guitar lessons
acoustic guitar lesson
Questions & Answers with Neil Hogan - #1.15
Q. I went to my local store to take my first acoustic guitar lesson and the teacher only had an electric guitar. Should I take lessons from him?
A. This sound like a question that I need to consult my crystal ball about. My gut reaction is that an acoustic guitar lesson should be given with at least one acoustic guitar in the room. Now I guess your guitar would meet that criteria. As a matter of fact, I only have an acoustic in my studio but teach electric guitar and even bass occasionally. Of course sometimes I have to grab the students guitar to demonstrate something that is instrument specific.That is not usually a problem.
I remember as a kid being very impressed with a sixty-year-old music teacher who taught every band instrumentin his studio. I don’t think he actually played any of them. I assume some of his students must have learned something or he wouldn’t have been in business so long.
I don’t think you have to be too concerned about the equipment your instructor has as long as he seems capable, or better, proficient at what he is teaching. Unfortunately, this is usually not an easy thing for a student to determine in one meeting. Hopefully, after your first acoustic guitar lesson you will be happy and inspired enough to continue on to your second, third, fourth, etc.
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acoustic guitar lessons
Questions & Answers with Neil Hogan - #1.12
Q. Are acoustic guitar lessons the best place for me to get started if I want to be an electric guitar player?
A. I am a firm believer in starting with acoustic guitar lessons in general for anyone wanting to play the guitar. The main principals that pertain to all types and styles of guitar playing are best explained and practiced onan acoustic or classical guitar.
Many of the techniques and styles you will play on the electric guitar are more specialized than those you will play on the acoustic. In general, most things you learn acoustically will carry over into electric. The reverse is not necessarily true.
One of the dangerous things about starting with the electric guitar is it is very easy to press down the notes on the finger board. This can help create a lazy guitar player.
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beginner guitar
Questions & Answers with Neil Hogan - #1.4
Q. Can you recommend a place where I can find a beginner guitar class?
A. There are beginner guitar classes available all over the place. Probably some of the first places to check with would be your local musicstores. Many stores have ongoing series of lessons, particularly geared for beginners. These might typically be once a week for an hour or so, and run for six weeks or something like that.
Usually the store does these relatively cheaply hoping you might head into more expensive private lessons a little later. They also of course hope you might buy an expensive guitar fromthem. In any case, it’s a good customer relation’s strategy.
Another thought about classes is they are frequently useful for only a short time. After six to twelve weeks there is a great chance that all the students will be at different places, another time to look into private lessons.
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beginner guitar lessons
Questions & Answers with Neil Hogan - #1.11
Q. I am thinking about starting beginner guitar lessons. Should I get some books, callmy local music store, or get Google to search for me?
A. Yes, and thanks for answering your own question. When someone is ready to start looking into beginner guitar lessons they should explore all possible avenues.
There are some great books out there and more are being published every month. I started out as a kid using the Mel Bay Classic Guitar books. They presented a very logical approach to learning to read notes and play simple songs and scales. Nowadays I usually recommend that or the series from Alfred’s Publishing Company.
Your local store is probably is great resource as they should have some qualified teachers who can help you get started in the right direction. A good teacher can really keep you from making early mistakes or developing bad habits. They can be very helpful in keeping you on the path and avoiding dead ends.
There are also a lot of great sources of information online. This is a little more variable in terms of quality as it has become too easy for anyone with a few computer skills to seem like an expert. This is one of the main reasons we are developing TotallyGuitars as a site with credible and useful information.
We are definitely looking forinput from our visitors so please contact us with your suggestions and recommendations.
Beginner guitar lessons as well as many other types are discussed further here - guitar lessons.
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free guitar lessons
Questions & Answers with Neil Hogan - #1.3
A. As I’ve discussed in a few other places, free guitar lessons are avery interesting subject. One of the first sources to explore is a friend of yourswho might be a better guitar player than you are. Many times people around are very willing to help out an eager guitar student, especially if it is a friend.
Of course, there are advantages and disadvantages to try to learn something from a friend. An advantage is the price; some disadvantages might be their lack of willingness to dedicate their time to you, they might not be very good at explaining things, and they might not have the patience and understanding of a professional guitar teacher.
Obviously another source to check out is the web. There are thousands of lessons onlineat YouTube ranging from really good to really useless. Unfortunately, a beginning or even intermediate student can have a hard time recognizing the difference. Generally a pretty good clue would be whether or not you can even understand what the teacher is trying to say.
Another thing to keep in mind is that most lessons you can find online are just some guitar player’s version of how he thinks a particular song might go. You never know if they are presenting a simplified version, an extremely accurate version, or a just completely wrong version.
Overall, always take free advice with a few grains of salt.
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free online guitar lessons
Questions & Answers with Neil Hogan - #1.8
Q. I understand Totally Guitars will be offering free online guitar lessons. Can you give me more information?
A. I am very excited about all of the things we are working on here. The folks involved are working hard on putting together a great site that will befull of resources for guitar players and students of al levels and abilities.
The lessons we will have online will cover lots of popular songs and styles. We have a few samples up at YouTube right now. All lessons will include a how-to video along with downloadable music to print and keep next to you as you work your way through the lesson.
The explanations by the instructors will be easy to follow, with each one walking through the parts of the song. We would also love to hear from you as to songs or techniques you would like to see addressed.
Some of the other resources we are developing include an interactive forum for guitar related discussions, a calendar of important upcoming music events, a series of instructional DVDs,and links to many other valuable sites.
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free video guitar lessons
Questions & Answers with Neil Hogan - #1.13
Q. Is Totally Guitars planning on offering a series of free video guitar lessons?
A. Absolutely! Every day we are planning and shooting more and more free video guitar lessons. We have started posting a few here and at YouTube and are hoping that players will check them out and get us some feedback to help us gear them for the entire guitar playing audience.
He first few that we have posted include some beginning fingerpicking songs- House Of The Rising Sun, Blackbird, Dust In The Wind, and Grandfather’s Clock. A very cool song in a slightly different style is Led Zeppelin’s Babe I’m Gonna Leave You.
There are also a few more obscure songs that we think are great for beginners and intermediate beginners-Romanza,, Bach’s Bouree in Em, and the not so obscure Norwegian Wood. Click on the video link above and tell us what you think.
As we move along we are bringing in many other teachers and experts to shoot videos covering lots of additional styles. We are just concentrating on the acoustic side right now but soon we will add lessons in other styles- rock, jazz, classical, and even bass andother related instruments.
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guitar instruction
Questions & Answers with Neil Hogan - #1.7
Q. I wouldlike to get into guitar instruction. What advice can you give me? A. Guitar instruction is a great profession to aspire to, kind of. Thereare great rewards if it is something you like to do. Unfortunately, I know ofmany teachers who are really just doing it as a way to keep busy while they arelooking for that big break- the record contract or the million-dollar gig.
In order to be a good teacher, youhave to enjoy sitting down with students and patiently explaining concepts andtechniques to them until the ideas are clear in their heads. This means theconcepts and techniques have to be clear in your head first, then you have tobe able to communicate them to the student.
If this sounds like something youcan do, I would guess you might enjoy being a guitar teacher.
Otherarticles concerning guitar instruction are at this link - guitarlessons.
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