Private internet lessons.

[Silverman]

Hi all,


I am self taught, never taken a lesson a day in my life. I assume most of the folks here are quite competent guitarists and may be beyond such things, so I may be barking up the wrong tree. Speaking for myself, as only one can, I would still consider myself an intermediate and I think about cheap ways to get pointers from time to time.

I thought some private lessons from some of websites such as takelessons.com might do be an option. The problem is, it is hard to find any information from consumers who aren't beginners or marketers.

So I forward the question to the esteemed PRS community thusly, has anyone had any good or bad experience with these internet lessons website, and if good tell me about it!

 

[Huggy Love]

I think you should be able to find enough free lessons on youtube that you won't need to spend money on internet lessons.
Just make a list of the things you want to learn & master, type in the search words, bookmark them, practice, use your ear(like you have been doing), and ......wham-o!!!..........before you know it, you'll be a stud.

 

[dmatthews]

I looked at the title
But then I realized it's about guitar.

 

[Dusty Chalk]

I think you should be able to find enough free lessons on youtube that you won't need to spend money on internet lessons.
Just make a list of the things you want to learn & master, type in the search words, bookmark them, practice, use your ear(like you have been doing), and ......wham-o!!!..........before you know it, you'll be a stud.

I disagree, I think as long as you don't yet consider yourself an excellent guitarist and are still looking for pointers, the single most important thing you can do is to have a teacher watch you play and critique your form.

OP: Sorry, don't have any specific advice, I just found a local guy for cheap who's good. I know Greg Howard does internet lessons, but he's Chapman Stick, not guitar.

 

[Silverman]

I disagree, I think as long as you don't yet consider yourself an excellent guitarist and are still looking for pointers, the single most important thing you can do is to have a teacher watch you play and critique your form.

OP: Sorry, don't have any specific advice, I just found a local guy for cheap who's good. I know Greg Howard does internet lessons, but he's Chapman Stick, not guitar.

Yeah, you got it. The free internet stuff has taken me a long way and taught me a lot, but I'm looking for a cheap way tog get some professional, personalized advice. I guess there are no short cuts and I should look to my local community. Hate paying the exorbitant prices though.

 

[Huggy Love]

have a teacher watch you play and critique your form.

I find that slightly unnecessary, sure there are some rules for beginners to stick to, but "form" never got in the way of any of my growth as a player.
Besides, most of the vid lessons clearly display the form & technique in close up shots, his ears will tell him the rest. (Mind you, I don't go on youtube for much lessons, just jazz standard backing tracks to solo over)

Bottom line: If he really needs hands on guidance then in-person lessons would probably be much more effective than online lessons.

 

[Dusty Chalk]

I find that slightly unnecessary, sure there are some rules for beginners to stick to, but "form" never got in the way of any of my growth as a player.

No, I understand this. But you didn't post asking for lessons. I honestly think there are some players who are just intuitive about their form, and then there are people like me that need to be told how to hold the pick, fer pete's sake. I think you are your own best critic, and if you think you need help improving enough to ask for it, then I stand by my recommendation.

The long and short of it is, most YouTube videos and whatnot give you general pointers, but if your form is strong in all areas except one or two, there's nothing like a good teacher watching you and telling you not to hunch your shoulders, or hold the neck this way, or quit concentrating so much on where your thumb is, or concentrate on timing, etc. It's also nice to hear, "everything else is good, keep it up" once in a while.

 

[László]

Music lessons aren't exorbitantly priced and are worth the dough. Just my opinion.

 

[CVS]

I think that there is a place and time for both types of lessons (face to face & internet/videos) depending on where you are as a player and what it is you want to learn.
Beginners and advanced beginners need face to face lessons and feedback from an expert, as many of the issues beginners face relate to poster and basic technique (example - how to finger a chord properly - from the shoulder / wrist right down to the fingers, another example, where to rest your right hand when finger picking or strumming a chord)
Once the basics are in place, internet based lessons become a viable option. The only thing internet based lessons lack is what I will refer to as "feedback on how the student is doing". In all other respects, most reputable internet guitar lesson sites are much better (quality of teachers, camera angles, tab etc)

I myself have used both over the last 5 years, sometimes in combination / tandem. As my playing has gotten better, I have gone more and more to internet based training. One of the things I have learned is "how I learn best"

Good music teachers will be integrating internet based lessons into their face to face lessons going forward more & more.

I know this is controversial at best, and in the end each person has to figure out what works best for them.

In closing, I do think that there is a place for internet based lessons. I wish they had been around in the 70's when I was learning how to play.

 

[pac90]

http://www.paulgilbert.com/guitar-school/

 

[alexanderraimo]

If you're open to Skype lessons, I know of two guitarists who do guitar lessons.

Both are excellent guitar players, one is in a pretty big band, and a super cool guy, and the other is in a little less known band, but more has more availability to teach.

Seth Morrison from Skillet: [email protected]

Justin Forshaw from As We Ascend (former We As Human): [email protected]

 

[IKnowALittle]

lots of really good advice proffered. take advantage of all the free instruction available. lessons from a quality teacher are always a good idea and valuable.
i don't know very much, but let me share what worked for me.
learn and transcribe some songs that you like/respect on your own.
you will stumble and fall, but you will also succeed, and the transcriptions or tab (to verify), for virtually every song in the universe is easily accessible ... unlike when i was learning. but i will stop whining.
you will learn a ton. it's difficult, but well worth it.
it will also test your commitment.

if you truly are an intermediate guitarist, these should be right in your "sweet spot". can't go wrong with these guys ... i mean zztop, but this is the best version of this song i've seen or heard, and there is a ton of PRS content.

this is my #1 suggestion. learn this. tons of classic and tasty licks. not terribly difficult, sounds fabulous, should be right in your wheelhouse. from the most important and influential guitarist (just my opinion) in rock. he preceded everyone.

good luck.

p.s. ... i posted a couple of videos by mark crissenger. they would be useful also. lots of guitarists disagree, but "the blues" is the absolute and unequivocal basis for rock guitar.