First Frets
Six months, 52 lessons, from nothing to a three-song set on your acoustic.
How this works
The weekly rhythm
Each week has two lessons, each 15–20 minutes, and each with one specific outcome. Practise 2–4 times a week:
- Session 1: Lesson A.
- Session 2: Lesson B.
- Sessions 3 and 4 (if you have them): bonus sessions. Follow the bonus note for the month, shown above.
Only tick a lesson when you’ve hit its “You’ve got it when” check. If you haven’t, repeat it next session. Falling a week behind is normal; the plan just moves with you.
Before you start
- A pick (medium, around 0.6–0.7 mm) helps for strumming. Buy a few, they disappear.
- A capo is needed from week 11. It’s cheap from any music shop.
- Fingertips will be sore for the first 2–3 weeks. That’s normal and it passes. Stop if anything is sharp or painful.
- Written for right-handed players: left hand on the frets, right hand strums.
The only theory you’ll need
No sheet music. You’ll use chord boxes (pictures of where fingers go), strum arrows (↓ ↑), and counting “1 2 3 4” out loud. In month 4 you’ll learn which string is each chord’s bass note. That’s it.
Offline use and your progress
Once opened, this app works with no internet. Your ticks and practice log are saved on this phone only. Songs’ “Find chords” links need a connection.
The plan
26 weeks in six stages. Tap a lesson to open it.
Chords
Reading a chord box. Vertical lines are the six strings, thickest on the left. Horizontal lines are frets, with the thick nut at the top. Dots show where to press; the number is which finger (1 index, 2 middle, 3 ring, 4 pinky).
○ above a string means play it open. × means don’t play it.
Songs
The popular tunes you’ll learn, with the chords they use. Find a chord sheet (chords above the lyrics) for the song, then play along with the recording.
If your chords sound out of tune against a recording, try moving the capo up one fret at a time until they match.
Tools
Tuner
Pluck one string at a time, close to the phone. Turn the peg until the needle sits in the middle.
Or tune by ear: tap a string to hear its note.
Metronome
One-minute changes
Switch between two chords as many times as you can in 60 seconds, one strum each. Count in your head. It beeps at the end.
No sound? Check the silent switch on the side of your iPhone and the volume.