Learn Rhythm Guitar: Volume 1

I have loved the other Learn Guitar apps and books that Mahalo has come out with and this one is no different. I thought one of the best features is that Jen takes things nice and slowly; and while some of it may seem repetitive, or as she says, you may feel you are above it; it truly does give you the groundwork you need to do well with it. It is so true and often that people feel like they can learn something quick and not require much practice and time to get it down. The way that Jen goes through each tutorial, you are able to get the repetitiveness that you need to do well, but also feel like you end up learning something you didn't think you could in a relatively short amount of time. I was very happy with this book and would recommend it to anybody that is looking to expand their knowledge of guitar playing and music in general.

If you’re an intermediate guitar player who’s looking to expand into different play styles (or just want to improve overall), this book is definitely one of the better ones. Jen Trani, the talented musician found in Mahalo’s other learn-guitar tutorials, returns again, and has lost none of her teaching ability with the transition. The video tutorials, accompanied by in-depth written sections, are comprehensive but fairly simple, and even non-musicians can understand what’s being written. The book covers whole note, half note, quarter note, eighth note and sixteenth note strums, accenting, scratching, anticipation and more. However, this book is aimed at guitarists who have already mastered, or at least learned, the basics — total beginners will find themselves a bit lost when asked to play more complicated rhythms. If you want to become a better rhythm guitarist and have just advanced past the beginner stuff, this is for you. Novices or advanced players will want to look elsewhere.

I'm new to playing guitar and while I was familiar with the chords covered in the book, the strumming pattern lessons were exceptionally helpful. I liked how the book included both instruction and practice videos, and the pacing of the videos was just right. The rhythm techniques section was helpful and gave me a lot of good ideas for spicing up my playing. Furthermore, moving through the book was flawless with a quick swipe. For just under three bucks, you can't beat the value.