In my opinion, dynamics (loud and quiet) are one of the quintessential factors that makes the difference between a beginner and an intermediate player.
Dynamics are sometimes referred to as “feel” when we talk about good guitarists. There are other factors in their technique that contribute to this but dynamics play a massive role.
Some songs stay at the same volume level throughout, but when it’s just you and the guitar (as we often are in acoustic scenarios) even these songs can benefit from dynamics.
As a general rule, ballads and love songs are often player quietly while raucous singalong anthems are played louder. But don’t just think of dynamics as what we do from song to song. An effective use of dynamics can happen in certain parts of a song, or even just a few bars. So we can change the dynamics within a song to give it more feeling and purpose.
In some cases you might be playing dynamically without realising it. The only way to know is to record yourself playing guitar and then listen back to any volume changes. But for this lesson I want you to really delve into just how quiet and how loud you can play. (See 1.40 in the video lesson)
Acoustic guitars have entirely different tones to them depending on how loud they are played. So it’s like having many different instruments within your dynamic range. If you only play quiet then how can you ever hear your guitar with all of it’s different tones. The sound hole in the guitar is there for a reason.
As a general rule we play the verse of a song quietly and then the chorus louder. Give this a try with a simple 5 chord song
Let It Be by The Beatles is a great choice for beginners trying our dynamics for the first time.
Bedroom and self taught players generally play quiet. This is because they fear people hearing them. If this resonates with you then find a space where you can truly play your guitar at louder volumes. Or, perhaps just do it anyway! You might be surprised!
A lot of the practice for this idea is based on your picking/strumming hand. For now don’t change chords and look for a minimum of two different volume levels. But ideally you want to be aiming for 4 to 6 different volume levels. This takes time to achieve and don’t overthink it, but be aware that these volume levels exist.
A great example of dynamics in action is this classical song by Holst