The debate many new guitarists end up having with themselves is whether or not they need to spend a lot of money on a teacher or if learning from guitar lessons DVDs works just as well. Of course, there are arguments for both methods and you can find plenty of self-taught and instructor trained guitarists in the professional circles.
A guitar teacher can be a double-edged sword, a good guitar teacher can let you progress faster than a student could have expected, and eliminate bad habits early on, before the student has enough experience to start getting rid of those habits themselves. However, a bad guitar teacher will slow your progress down, frustrate you, and potentially damage your playing so badly that it will take longer to eliminate the habits that teacher taught you, than it should have taken to learn in the first place.
Of course, it would be easy to just decide to go to a good teacher, but that isn’t quite the cure all it would seem to be. Most guitar teachers are simply bad, but most guitar students have experience with only one guitar teacher, so naturally they assume the teacher taking their hard earned money must be a good one. When it comes down to it, it ends up being more blind luck than anything else. The odds that Steve Vai would have got training by Joe Satriani when he did would have been non-existent had they not gone to the same school.
Even if money is not an issue, finding a good instructor just simply might not be possible for a guitarist. So then where to find them? Not surprisingly many excellent guitar teachers happen to be the same people that get asked to make the guitar instruction DVDs out on the market. It does make sense, a company decides to spend the time and money to produce a guitar lessons DVD. Naturally, they want the best instructor they can get. This is the reason why you see people like Troy Stetina writing so many books and making so many DVDs, they keep getting hired by these companies because they are legitimately good teachers.
One of the nice things about guitar instructional DVDs is that they do let you learn from people you normally would not have access to for any reasonable amount of money. While you don’t get the direct feedback a teacher can provide, you also aren’t going to get the negative influences a bad teacher can provide.
When it comes down to it, spending more money to study with a guy working in the back of a music store who may very well have no real credentials or paying less money for lessons from some great teachers should be an obvious choice. Even if you know someone who is a great guitarist, they may very well not be a very good teacher. There are guitarists who get good so subconsciously they don’t even understand what they are actually doing.
The basic lesson plan of a learn to play guitar dvd is very much the same as what a teacher would show you. It is the same techniques, no matter who actually shows you. DVDs just have the added convenience that you have access to them whenever you want, you can learn at your own pace, and you can have them endlessly repeat the same information without potentially annoying anyone.
Does that mean guitar lessons dvd have completely supplanted good teachers? No, if you are lucky enough to study under a good teacher and have the extra money for it, then by all means go for it. You can still use DVDs, such as the ones you can find on our website, to supplement the techniques you learn from your teacher. However, don’t expect random guy teaching in the back of a music store to be worth the money you give him. He may end up doing far more harm than good, whether he is a Berkeley graduate virtuoso or a random guitarist off the street.
Saturday, May 9, 2009
Wednesday, April 22, 2009
Guitar lessons DVDs: How to Pick the Lessons to Teach Yourself
There are so many guitar lessons DVDs available that it can be difficult to find which ones are right to you. It is great that so much information is now available to new guitarists and that some of the best guitar teachers are available through DVD lessons than would have been possible years ago, but with so much out there it is hard to choose. Learning to set your own goals is the best way to pick the lessons right for you.
One of the first decisions a guitarist has to make is whether to learn to play electric or acoustic guitar. Some guitar instructional DVDs are explicitly for one or the other instrument. The two types of guitar are not completely interchangeable with anything beyond very basic techniques, and how a guitarist plays one is influenced by the instrument. For example, many lead techniques end up too quiet or muddled to actually be very useful for an acoustic guitarist, since an electric guitarist relies on the amp for volume. However, some pretty basic classical guitar techniques are very difficult to use on an electric guitar, because feedback issues sometimes develop due to the heavier use of open strings.
It is a common perception that playing electric guitar is more difficult than playing acoustic guitar. An electric guitar is capable of generating all manner of unpleasant noises in an amateur’s hands, which is the prime reason many people think this way. When it comes to more intermediate and advanced skills, both instruments have their own difficulties though, so it is hard to gauge one as harder than the other. The two work quite differently, and it does take some time to learn the nuances for each, which can make swapping back and forth initially somewhat difficult.
