What is my intention for this HUB?

One of my biggest passions is the Guitar. I do not consider myself as a pro nor do I consider myself to be an amateur. I have recorded my own CD, wrote my own songs and basically love playing guitar. I am still learning and improving my skills. My intention for this HUB is to give the beginning Guitar player some tips and advice on where to start.

First of all some tips for starters who want to learn to play the Guitar

• Buying your first Guitar
• What to look for and how much to spend?
• Determine the style/type of music you want to be playing/learning
• Beware of .....
• Where to go for Guitar Lessons?

Buying your first Guitar.

It is hard to choose when you want to learn to play the guitar. I have been there and remember the first real guitar I bought. (A Seagull-acoustic guitar). I picked this one with help of a co-worker/friend of mine who already played guitar for a long time and was a gifted player. We spend about 4.5 hours in the guitar shop to finally pick the one I mentioned. The price was (then) around 600 Guilders and was considered to be cheap. We tried out the fender acoustic and to our surprise the seagull was almost as good..the only difference was the price (about 2.000 guilders!!) I have never had any regrets about that first guitar, and actually still play on it years later!

So what is my point?

My point here is that it is important you find a guitar that fits you when you want to start to learn to play a guitar, I think it is almost like buying a car, you inform yourself first within your budget, then go to check the cars out at the dealers and probably make a test drive with it. So when you are going to shop for your first guitar, please do not underestimate it! If you do you will regret this along the way! Maybe you have a close friend or family member who already plays guitar, bring them with you! Always helpful to counteract the sales person who is probably capable of selling you a piano instead of a guitar (I am joking here ..but sadly some people can't say no or find it hard to make a decision)

What to look for and how much to spend?

What kind of guitar to buy?

Depending on what kind of guitar you want to learn to play, you can choose between:

• A) Electric Guitar (you need an amplifier for that)
• B) Spanish acoustic guitar
• C) Country & Western (acoustic) Guitar.
• D) Classical (acoustic) Guitar.

Your choice of guitar depends on the style you want to learn to play.

Determine the style/type of music you want to be playing/learning

If you want to learn to play classical music then the choice is obvious. For pop music you can choose electrical or country and western, I suggest, learning to play the acoustic guitar first, but that is my personal opinion.

How much to spend on a guitar?

Nowadays a fair price for your first Guitar would be between $150-$500. Of course it is all up to you, I am just giving you some personal advice. But remember your first guitar has to be one which does not need to be tuned every 10 minutes (this would be the result of the guitar arm to be bend), and feels good in your hands.

Beware of .....

• Guitar Teachers who charge you $100 per hour, thats a bit too much!
• Secondhand Guitars,if you do buy one let an experienced guitar player check it before you buy it!

Where to go for Guitar Lessons?
This actually depends on your personal situation. Check with your local music store or in your own community to find a good guitar teacher close to your home. Do you want to learn guitar and be tought individually or in a group? Individual teaching has it's advantages but in a group you might find a guitar buddy to practise with.Some people rather do not leave their homes, so they need to either check for a DVD/CD program to learn or if you prefer to learn from a book.. all of that is possible it is what YOU prefer!

With the internet you even have more choices. There are online guitar courses, software that you can buy, or just go for the free stuff that is available (there is a lot). With most free stuff there is not really structure, or you have to spend hours and hours to find the sites that usually are on page 1.000 of google when you look for "free guitar lessons". There are a few good online guitar sites for the beginner but also for the more experienced players. Most important thing and a real plus is that a few of these sites offer personal online learning (Live) so that it is almost as if the guitar teacher is in the comfort of your own home! This will help the beginner a lot as you can practise together and ask questions.

This kind of sums it up. I do hope that after reading this HUB you have a clearer view on what to do and what not to do when you start your guitar learning adventure!

Please leave a comment or hop over to my personal Guitar site!

My Guitar Website