Is the guitar a relatively easy instrument to teach yourself?
Filed in guitar on Nov.28, 2009
s0craticx14xx asked:
Is the guitar a relatively easy instrument to teach yourself? I would like to learn how to play an instrument and am looking at the guitar. Would I be able to teach myself without too much of a problem?
I’m also considering piano, so comments on that would also be welcome. Thanks!
Is the guitar a relatively easy instrument to teach yourself? I would like to learn how to play an instrument and am looking at the guitar. Would I be able to teach myself without too much of a problem?
I’m also considering piano, so comments on that would also be welcome. Thanks!
November 28th, 2009 at 7:57 pm
Eh, kind of. But having a teacher will substantially increase progress. It could take 2-3 times longer depending on how dedicated you are to teaching your self.
December 2nd, 2009 at 4:58 am
Yes, I think so, mostly from personal experience and playing several instruments. It’s not the easiest starting out, as your fingers will need to develop callouses to handle the strings properly and will hurt for a while but once they do you’re good to go. Also, musically speaking, its more complicated than a piano, for example, which is laid out straight in front of you left to right, but once you play for a couple weeks it will make more sense. At that point, the guitar is easily the most accessible.
There are lots of other relationships which makes it diverse and exciting and you can do a whole lot by learning very few things.
Further, there are LOTS of guitar based resources available on the internet for free. Tablature of most songs, lessons, tips, and other resources are available in abundance for the guitar so you’ll have lots of support in your quest.
I’ve sourced a few good places to get started. Good luck! You can do it!
December 3rd, 2009 at 4:42 pm
I reckon so. Once you’ve got the basic chords down, you can pretty much create any little tune you like, and it built up from there for me. I’ve taught myself and would have to say that as long as you’re committed to learning, and keep at it, then you’ll have no troubles
Practice makes perfect!
December 6th, 2009 at 9:11 pm
It really depends on your dedication. You may be able to get some books that could help you. If you have no prior musical experience, I would advise you to learn a few things from somebody that REALLY knows how to play. Standard tuning is a good place to start: the notes of the string (from lowest pitch to highest) are EADGBE. The major scale is a helpful thing to know at first, as well.
December 10th, 2009 at 2:31 am
Kind of, you can teach yourself basics and some advanced stuff like tapping but a teacher can show you how to use those skills. It also depends on if you’re patient and how you learn. If you learn through examples then it is better to have teacher or instructional video.
December 10th, 2009 at 3:38 pm
You could try getting a guitar book for beginners. Make sure the book includes…
-how to hold the guitar and put your fingers on the fingerboard correctly
-how to strum properly
-also make sure the book has a good, easy to read, chord chart in it.
If you don’t wanna buy a guitar book, you could just read up about guitar playing online… Maybe this site could help…
December 12th, 2009 at 1:01 pm
Teaching yourself
There are many ways to learn. Finding what works best for you is a job in itself.
Most of those who take up an instrument quit at some point from frustration. Those who find a way to eliminate or control frustration are the ones who are successful. A good teacher can get the student through those frustrating times. The average or poor teacher will not. The player without help will most likely give up.
It is my recommendation that you get instruction. It may be private or class. Then evaluate your teacher and your progress after 6 or more lessons. Decide then if you want to continue or to look for help elsewhere. You may then decide to go it on your own. If you do, please consider getting help when you reach those frustrating times that are sure to come.
Good Luck
December 12th, 2009 at 4:57 pm
Its been said that guitar is one of the easiest instruments in the world to play really, really badly — and one of the hardest to play really, really well.
In my experience, most people — not all, by any means, but MOST — people who set out to teach themselves without any previous musical experience wind up learning to play really, really badly, or not at all — unless they’re incredibly motivated to keep working at it for several years of regular practice.
One basic problem with teaching yourself is that unless you already have some previous musical experience, you have no idea what there is to learn or in what order to learn it, or how to use what you’ve learned once you do learn it. Most beginners learn a handful of songs off of tabs, maybe a half dozen or so chords, and then they get stuck and waste months or years playing the same 5 or 10 songs over and over with no clue about how to advance their playing beyond that point.
You CAN learn guitar on your own, but without inspiration and coaching from other, more advanced musicians you may not get very far. If you don’t want to take lessons, at least make friends with and spend time hanging around listening to and playing with other musicians who play better than you. its the fastest way I’ve ever found to advance quickly on your skills as a self-taught musician.