Picking learn to play guitar DVDs based on the type of instrument you want to play, rather than which one seems easier to start out with is definitely the way to go. Redeveloping your muscle memory for a different kind of guitar can be an unnecessary annoyance. One of the nice things about guitar lessons dvd is that you can learn so many different techniques, but focusing on the basics is the best place to start as a new guitarist.
Guitar is not one homogenous instrument where the techniques are the same for any style, unlike say a piano or drums, where composition is the bigger issue between styles. There are so many ways to do the same thing on a guitar, that even two people in the same genre may not play very similar. Focusing on the style you want will ultimately make it faster and more enjoyable to learn playing guitar.
It is customary for most beginner guitar instructional dvd to start with the usual assortment of open chords, strumming, and other techniques that see the widest usage among guitarists. This is a good starting point for many new guitarists, particularly ones not focused on a genre, but some people may not find it as good a place to begin training.
Despite this, many styles of music, such as funk, metal, classical, or blues don’t use these general techniques much, if at all. Thankfully, guitarists focused on these styles will be able to find a variety of lessons tailored to these styles. That isn’t to say guitarists shouldn’t become well rounded, but learning to focus on what you want is important, as well. A guitarist working on learning something they enjoy is going to be a lot more motivated and willing to put the time into it, even if they have to work harder to master those techniques.
Taking the time to think about your goals is a good way to make the right selection of guitar lessons DVDs. As helpful as the advice of others can be, deciding what you want out of your guitar playing will help to ensure you can learn to play what you want in far less time than you might expect. For more information on the lessons available, be sure to visit our website and see what fits your goals.
One of the first decisions a guitarist has to make is whether to learn to play electric or acoustic guitar. Some guitar instructional DVDs are explicitly for one or the other instrument. The two types of guitar are not completely interchangeable with anything beyond very basic techniques, and how a guitarist plays one is influenced by the instrument. For example, many lead techniques end up too quiet or muddled to actually be very useful for an acoustic guitarist, since an electric guitarist relies on the amp for volume. However, some pretty basic classical guitar techniques are very difficult to use on an electric guitar, because feedback issues sometimes develop due to the heavier use of open strings.
It is a common perception that playing electric guitar is more difficult than playing acoustic guitar. An electric guitar is capable of generating all manner of unpleasant noises in an amateur’s hands, which is the prime reason many people think this way. When it comes to more intermediate and advanced skills, both instruments have their own difficulties though, so it is hard to gauge one as harder than the other. The two work quite differently, and it does take some time to learn the nuances for each, which can make swapping back and forth initially somewhat difficult.
Picking learn to play guitar DVDs based on the type of instrument you want to play, rather than which one seems easier to start out with is definitely the way to go. Redeveloping your muscle memory for a different kind of guitar can be an unnecessary annoyance. One of the nice things about guitar lessons dvd is that you can learn so many different techniques, but focusing on the basics is the best place to start as a new guitarist.
Guitar is not one homogenous instrument where the techniques are the same for any style, unlike say a piano or drums, where composition is the bigger issue between styles. There are so many ways to do the same thing on a guitar, that even two people in the same genre may not play very similar. Focusing on the style you want will ultimately make it faster and more enjoyable to learn playing guitar.
It is customary for most beginner guitar instructional dvd to start with the usual assortment of open chords, strumming, and other techniques that see the widest usage among guitarists. This is a good starting point for many new guitarists, particularly ones not focused on a genre, but some people may not find it as good a place to begin training.
Despite this, many styles of music, such as funk, metal, classical, or blues don’t use these general techniques much, if at all. Thankfully, guitarists focused on these styles will be able to find a variety of lessons tailored to these styles. That isn’t to say guitarists shouldn’t become well rounded, but learning to focus on what you want is important, as well. A guitarist working on learning something they enjoy is going to be a lot more motivated and willing to put the time into it, even if they have to work harder to master those techniques.
Taking the time to think about your goals is a good way to make the right selection of guitar lessons DVDs. As helpful as the advice of others can be, deciding what you want out of your guitar playing will help to ensure you can learn to play what you want in far less time than you might expect. For more information on the lessons available, be sure to visit our website and see what fits your goals.
