are made from a kind of wood that doesn't allow musical notes to sustain for long. This is because the style involves consecutive flurries of notes that would create an unbearable cacophony if they all held. Each guitar string is closer to the fret board than on a standard guitar, which can sometimes create a buzz in the sound. And the staccato taps on the guitar itself are as much a part of the music as the notes played.

What you may get if you try to learn how to play acoustic guitar in a flamenco style is a mix of styles that are all vaguely "Spanish." So you'll need to keep your eyes open so your chosen resources promise an undiluted product. One source of music books that might help you start out is the Mel Bay Publications website. Among its many other guitar-related instructional books, www.melbay.com offers "You Can Teach Yourself Flamenco Guitar." Mel Bay books contain guitar lessons beginners can start with that will lay down a solid level of skill.

A website you might want to check out is www.graf-martinez.com. Gerhard Graf-Martinez is a proficient flamenco guitarist who has created a whole course of study combining books, CDs and DVDs. Available in two volumes, these packages contain ninety-one flamenco acoustic lessons in total, starting with posture, working up through the flamenco-specific tremolo, picado and other picking and strumming styles, and ending with the history of flamenco music itself.

Despite the books and online resources, learning how to play acoustic guitar in the flamenco style may prove difficult. Acoustic guitar lessons online or from a book may just not manage to convey the techniques in the same way as an instructor in the same room would be able to. On the other hand, some very talented people have created those resources, and you may find that you really "get it" while watching a video. So go into your study with reasonable expectations, and you may achieve a high degree of success.

A well tuned guitar is essential and the best way to get that is by using a guitar tuner. Click here to read guitar tuner reviews on the most popular brands and models, like the Fender American Series Guitar Tuners, and compare how well they perform.

I can't stress to you enough the importance of a good teacher,
whether a friend, or professional.
After only a few lessons, you should be playing basic songs, and be on your way to fame and fortune..

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Hi William--Tuning the B string is the trickiest and most problematic string to tune. This is because of the fact that the B string is tuned to a third, not a fourth, like all of the other strings. Also, because of partial tones and harmonics, etc. Okay, I'll stop the technical jargon. You would like to know how to overcome this problem.
.
Well, since your B string sounds FLAT, then you need to tune it higher (sharper). In fact, I have perfect pitch, so even when a string is the slightest bit out of tune it sounds like fingernails on a chalkboard to me!

I was taught, at the ripe 'ol age of 7, how to tune my guitar by ear using a tuning fork (A+ 440 hrz tuning fork). When I got older and needed to use an electronic tuner onstage (because you can "mute" the strings while you are tuning so the crowd can't hear you tune). Regardless of whether I tuned by ear or by my chromatic tuner, I ALWAYS cringed at the sound of how flat the B string sounded--even when tuned to the electric tuner!

I ALWAYS tuned my B string just a bit higher than the electronic tuner suggested was "in tune". I found out just a couple of years ago that I was in good company: guitar great Eric Johnson ALSO found it incredibly annoying at how FLAT the B sounded when tuned to the chromatic tuner. (Check out Eric's first instructional DVD available on Netflix for more info.)

There are several ways that you can fine tune your guitar AFTER you have tuned it to a tuner...and it was smart of you to use an online tuner to get the guitar somewhat in tune.

I could list the many ways myself, but that would be a waste of space and time. The guitar is actually IMPOSSIBLE to get into perfect tune, the way a piano, for example, can be tuned. This is because of the partial tones, harmonics, and the frets--plus the fact that the guitar is tuned to fourths AND the one third...the B string. This genius of a luthier (guitar builder) created a guitar neck where the frets themselves (the vertical wires on the neck of the guitar) are customized so that the guitar is able to be tuned to perfect pitch (or so he says....and so says Steve Vai!).

Anyway, here's the deal. The name of this guy's invention is TRUE TEMPERAMENT guitar ffret boards He has ALL of the guitar tuning instructions listed on his website in one easy to read page: All of the DO's and DON'Ts regarding tuning your guitar.

I believe that if you tune your guitar as closest as possible to the guitar tuner you found online, and then read the instructions on the TRUE TEMPERAMENT website, you will be on your way to learning about how to fine tune your guitar. Here's the website:
http://www.truetemperament.com/site/index.php?go=4&sgo=0#A26

I cannot stress enough how important it is for you to get yourself a good tuner. Get yourself one that shows the actual "cents" (tuning measurements) on an LED screen. This way, when you find the perfect tuning of the B string, you can refer back to the tuner's LED screed and match up the B string tuning to the same "dot" the next time you tune up. The B string should be tuned a bit PAST the "0" or "perfectly tuned" marker on the tuner.

Please contact me for more information if you need any help learning how to utilize the information found on the True Temperament website. I learned about this website from Thomas Nordegg-- legendary guitarist Steve Vai's main guitar tech. Thomas has been a guitar tech for four decades, and worked with Zappa--the man with the best ear in the world! (RIP).

Maybe consider taking a few beginner lessons, or check out YouTube and search HOW TO TUNE A GUITAR. Also, check out Dave Weiner's RIFF OF THE WEEK. Dave's a great guy. He went to Guitar Institute of Technology (GIT) and has been playing with Vai for over 8 years. You can learn everything you need to know about tuning from his videos, too.