Learn to Play "Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer" on the Guitar

In this lesson, we'll learn how to play Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer on the guitar. This is a fantastic piece to add to your repertoire and a fun one to play around the holidays! I just finished arranging this piece not too long ago, so it's quite fresh. This means there's plenty of scope for you to add your personal touch to it!

Flexibility is Key

This piece is different from others I've taught before. It offers a lot more freedom for you to make it your own. We'll use an alternating thumb technique similar to the one in the "Craggy Island Blues" piece from my Solo Blues 2 DVD. If you're familiar with that technique, you'll have a head start here. But don't worry if you're not. We're going to take it slow and make sure you understand every step.

Breaking It Down

We'll take this piece in small, manageable chunks - four bars at a time. I'll walk you through what each hand is doing, allowing you to focus on the details. However, if you'd like to use different fingerings or plucking patterns, feel free to do so. The goal is to make the piece comfortable for you to play and enjoyable for you to learn.

Understanding the Structure

This piece follows an AABA structure, which means we have a melody (A section) that repeats, followed by a different melody (B section), and then a return to the A melody with a slight variation. This variation creates a nice ending to the piece. You'll find this structure quite common in many songs, and understanding it will help you learn new pieces quicker in the future.

Importance of Sheet Music

I highly recommend downloading the sheet music for this piece from the website. Trying to learn it without the sheet music could be quite challenging, especially if you're new to guitar playing. A little tip: Use a colored pen (any color but black) to mark the fingering you decide to use on the music sheet. It will make the learning process a lot easier.

Encouraging Note

Learning a new piece of music can seem daunting, but remember, every expert was once a beginner. Take it slow, practice regularly, and don't be afraid to make it your own. And most importantly, remember to have fun!

Now that we've covered the basics, it's time to dive into the actual playing. Grab your guitar, tune up, and get ready to add Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer to your musical repertoire. Head over to the video now, and let's start strumming!

Useful Links

Follow these links to go to Part 1, Part 2 and Part 3 of this lesson.

Click here to download a TAB pdf file of Rudolph The Red Nosed Reindeer

Click here to download a GuitarPro file of Rudolph The Red Nosed Reindeer