What Should You Look For in a Guitar Teacher?
The best guitar teachers can make a world of difference to how much you learn and how quickly you progress. The right support can also keep you motivated, to reduce the risk of giving up when you start to learn guitar for the first time.
In this article, I'll look at some of the qualities you should look for in a guitar teacher, to help you find a local guitar tutor who matches the style of music and the way you want to learn. Check out my website to find out all about guitar teaching.
Training & Expertise
If you want to know how to find a good guitar teacher, training and expertise are both good places to start. Ideally you want to find a teacher with both.
Formal training gives guitar teachers the technical skills to help you progress, including helping you to get started learning guitar if you have little to no experience playing any musical instruments.
At the same time, there's no substitute for real-life experience. A good teacher will have years of guitar playing behind them. This can round off the hard edges of formal training and create a more natural, intuitive teaching style.
You can read more about my own training and experience here.
Their Reviews
Reviews from previous students are another important part of how to find a guitar teacher you can trust - but where's the best place to start when looking for guitar teacher reviews?
I have a page of student testimonials on my website complete with photos and video links, so you can be confident that my reviews are real!
When researching a new guitar teacher, look for students with SoundCloud or YouTube channels so you can see real evidence of what they have learned - don't take the teacher's word for it unless you already trust them.
Number of Students
It might not be possible to find out exactly how many students a teacher has - and the best guitar teachers don't necessarily have the most students - but this can be a useful rule of thumb.
When looking for guitar teachers with a solid number of students, you could ask outright, or ask related questions such as:
What is your availability in a normal week?
Can I book guitar lessons at short notice?
Do you have a job other than teaching guitar?
If your guitar teacher is earning a full-time living from giving guitar lessons, it's a good sign that they have a reasonably large number of regular students, all of which points in the direction of good quality guitar tuition.
Musical Styles
If you have a specific style or genre of music in mind, you need to know how to find a good guitar teacher in your chosen niche - it's no good learning jazz from a metal guitarist.
A good guitar teacher will have experience of different musical styles, as well as artists and bands within each genre, so they can teach you to play like your heroes. This is especially the case for learning electric guitar as the nature of the instrument allows for versatility.
I have experience - and performance videos to prove it - across rock, blues, jazz and pop.
Where They Are Based
If you want face-to-face guitar lessons, you'll need to know how to find a guitar teacher in your area and/or a guitar tutor who offers online lessons via video call or webcam.
I offer both in-person and online tuition from my home studio in north Leeds (Chapel Allerton, next to Meanwood and Roundhay, or further up from Leeds City Centre and Chapeltown but before Moortown and Alwoodley) and sometimes from a rented studio space in south Leeds (Holbeck area close to Wortley, Hunslet and Beeston), so if you're looking for guitar lessons in Leeds, I've got you covered for both in-person and online tuition.
Pricing
It's not always the case that the best guitar teachers cost the most, but as with most things, to some extent you do have to pay more for quality.
This shouldn't stop you from learning guitar - it's just a case of how to find a good guitar teacher within your budget - so weigh up the different price points and try to understand why one teacher charges more than another, and whether they're worth it.
Lesson Variation & Options
It's important for you to be able to learn in a way that suits you. That means keeping you motivated, building on your skills over time, and focusing on the kind of music you want to play.
A good guitar tutor will teach from a musicality perspective, and not just from a technical skills perspective. Some of the best guitarists in history never had formal tuition, so look for a guitar teacher who helps you to learn naturally too.
My method combines skills like transcription with broader musicality and learning from the masters of your chosen genre. I can provide you with guidance to practise between lessons, but also flexibility to focus on areas where you want to improve most.
Read more about my guitar teaching methods.
Their Personality
Last but not least, when looking for guitar teachers in your area, make sure you like their personality. You're going to be spending a lot of time together in future and may even end up jamming together in private and public performances.
Find a guitar teacher who you'd be happy to spend an hour a week with (or more) and who treats you fairly. That means friendly but also with the respect you deserve as a paying customer.
Ready to See How I Can Help You As A Guitar Teacher?
If you need any more advice on how to find a guitar teacher who suits you, please get in touch. I welcome all enquiries and I'll give you my honest opinion on how to get started learning guitar.
We can also have a no-obligation introductory lesson before you commit to a regular lesson plan, so if you don't feel like it's right for you, you can walk away with no ongoing commitment or further fees.
Read more blogs about guitars, music, and learning.
https://www.bryanguitar.co.uk/blog
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