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When you are getting ready to play a gig, practice by yourself or with a group you should warm up. I think that many players don’t take the time to tune their ears before they play. Ear training is a crucial skill for any musician to have and it can greatly improve your musicianship if you have a skilled ear.

When you are first learning the guitar the easiest way to train your ear is to tune your guitar. That’s right, by listening to the notes your guitar is playing when you tune up you can improve your ear. So even if you have an electric tuner, take some time to try and tune your guitar by ear before you tune it with the tuner.

After you have tuned your guitar start with some scales and note identification. The best way to do this is to sing out the notes. Even if you are not a singer and have no intention in becoming one, singing out notes will quickly train your ear into identifying scales and intervals.

If you have a good ear for music you will find playing a lot easier
and more rewarding.