Friday, April 17, 2009
Guitar Lessons for Beginners DVD: Creating a Good Learning Experience for a Young Guitarist
While to some extent this could simply be that more people are pushed towards other instruments than guitar, another consideration is that some simple lessons from a guitar lessons DVD action are not physically possible for a child’s hand size. Learning to deal with these issues can let them learn to play guitar more enjoyably than might have otherwise been possible.
One peculiar thing about guitarists is that, compared to many other instruments, they tend to start to learn to play later on in life, often in their teens or even early 20’s. This is rather unusual compared to many other instruments where many notable players started playing seriously even as early as elementary school.
It is important to realize that a guitar is a physically demanding instrument to actually play, and it does take time to develop the muscles and calluses to use many techniques comfortably. It is important not to push any guitarist too hard, because the force from those metal strings under tension can cause injury. Even young guitarists should be able to tell when it is time to take a break.
In general, a child that actually wants to play guitar is probably going to be fairly motivated to practice, so pushing them probably won’t be as necessary. On the other hand, someone pushed to do something uncomfortable and painful when they don’t want to will probably lose interest. It is important to let progress through guitar lessons dvd be at the rate they are comfortable with and not to worry about any sort of time table.
One of the easiest ways to work around this is to purchase a smaller scale guitar that better fits the child. While there are some guitars produced specifically for this purpose, many travel guitars are about the same size as well. Then the student can simply use the same guitar instructional DVDs that a teenager or adult would use.
This isn’t a perfect solution though and can be problematic when it comes time to move up to a full sized guitar. The significant scale and size differences mean that the muscle memory they used for any given lesson from a guitar instruction DVD will no longer be quite right. It can take some time to adapt to the new guitar, and this can be a very frustrating change.
Using a capo can also help to work around the size issues. While the notes they will produce will be higher in pitch and different, they will still be using the same mechanical motions. This also allows for a more gradual progression by slowing moving the capo further down the neck. The problem with this is that since they will be in a different key, it is no longer possible to play along with learn to play guitar dvd s without sounding out of key. This is a good way for developing mechanical abilities and gradually getting used to the full guitar, but it can be confusing without them learning about the idea of being in different keys.
Whichever solution works best for your child, don’t worry about them being able to handle the beginner guitar lessons DVDs available. These move at a fairly moderate pace and can be quite useful for a new guitarist old or young. You will find plenty of examples on our website, so be sure to check it out.
One peculiar thing about guitarists is that, compared to many other instruments, they tend to start to learn to play later on in life, often in their teens or even early 20’s. This is rather unusual compared to many other instruments where many notable players started playing seriously even as early as elementary school.
It is important to realize that a guitar is a physically demanding instrument to actually play, and it does take time to develop the muscles and calluses to use many techniques comfortably. It is important not to push any guitarist too hard, because the force from those metal strings under tension can cause injury. Even young guitarists should be able to tell when it is time to take a break.
In general, a child that actually wants to play guitar is probably going to be fairly motivated to practice, so pushing them probably won’t be as necessary. On the other hand, someone pushed to do something uncomfortable and painful when they don’t want to will probably lose interest. It is important to let progress through guitar lessons dvd be at the rate they are comfortable with and not to worry about any sort of time table.
One of the easiest ways to work around this is to purchase a smaller scale guitar that better fits the child. While there are some guitars produced specifically for this purpose, many travel guitars are about the same size as well. Then the student can simply use the same guitar instructional DVDs that a teenager or adult would use.
This isn’t a perfect solution though and can be problematic when it comes time to move up to a full sized guitar. The significant scale and size differences mean that the muscle memory they used for any given lesson from a guitar instruction DVD will no longer be quite right. It can take some time to adapt to the new guitar, and this can be a very frustrating change.
Using a capo can also help to work around the size issues. While the notes they will produce will be higher in pitch and different, they will still be using the same mechanical motions. This also allows for a more gradual progression by slowing moving the capo further down the neck. The problem with this is that since they will be in a different key, it is no longer possible to play along with learn to play guitar dvd s without sounding out of key. This is a good way for developing mechanical abilities and gradually getting used to the full guitar, but it can be confusing without them learning about the idea of being in different keys.
Whichever solution works best for your child, don’t worry about them being able to handle the beginner guitar lessons DVDs available. These move at a fairly moderate pace and can be quite useful for a new guitarist old or young. You will find plenty of examples on our website, so be sure to check it out.
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