Learning to Play Guitar Online vs. Offline

If you’ve always wanted to be able to pick like a rock star, then you’ll be delighted to know that you can start immediately by learning to play guitar online.

But is learning to play online as good as learning in person? And what does it mean to learn online?

You can learn the basics of guitar playing online as well as you can by working with an in-person instructor. Online diagrams let you compare your finger placement for chords with the picture on screen. Online video tutorials and guitar learning software allow you to watch sequences over and over, which is something you can’t do with an in-person tutor.

As you gain experience, a variety of websites offer advanced video tutorials with professional and experienced instructors and interactive lessons over Skype with a webcam. Essentially, if you’re learning over Skype, you are in-person and the lessons have proven to be just as effective. Learning to play guitar online gives you access to experts you might not otherwise be able to find or afford.

Lessons from an in-person expert guitar instructor can cost as much as $65 an hour. Lessons through guitar learning software or experts online can cost as little as $5 a lesson. Consider combining resources by learning routines through software or video and then taking live lessons from experts.

Suppose you want to learn a particular style of guitar and you can’t find someone local who teaches that style? Again the internet can serve up a variety of resources to meet your exact needs, allowing you to search for and "interview" different experts quickly. Some websites even offer video streaming in high definition for a small monthly fee and include jam sessions with some great guitar players.

The clear advantages to learning to play guitar online is convenience and cost. You do not have to travel to and from a teacher’s location, you can find software resources for studying any time of the day or night, and you can move at your own pace on your schedule.

Perhaps the biggest challenge to learning to play guitar online is selecting the right sites when you’re new to guitar. Some are great. Others are not so great. The only way to know is to compare and read reviews. Many sites offer free lessons or trial periods to allow you to make that comparison and try them out.

No matter what site you choose, you’ll still have to practice at least 20 minutes a day. Most guitar tutors agree that the practice makes more difference than the instructor, at least until you’ve reached the advanced level.

If you want to learn more about topics related to playing guitar online or guitar learning software; just click on Learn Classical Guitar or, for even more info, take a look at Classical Guitar Lessons.