December 15th, 2009 at 1:43 am
I tried teaching myself, and I didn’t like it. I just never thought to fully commit to teach myself any instrument. And I’m glad I didn’t because I would’ve been stuck.
Teaching yourself guitar (or any instrument) is a matter of deciding whether or not you want to be REALLY good (I’m not talking about making a career out of it, but for some that is a goal), and what your musical goals are.
If your goal is to just learn simple strumming songs on guitar then lessons aren’t necessary, but if you want to go further than that then lessons are the way to go.
Now if you CAN’T afford lessons then you have no choice but to teach yourself. That is the only valid reason to not get lessons for anything. Money is always an issue.
You will plateau at some point (not be able to move forward), which calls for someone to step in and get you back on track.
I’m not saying to NOT teach yourself, by all means do it if you want to. I’m just saying that you’re gonna need help down the road and that you’ll get frustrated more since you’re on your own.
Anyway, try this site:
December 15th, 2009 at 10:45 am
Do not try to pick instruments based on which would be easier. See what kind of music inspires you and choose your instrument accordingly. A guitar is easier to carry around and teach yourself.
Personally playing the guitar has brought me a lot of joy and I would recommend it to you without hesitation.
If you have no option but to learn it yourself make sure you get started from the basics.
Just ensure you get a good grounding in music theory before you get into the actual playing.
Here are some reference to get you started
1. Music Theory -
2. Guitar Basics -
3. Guitar Lessons -
I like the approach used on this site but ensure that you use some videos to supplement your learning
December 18th, 2009 at 12:05 pm
Hey, teaching yourself can be challenging.. but the good news is you don’t have to shell out major cash for private lessons.
Online guitar lessons are cheaper and in my opinion you get way more value for your money
check out they review the best online guitar lessons.
hope this helps.
December 21st, 2009 at 9:41 pm
In all honesty, it has been a challenge for me. I’ve been playing for two years, and I’m still only an intermediate. I’m just starting to sound ok at it. I play a lot of black and thrash metal, which has complex rhythms and solos. I am also self-taught, meaning I have never had any formal lessons, so thats also another factor as well. I went my own way because I want to be completely original and not be influenced by other players. If you just wanna play some simple songs, however, it’ll probably be fairly easy. its just a matter of setting the time aside to practice often enough.
December 23rd, 2009 at 2:36 pm
If you already know the basics of music- as in the basics of how the notes go then beginning guitar shouldn’t be too hard.
Before you learn guitar or piano you should know some basic theory. Again basic scales, you might want to learn to learn how the scales work.
But if you get a good book like Alfred’s Basic guitar method which is what i went by when I was learning, or something by Hal Leonard, it will probably include those basics in it.
The part that most people hate about guitar though is the small bit of pain while your fingers callus, and that’s why most people seem to give up.
If you can handle the pain during the first few weeks, (it’s really not that bad) than guitar would be great!
If you can’t then piano is also not too hard.
The one thing to remember is that you need to start with basics, it might be boring at first, but it will help you progress
December 25th, 2009 at 10:23 am
Buy a copy of the ‘Guitar Handbook” by Ralph Deyner. It will help a learning player greatly, and covers everything about guitars, playing, music theory, and sound. It has helped me teach many to play.
Subscribe to Guitar Player magazine, they have instructional sections and online lessons.
December 26th, 2009 at 5:39 am
A lot of bad habits can be picked up on guitar, especially without a tutor. There is a lot less to go wrong on piano. There is also a lot less to put you off. If one person learns guitar and another learns piano, if any of them give up it will be the guitarist first. Strings hurt your fingers and need tuning/replacing a lot more. I taught myself guitar and i’m good (if I do say so myself), but I wish I had a tutor, even if only for 2 or 3 lessons to get me started. It would be easier to learn piano and apply what you learn to guitar rather than the other way around since the notes on a piano are laid out simply from left to right. On guitar it is from left to right, up and down, and many notes are found twice in different places on the same isntrument.
December 26th, 2009 at 5:23 pm
I would say so. Everyone makes it out to be hard. Because with the mindset they have. they think it will take years to learn in a way its true because you should always be learning new things on guitar no matter how experienced you are.I taught my self it was a little hard at first but I kept on improving myself I’m pretty good now but I always try improving. You can go my route teach yourself which is more cost effective. If you can afford go to a teacher. If you decide to pick up an axe its fun and a blast to hear your own improvement.