Teaching clarity
RGT examiner David Millar provides some advice on teaching guitar students
how to obtain clear sounding notes and chords...
F requently used comments on exam reports,
indicating where marks are lost, often refer
to “lapses of clarity” during various aspects of a
candidate’s playing. This article will outline some
points to consider to help students strive to achieve
clarity in their playing and avoid losing marks in their
exams from unclear sounding notes and chords.
TEACHING STUDENTS TO BE AWARE OF
UNCLEAR SOUNDS
Avoiding unclear playing begins with
learning to listen properly.
One of the joys of teaching ukulele to complete
beginners, compared to the guitar, is how easy it is to
obtain clear sounding chords – it is instantly satisfying
for both the player and anyone listening. Very often
beginners will struggle to obtain clear sounding chords
on the guitar where they are using untrained hands to
stretch across and hold down several strings even in first
position. For this reason many well-established guitar
method books spend the first few chapters teaching
single line melodies before chords are introduced. It
is not uncommon for new students to have already
had a go at learning a few chords themselves with
varying degrees of success. Remembering where to
place their fingers for different chords is often the main
priority rather than striving to play a fewer number of
chords with clarity to start off with. Unclear sounds for
beginners are also experienced when playing single line
notes if the strings are not accurately fretted. So a good
starting point is to teach new students to listen out for,
and be aware of, unclear sounds.
TEACHING CHORDS
When introducing new chords it is important
to teach students to check for unclear
sounding strings.
The RGT acoustic guitar syllabus makes provision at
Initial Stage for simplified three string chords which
are ideal for young beginning guitarists to start off with
(particularly on the C and G major chords which often
present clarity issues for beginners). Moving on to full
open chord shapes from Preliminary Grade and beyond,
it is important to teach students to check their chords for
clarity by playing slowly across all strings included in
the chord voicing to check for unclear sounds. This is
also a good time to check no unwanted bass strings are
played. Moving up through grades many players will
find barre chords the most challenging to master.
COMMON PROBLEMS OBTAINING CLARITY
PLAYING CHORDS
One of the most common problems with
unclear sounding chords can be attributed to
a “static thumb”.
A common error students make, which can sometimes
be overlooked by some tutors, is that they position their
thumb on the back of the neck and then grip very tightly
never allowing the thumb to move when they change
finger positions from one chord to another. Once students
have been taught to have a ‘mobile thumb’ this will
allow them to get their fretting fingers into the optimum
position. Without a mobile thumb the fretting fingers are
not being allowed to move into the optimum position
because their movement has been severely restricted
by the thumb remaining static at the back of the neck.
Keeping fingers upright, close to the fret wire and using
finger tips is also important. Long fingernails on the
fretting hand also present problems, so always be sure to
advise and remind students to keep them cut short.

STRUMMING CLEARLY
Loss of clarity can also be attributed to poor
strumming techniques.
When presenting chords in an examination, students
should take care to strum the strings in their chords both
accurately and clearly. Often unwanted bass notes are
included in chords, or the strumming hand strikes the
strings in quite a careless manner or without enough force
to deliver a clearly projected sound and consequently
the student will not be awarded full marks. Of course,
at advanced grades deliberate muting of strings can be
included to enhance rhythmic and dynamic effects but that
will be clearly differentiated by the examiner.
CLARITY IN FINGERPICKING AND MELODY
PLAYING
Paying attention to detail to achieve clarity is
also important when employing fingerpicking
and flatpicking techniques.
Fingerpicking studies and pieces can also present
challenges to students for obtaining clarity in their playing.
In RGT Acoustic Grades One and Two, this can often
be caused by chord shapes in the Fingerpicking Studies
not being held down properly. When playing pieces as
the grades progress, usually some sections will be more
challenging than others and will require more attention
to detail in order to achieve a clear sounding result.
Obtaining clear sounding notes when playing single line
melodies using plectrum or flatpicking techniques can be
significantly improved by giving careful attention to fret-
hand finger choices. Perfecting easier to manage pieces
first and learning to play at slow but steady speeds allows
for greater care to be given to sound clarity. For plectrum
playing, sound projection and tone can often be improved
by using a heavier gauge pick, and for fingerpicking by
giving care and attention to pick-hand fingernails.
GUITAR SET-UP
Poorly set-up instruments can present
unnecessary challenges for beginners.
Often cheaper budget guitars can be poorly set-up with high
action and inaccurate intonation, and in extreme cases will
discourage beginners from learning to play. Don’t be afraid
to stress this point to both students and their parents – a few
pounds invested in a proper guitar set-up will be money
very well spent and can make a significant difference in
helping to obtain
clear sounding
playing. A capo can
sometimes be used
as an interim solution
to help lower action
(detune the guitar a
whole tone and capo
at fret two) if the
guitar nut is badly
set-up.
TAKE CARE WITH ACHES AND PAINS
Be aware of times when unclear sounds are
caused by pains or discomfort.
As an instrumental tutor it is important to be very
aware of the physical demands learning an instrument
may have on students. Most beginners will experience
some discomfort on their fingertips before they develop
calluses, and more advanced students may suffer
from muscle fatigue or even RSI if they put in a lot of
practice before an examination or performance. In such
cases, it will be necessary to forgo striving for clarity or
even take a break from playing altogether to allow time
for healing. That said, in many cases discomfort and
injuries and are usually caused by poor technique and
posture, or exerting too much pressure on the fingers
when playing. Some good teaching phrases to use are
“position before pressure” or “clearance gives clarity”.