While many learners will find it more convenient and much easier to learn online or with DVD’s in their own homes, some may prefer the added guidance that a private guitar instructor can only provide. If you are one of those people then I recommend you find a qualified local instructor with lots of experience in teaching guitar. For that I would suggest you check out TakeLessons.com. There are a few reasons that I prefer this site for finding instructors…
First of all, the instructors are top notch. They have to go through a seven-step review process to even be featured on the TakeLessons website. Only the top 5% of applicants are chosen. The review process includes the instructor submitting a full job application with audio and video examples of their playing and teaching styles. They are then interviewed, references are checked, and a criminal background check is run every year to ensure the safety of students. They are consistently provided with teacher training, reviewed based on customer quality feedback scores. The goal is to weed out all of the bad instructors and provide you with only the top instructors who have great teaching styles, are safe to let in your home, and really make learning a lot of fun.
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TakeLessons instructors use a program called the S.T.A.R. Program to help you set and maintain your goals while taking guitar lessons. The S.T.A.R. acronym stands for:
S – Setting musical goals
T – Tracking your progress
A – Achieving a little more each week
R – Rewarding accomplishments
Each students program is specifically designed for them using this system based on their goals and personal challenges. Things that are considered when designing a program are styles of music, type of guitar, and what techniques and methods you would like to learn. Musical notation or tablature? Jazz or rock? You decide!
As with most private instruction, pricing depends greatly on location. It is also dependent upon the length of each session. But one of the great things about TakeLessons is that you pay for the lessons in advance right on the website. So when you show up for your lessons there is no payment to be dealt with. You can either purchase monthly or quarterly package and every 13th lesson is free with the quarterly package. Depending on your preferences, lessons will be held either once or twice a week.
The actual lesson can take place either in the instructors private studio or home. Some instructors will even travel to you as long as you are within a specified distance from them. The recommended session length for children is 10 to 30 minutes but you can decide for yourself based on the child’s attention span. For adults, 45 to 60 minute lessons are recommended depending on the amount of guidance needed. You can adjust the lesson length at any time if it is not working for you.
Of course no good offer is complete without the guarantee and this site is no exception. Some instructors and students just might not be the right match for each other. And with that in mind TakeLessons wanted to make it’s students a promise. If you go to your first lesson and are not satisfied for whatever reason, they will either find you a new instructor or completely refund ALL of your money (including what you paid for the first lesson). I know you can’t get that sort of deal with any other instructor because they definitely want to be paid for their time.
TakeLessons is a very unique service connecting guitar students to exceptionally qualified instructors. I could tell you more about them but I think you should just go check them out. Click on their banner below.
