The Goal In this lesson we will lay the foundations of complete understanding of the entire fretboard. We will do this in as straightforward a manner as possible. First, we'll cover some basic theory.Then we'll apply this theory to the guitar. In other words, we try to keep all that you learn practical. In future lessons we will show you exactly how to incorporate this stuff into real playing situations. Scope More specifically, this lesson will cover Simple Intervals The Music Alphabet Applying the Alphabet to Guitar We have deliberately limited the scope of this lesson to make it more manageable. Then each successive lesson builds on the ones before. There is no fixed time to spend with each lesson. I have been working on this stuff for the better part of a lifetime! And I always find some new angle, or way of looking at this stuff that gives me a fresh view on this wonderful subject- The Guitar. We will only be using natural notes in this lesson (an explanation of these follows soon). No sharps or flats. Sharps and flats are simple to learn once you've mastered where the natural notes are. Due to the complexity of the guitar, it's just easier to do it this way. Also, the natural notes fit over at least seven different chords, and uncountable chord progressions. In fact, I would say 75% of the most familiar chordal material is contained within these natural notes. (This may or may not be clear to you- but trust me- it will be!) This lesson involves single string work. This is one of those cases where simplicity is called for. It is much easier to 'see' a single string than a cluster of strings. Guitar knowledge is accumulative. Once you can visualize each individual string then it is much easier to put these pieces of the puzzle together into some kind of coherent whole. Besides, how can you play six strings well if you cannot play one string? There is no other way to figure out just what exactly you can play on one string unless you actually explore playing on one string. And for the more advanced student who may have already covered some of this stuff. Some gaps may have occurred in your learning which can now be filled. Just keep in mind that we are taking the straightest path to the most knowledge. This is quite an undertaking. It is best to be complete and thorough right from the beginning. Think of stuff in here you've already covered as review. And if you already know all of this lesson, please see a more advanced one.