subject: 3 Questions To Ask A Potential Guitar Teacher [print this page] Even with all the great online video lessons and DVDs available taking private guitar instruction from a local teacher is still the best method for beginners to learn. The tough part can be finding a great teacher that you feel good about and also seems to have their stuff together.
In this article I'll share three questions for you to ask any prospective guitar teacher before you decide to fork over money for private lessons from them. After you get the answers to these three questions and decide if you could get along with this individual as a teacher you'll be ready to make your decision about them.
Experience How did they Learn
It's important to know how they learned to play guitar? Was it through a formal music education? Or a series of books and self teaching? Some teachers will talk good but when it comes to teaching more advanced concepts or just understanding how to best teach the material in general they come up short wasting your money and your time.
Look for a guitar teacher who has had formal training either from another teacher or school. This will ensure that they have a good understanding of how best to teach the basics to beginners.
How Many Students
How many guitar students a teacher can handle has a lot to do with how much they're teaching. Is it a part-time gig for them or is it their full-time job? A part-time teacher who takes on too many students can be a nightmare for you if you have a question that may take longer then the scheduled lesson time to answer. If there are other students waiting for their lessons it can also cut your time short.
There's nothing wrong with taking lessons from someone who teaches part-time just be sure they don't overload themselves with too many students at once.
Their Teaching Style
There are quite a few different ways some people teach guitar. Some teachers use popular songs to teach students, while others will require their students to purchase a course book that lays out the basics lesson plan they will follow.
Personally I'm a fan of an organized lesson plan. This ensures that you learn important concepts right off the bat before you start learning to play songs.
Depending on the experience of your teacher they may be able to create custom lesson plans for you, but be weary of someone who wants to teach you guitar by starting you off with smoke on the water or another popular song.
One thing to note is while price shouldn't be the only guiding factor expect to see prices range from $25-$75 for an hour lesson. This is the going rate and by using the answers to the above three questions, the price per lesson and you gut feeling about the instructor you should make the right choice.
