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You Don’t Just Want to LEARN to Play Guitar, You
Want to Master It, Right?
You’ve probably come to this site because you want to learn to play guitar or improve on your existing foundations. You’re finding music to be a really valuable part of your life and the expression it brings is really valuable to you. Feeling the creative rush as you learn a new chord, song or lead line is really great isn’t it? We are guitarists, maybe each of us at a different point in our journey…when just starting out we have no real idea what to do with this hunk of wood, but we’re intrigued…as intermediate players, we know the basics, know how to play chords, maybe understand key signatures a little and maybe can rock a little lead guitar, but we want to improve…as advanced players, we know our foundations of music theory. We know chords, keys, scales and maybe even modulations, but we still want to improve…refine our technique, our composition. One question we all have as guitarists is who should we learn from? Who is going to really make a connection and help us get better at guitar? Are private lessons the way to go, they can be quite expensive and scheduling can become problematic. What if you could learn guitar from the comfort of your home and at your own pace, plus have that same level of attention you get from a personal teacher?
There are so many guitar courses and lessons on the web that it can be pretty overwhelming trying to find something that’s actually going to be useful. One thing that helps us sort through the crap and find something useful is research, and more specifically the research of others. That way we don’t have to do all the hard work. I thought it would be helpful to take some of the top selling guitar courses that are available online and give you the rundown on features, pros, cons and price points to help you in your decision making process.
Below is a list of 4 of the best guitar courses available on the web with a breakdown of what you get.
Learn And Master Guitar Review:
The Learn and Master Guitar program is owned by Gibson and being that is’s a big dog product, the value and content provided are pretty high. Just like a Gibson guitar, it’s pretty expensive, but it’s like the old saying goes, “You get what you pay for”. The lessons come on DVD and are really well laid out, whether you’re just a beginner or advanced, they have you covered. With these lessons you get all the standard and modern techniques that we need to use as guitarists.
Another thing that Learn and Master Guitar comes with is printed materials, which adds a lot to its value when you don’t want to be glued to a screen watching videos. Their workbooks have the songs from the videos as well as typed out lessons. One other REALLY strong point is that you get a set of Jam-Along CDs included (5 of them), which helps out a ton when practicing. Being able to play along is probably one of, if not the, strongest learning tools you can have. When we see, hear and repeat something back we actually are able to retain it over 80% more than if we had one of those modalities alone.
With all this already in the bag, the addition of online content just adds to why this product is so good. You have access to the forums, can ask questions, and get answers pretty quickly. Steve Krenz is the course teacher and he is online quite a bit, so you can ask him questions directly. If you’re really serious about getting better at guitar fast then Learn and Master Guitar is a really good course to try. Visit the Learn and Master Guitar Website
Quick Guitar Tricks Review:
Guitar Tricks is an online membership program and great if you don’t want to deal with the hassle of having a bunch of books and DVD’s crowding up your room. The site that contains more than 3,500 guitar lessons, and they have around 45 guitar instructors, so you are able to find a teacher who’s style resonates with you. Their lessons range from beginner to advanced and also cover a lot of different musical styles. Another cool thing is that the lessons are available in mp3 format, so you can throw them on a digital player and take it and your guitar anywhere you want.
The online content and community at Guitar Tricks is really a good one and the freedom and fluency you’ll find with the site are top-notch. They are one of the very best online guitar courses you’ll come across. With so many lessons, teachers, styles and updates available on the site, there really is enough content to stay with you as you progress through your guitar playing journey. Oh and BTW, they have a FREE Membership option which lets you try it out without being locked in. With the Freebie option you get 24 lessons to try out and have access to the forums. Try before you buy is ALWAYS a good thing. Visit GuitarTricks website
JamPlay Review:
JamPlay is pretty similar to Guitar Tricks, in that they’re both online courses, have a ton of lessons, and a both have a lot of instructors to choose from. The production quality and content is really stellar and one neat thing JamPlay has is multiple camera angles, so you can see just what’s going on. Another pretty neat thing they have to offer is webcam sessions, where you get to learn in front of an instuctor in real-time (basically like an in-person, private lesson).
JamPlay is an excellent guitar site that will really help you as you learn to play guitar. Although it’s a bit more expensive than Guitar Tricks (JamPlay runs $19.95/month), it’s still much cheaper than if you took private lessons, which at minimum cost you $300-$400/month. Clearly the value is there and the education is there, so it’s definitely worth checking out and you can trust that it WILL help you improve in your guitar playing, no doubt. Visit the JamPlay website
Jamorama Review:
We’ve already looked at two other guitar learning courses online and Jamorama is our third and final of the Top 4 courses to help you learn to play guitar. Why’d I leave them for last? Well, as they say “Save the best for last.” Now let me qualify that.
First, Jamorama is the cheapest of all the courses and that is a HUGE factor for many of us, as we don’t just have a ton of extra cash floating around and as human beings we want the best value, so when something is great quality and the most affordable, we gravitate to it. That’s probably one reason Jamorama’s been so successful (Plus the guys who work there are really good people and believe in helping you as much as they can).
Personality, trust and Authenticity are really big factors to consider in products. These guys deliver on all those fronts. The lessons are easy to follow, provide great content, and are especially geared toward the beginner guitarist, who, let’s face it, needs the most attention and explanation. Why?…Because we’re just learning, there’s a ton of things to know, and so we want it simple and easy to follow.
Some additional content you get on top of the lessons are their GuitearIt software (helps train your ear to recognize guitar chords) and Jayde Musica Pro, which will help you in learning to read music (truly an invaluable skill if you want to become a composer or session musician one day).
Jamorama is an insane value and probably the BEST course under $100 you could ever find or create for that matter. Visit the Jamorama website
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