By Nicholas Anderson
There is one thing that your guitar teacher is probably not doing that he should. Truthfully, this is one thing among many, but it is the one thing that almost every guitar teacher leaves out of his training. This one simple thing can absolutely make or break you as a student of guitar. If he does do this, you will flourish. If he does not, you will likely find yourself at a loss and experience a great deal of frustration all on top of not making a lot of musical progress. This one thing is so important that I make sure I include it in every lesson I give.
The one thing that every guitar teacher should do, but probably does not do, is this: He should teach you exactly how and what to practice. Surprisingly, many guitar teachers do not do this. It is very common that a student is given new material each week with a little bit of explanation and then sent on their way until the following week. Sometimes the student does not have any idea what they are supposed to do with the information they got, so they don’t work on it. Consequently, they make little or no real progress in their playing from week to week. This commonly leads to students feeling frustrated that they aren’t reaching their goals. A lot of students give up or feel that they don’t “have it” because they aren’t as good as they think they should be.
Sadly, most students who feel that they don’t “have it” are mistaken, but have no one who can show them how to effectively practice so that they make significant progress in their playing. A good guitar teacher will not only give you good material, he will demonstrate himself and make YOU demonstrate to HIM exactly how you should practice during the week. But it doesn’t stop there. A really good teacher can break everything down into smaller parts and show you exactly how to deal with particular problems – whether it’s a beginner changing between chords or an advanced blues player working on phrasing techniques.
If you’re interested in a teacher who know how to help you practice effectively and solve your playing problem, go here to apply for admission and start making progress like never before.