What to Expect in Your Guitar Lessons




If you are thinking about starting guitar lessons in the Chicago area, you might find the following questions and answers insightful.



HOW LONG WILL EACH GUITAR LESSON BE?

This can vary depending upon the student and the teacher. Most teachers offer 30 minute guitar lessons for beginning guitar students. Intermediate and advanced guitar students can expect to have 45-60 minute guitar lessons.



WHAT WILL HAPPEN DURING EACH GUITAR LESSON?

The primary “areas” of study in guitar include: reading musical notation, developing appropriate guitar playing technique (the physical mechanics of playing the guitar), scales, chords and improvisation, and learning about music analysis (theory – the “grammar” of how the music is put together). Many guitar teachers will have other topics that they wish to discuss, but the topics described above are the most fundamental. Usually each guitar lesson will consist of some time spent in most of those areas. If a student is preparing for a public concert, then more time might be spent on learning a specific piece of guitar music. Many guitar teachers use “method books” with beginning guitar students, but some use their own materials - or no materials at all. The“method books” offer elementary guitar music in a carefully sequenced order so that each piece is only slightly more difficult than the previous one.



PRACTICING FOR YOUR GUITAR LESSONS.

What should you do in between your guitar lessons? Most people know that if you take any sort of music lessons, you must practice. The same is true for guitar lessons. The amount of time that should be devoted to practicing for guitar lessons, can vary depending upon the age of the student, the difficulty of the guitar music being studied, the goals the student wants to achieve through taking guitar lessons, and the requirements the guitar teacher places on each guitar lesson. Most guitar teachers expect beginning guitar students to practice 15-30 minutes each day (5-7 days a week).



WHAT SHOULD I EXPECT TO PAY FOR GUITAR LESSONS?

This varies, but expect to pay anywhere from $20 an hour to $50 an hour for most guitar teachers. Keep in mind that if you select a guitar teacher that charges $35 an hour over a guitar teacher that charges $45 an hour simply because he/she is cheaper, you may be getting a bad deal anyway if that guitar teacher does not have the qualifications necessary to make your guitar lessons successful. The main factors in determining pricing are:

  • Location – a guitar teacher living in New York will most likely charge more than a guitar teacher with identical qualifications living in rural Missouri. After making a few phone calls and figuring out the average education and level of experience for guitar teachers in your area, you should start to get a good idea of what is the “average rate” for your general location.

  • Qualifications – Generally, more qualified guitar teachers should charge more than guitar teachers that have less education, experience, and professional success. For more detailed information about the various qualifications of a guitar teacher, see the page “Education” and “Experience” sections on the page “Questions to ask”.

  • Reputation – If a guitar teacher has a reputation for producing excellent guitar students, then that reputation will put that guitar teacher in higher demand, which should encourage them to charge more for guitar lessons.



DO I NEED TO OWN A GUITAR BEFORE STARTING GUITAR LESSONS?

You must have your own instrument so you can practice at home. You might wait and buy your instrument (if you haven’t already) when you meet your guitar teacher so he/she can offer guidance in the selection of that instrument. Some guitar teachers will require you to own an “acoustic guitar” while others prefer an electric guitar. Classical guitar teachers might insist that you purchase a classical guitar.



HOW MANY GUITAR LESSONS DOES IT TAKE BEFORE I CAN PLAY SOMETHING THAT SOUNDS REALLY GOOD?

Learning to play the guitar is one of the most complicated and challenging endeavors anyone could attempt. However, ANYONE can develop some degree of proficiency at the guitar with a good guitar teacher and some hard work. Most guitar students (children and adults) can learn to play simple songs within the first year of guitar lessons. Taking two or three guitar lessons rarely gets anyone very far.



CAN I JUST TRY ONE OF THE “TEACH YOURSELF” APPROACHES I FOUND ONLINE? I LIKE THE SOUND OF “FREE GUITAR LESSONS”!

The “teach yourself” approach is usually not nearly as successful as learning from a private instructor that can give you customized, hands on, one-on-one guidance that is tailored to fit your specific needs and goals. If you are serious about learning to play the guitar, then you must recruit the help of an expert that has been trained to help you learn to play the guitar. “Free” online adult guitar lessons are often a waste of time since they cannot respond to your specific needs. Technical issues can never be adequately handled with free guitar lessons.