The cost of guitar lessons

Let's say that the cost of guitar lessons does not matter to you. That all is well in the world of finances and that you are living well. Whether that really applies to you or not, you still don't want to waste your time or your money, right?

This page is not only about bang for your buck, but intelligent use of your time.

A few assumptions on my part.

In order to do this right, I'm going to have to make a few assumptions about you.

1. You have a real desire to not just play guitar, but deep down inside you want to be outstanding on the guitar. You know that is going to take time and intelligent utilization of resources available to you.
2. You live on planet earth and because of that you have a limited amount of time. Therefore, you need to make the most of the time available to you.
3. You have some money that you don't mind investing in yourself to become a better guitar player.
4. The cost of guitar lessons is a concern because you also have a life outside of just learning guitar.
5. You're wondering which direction to take on the choice of lessons and maybe even what options are available to you.

What kinds of guitar lessons are available and what does each type cost?

The type of guitar lessons you go for should match up with your personality and your available time and funds. Here are the types of lessons that I know about.

1. You were born with the gift, you learn from the information floating around you through whatever it is that you are tuned into, you pick up the guitar and it goes through you to your fingers. That doesn't happen too often.
2. You are born to musical parents and playing guitar is a little like learning to speak a language that is native to you.
3. You have friends that teach you. You hang around that type of crowd and you have them show you how to do it.
4. You choose a teacher and you take lessons.
5. You learn from free online sources.
6. You learn from a book.
7. You purchase a DVD course that presents lessons in an easy to follow sequence that builds skill upon skill until you have the fundamentals down.
8. You go to more courses that show you how to play specific styles and songs.

The cost of guitar lessons for each type.

1. You were born with the gift. The cost of this is time and effort. Even the most talented players have to take the time to transfer the skill that they naturally have. If they are really that good, chances are that's all they do and that's all they want to do.
2. Born to musical parents.The cost is time and devotion to playing and to lessons. Chances are the parents are willing to chip in big time for top level lessons or teach them to you.
3. Friends that teach you. The cost is your lifestyle. Not just hanging out with them but chances are, putting in lots of practice hours so that you are worth their time to be around. They are probably going to recommend courses and books to you also. I'll cover the cost of courses and books a little later.
4. Free online resources, YouTube. These are great, but they are not presented  in a logical or easy to follow manner. You can waste allot of time finding or figuring out what you should do next. Useful sometimes but not recommended as a primary way to learn.
5. You can learn from a book. I never had much success with books because I like to see what I am supposed to do with an actual person or from video. Books run anywhere from $10 To $25 a piece. Most of the cost is the waste of time trying to figure out why they lost their mind in the 4th chapter. Books almost always start out good but lose something right after they figure you read the first of the book and are ready to buy it.
6. You choose a teacher and take lessons. The cost of guitar lessons from a teacher varies somewhat. but you can bank on right around $2000 a year and that can vary depending on your level and style. That along with travel time is a considerable investment.
7. You can choose to learn from DVD courses or downloadable courses that are available on the internet. These are the best way to keep the cost of guitar lessons down and save allot of time. A basic course can run from less than $100 to about $250. The best ones have a way to get some feedback from the teacher.
8. Specialized DVD or downloadable courses for specific techniques and styles are also very effective and time efficient. They cost anywhere from $29 to $100 or so.

Cost or investment?

Money spent on the right lessons is an investment in you.

Cost is time wasted by not spending the necessary time and money on yourself and your continuing skills as a guitarist.

What you can get out of it, is determined by the quality of the course, how it matches your learning style and the time, attention and devotion you put into it. The best courses and teachers are the ones that motivate you to do your best and become your best. Choose the course, courses and teachers that are right for you so you can make the fastest progress.

Recommended courses are coming soon.

Here's to you continued success,

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