Online Electric Guitar Lessons

Who Should Consider Online Electric Guitar Lessons?

Electric guitar lessons online might be right for you if:

• You are not completely new to the guitar: Online lessons might be the right fit if you have some idea of the proper way to hold the guitar itself and the pick, you’re familiar with proper tuning, and you can read some basic music.
• You have a busy schedule: If your life always seems to be in flux, and you never really know if you’re going to be able to make a scheduled guitar lesson until the very last minute, online lessons are probably a better choice.
• You’re a self starter: If you can motivate yourself to log in and do those lessons even when the couch looks a lot more inviting, online electric guitar lessons are a great choice.

One facet of learning the guitar online has both good and bad points. If you have a phobia about playing in front of people in a guitar lesson, be it one-on-one or a group class, online lessons remove this prospect from the equation. Although this can be helpful for awhile, it can also become a crutch. Remember, if you’re hoping to play your guitar in front of an audience some day, you’re going to have to get used to people hearing you!

Who Should Consider Traditional Guitar Lessons?

Learning to play the guitar online is not for everyone. Heading out to take classes in person might be the ideal choice if:

• You are brand new to the guitar: Do you have to check in with MTV to see which end is up? Maybe you don’t know how to tune your guitar or change strings if one breaks, and you don’t know anything about reading music. If you wing it as a newbie, you can develop bad habits that will impact your playing as you try to move to more advanced music. Once established, bad habits are hard to break.
• You're not great on follow through: Have you ever joined a gym, signed up for a cooking class or bought “teach yourself” foreign language tapes and then lost interest before you really got started? Sometimes, having a commitment to attend a class in person that you have to pay for whether or not you show up is just the motivation you need.
• Your schedule is pretty flexible and stable: If you can easily commit to once a week classes, this may be a better way to go. Taking personal instructions from a teacher gives you the opportunity to have mistakes corrected immediately, and you can have your questions answered right away.

Also, you should consider your particular learning style. When you were in school, did you learn by listening to the teacher and taking notes, or did you prefer to take your books and class handouts and really teach yourself the material? If you learn by watching, go for traditional classes, and if you learn by working your way through material yourself, online classes can be a good choice for you.

Find Electric Guitar Lessons Online

There are plenty of places online you access electric guitar tutorials and lessons, and the links below will take you to some of our favorites. The even better news is that most of them are free. Simply find a course that matches your electric guitar playing level and one you find easy to follow.

• Stone Dragon: Stone Dragon promises to take you from “absolute beginner to experienced player”, and the nine electric guitar lessons walk you through the basics to the good stuff.

• Fender’s Players Club: Fender, the brains behind some of the most coveted electric guitars, brings you these basic electric guitar lessons.

• Electric Guitar: This UK based website focuses on teaching you to play, plus teaching you music theory that will enhance both your guitar playing and knowledge of music in general.

If you’re nervous about settling on a method of learning the electric guitar, relax. Remember, you can always switch from online to traditional classes, or vice versa, if you find your chosen method isn’t working out for you. Sometimes a combination of both can be the most beneficial.