Ultimate Beginner Series: Rock Guitar Basics: Guitar DVD

Nick Nolan structures this DVD around the actual mechanics that beginner rock guitarists need to master: picking and bending technique, not just chord shapes. The band play-along segments transform isolated technique work into real musical context, so students hear themselves within a group immediately rather than playing alone for weeks.

The energy of a rock lesson where your teacher shows you how to bend a string so it actually sings, then steps back while you and a real band lock in together. There's momentum here; you're not learning theory in a vacuum but building techniques you'll hear immediately in musical context.

Beginning rock guitarists ready to move beyond basic open chords and into the techniques that define rock playing. This works for self-teaching students and for classroom or studio instruction where a visual reference helps clarify finger placement and timing.

• Use the tuning segment at the start of each practice session to build your ear for intonation before you move into technique work.
• Follow along with the band play-alongs after you've learned each technique in isolation; this bridges the gap between single-note exercises and actual song playing.
• Pause the bending and tapping demonstrations and practice each move slowly with the DVD paused, then play it back at full speed to see the difference in your own playing.

Use this in a first-year rock guitar elective or as a self-paced introduction for students entering band or ensemble who need to develop rock-specific technique on their own time. The artist performances can also serve as inspiration and goal-setting content for students early in their rock journey.

• Classic rock lick vocabulary and phrasing
• Controlled picking techniques (alternating, economy, directional picking)
• String bending with intonation control
• Tapping technique and hand coordination
• Major and minor scales on the fretboard
• Open and basic bar chord shapes
• Listening and synchronizing with a full band
• Equipment knowledge and sound shaping