Is A Guitar Teacher The Fastest Way To Learn? My Experience 🤨 

What is your experience with guitar lessons? 7 Hard Guitar Skills That Pay Off Forever: ru-vid.com/video/%D0%B2%D0%B8%D0%B4%D0%B5%D0%BE-TSXJe7YkI_k.html

Hello Jens, as a seasoned teacher at guitar, piano and trumpet approaching his 70th birthday I thought this video was right on the money. On line lessons kept us going in lockdown but face to face is the real deal. You get to know your students personally, understanding what each needs and tailor the lesson accordingly. I Hope in encourages more learners to get proper lessons, it works!

My experience with all the teachers I've had is I've felt like the reason they're there is to make money. They'd show stuff to learn, explain little, and be as vague as a politician when you ask a question. The best teacher I ever had (believe it or not) was college educated jazz musician that was a miserable drunk who hated his job and disappointed how his musical career and life in general (divorced and his kids wouldn't talk to him) ended up. He wasn't remotely interested in you as a student and could care less if you practiced or not. He'd stagger in late for lessons and your lesson was exactly 30 minutes on a stop watch and you're done! BUT he was the ONLY teacher I ever had that when I'd ask a question he'd give me a direct, clear answer that seemed to make sense and sounded like he knew what he was talking about. I learned so much from him, he opened my eyes up and I was able to figure out a lot of stuff on my own because of the information he gave me helped things fall into place. Not just playing guitar but how music works in general. Eventually he quit teaching professionally when he lost his driver's license and then the music store closed, and he really couldn't stomach teaching anymore.

I’ve had lessons with many teachers . And i would say they all are great jazz guitarists among other styles they venture in. That being said not all players are good teachers . I messed up a melody in a lesson , the rest of the hour lesson i got lectured on why it’s important to know the song (Melody ) … although he has a point , i was afraid to mess up again because of the lecture .. he knew his stuff but lacked patience.. i got better at practice in the end result because at the end of the day i had to take responsibility for my practice. I’ve moved on to another teacher and I’m making better progress although the months of my torture with the other guy was the negative,i did take something from it .

I got a great deal out of your Jazz Guitar Course, which was the first formal tuition I've had in music. After that, I realised how important structure and guidance was in my learning, so I found a 1-1 teacher. I couldn't be happier with my progress.

Starting in person lessons next week so exited!

I started with an in-person teacher, transitioning to Skype when he moved away. Still, he knows my strengths and weaknesses and we communicate well. When I found you, I shared your videos with him and we began using them as additional examples to what we were concentrating on. I recently added your Roadmap course as an adjunct; it adds a new dimension and my teacher (who has become a good friend) is thrilled that I did. He's about the music, not the ego. Both of you bless my life.

Totally agree Jens. Zoom lessons can be great but I’ve found a combination of online and in person is much better. I always suggest people find a local teacher who can play and teach and they’ll be good to go

That part where you were holding a beer and potato chips is so true lol. I feel that's the worst part of youtube lessons and lots of courses is that they fall into this marketing buzzword called "infotainment." It's a big problem I've always had with the hot licks videos as, much as I love watching Joe Pass, it was so hard way back years after starting playing....to digest many of the concepts he was talking about. More information is just not great if it's not structured and presented in a way that you can follow along easily and understand simply. Great video as usual Jens!

The most important things a teacher can do is inspire, encourage and install enthusiasm in the student.

I've found that jazz guitarists make the best guitar teachers for a number of reasons. They're often very inquisitive about many genres as well. Many of them have had to earn a living playing music that they otherwise would never play on their own. That gives them the ability to figure out things that most people would never approach. One great thing about teaching is it forces you to relearn everything.

I went to the RMC here in Canada in theory and composition, I started at le Conservatoire du Québec for violin. So I had a lot of _music professors_ . Only one had any jazz background. I picked-up the guitar at 15 and took a year of classical lessons at the store I bought my first guitar. International Musicland in Prince-Edward-Island, Canada. I wanted to play hard rock, so I learned by ear off records/tapes and with guitar magazines. I had no teachers outside the Conservatory. I was given pretty much everything I needed from there. Only the practice time was needed to bring the chops up. BTW: Learning from RU-vid videos while drinking beer and eating potato chips! 😂 That's me!! 🤣 Thank you for all the great lessons, Mr. Larsen!!

I ‘LOLLED’ big time when you turned around with the beer and potato chips ha ha !! If there was a tv as well with the sound off , you’d be in my lounge room. I need to stop doing that…. Great as always Jens !! 😅

Hi Jens thanks so much for this video! Great points!

Moin Jens Larsen, This is a great video with true words, i bought 2 of your books from fundamental changes, i started with the easier one and it's great, thanks a lot Greetings Harry

A great video Jens! As a guitar teacher here in South Africa I can relate to all the subject matter you have expressed so eloquently in the video.

could you upload more live gig videos jens. you include bits and pieces of your live sessions in these videos. i'd love to see longer videos. maybe steal some licks and phrases there too..

Great video! I tell students that if they want to learn jazz they need to listen to a lot of jazz - and not just guitarists. They need to be passionate about the jazz genre.

Hi Jens! I'm an 80 year old guy who has always loved jazz. I started on an acoustic guitar at 19. Had a mentor that I met while in the Air Force, who unfortunately died at a young age. For most of the time since then I played cowboy chords, although I did learn Travis-style fingerpicking. Through the years I spent a lot of time woodshedding by myself, which I realize is not necessarily good. I got to the point where I was anxious about playing and making mistakes in public. The problem is I live in a town 15 miles out of Portland, OR, where there's a dearth of available jazz guitarists for face-to-face lessons. I took a brief series of online skype lessons offered by a community college, but didn't learn anything useful from the instructor. I went electric a few years ago, and now have a PRS hollowbody, which is a fine axe. But the good news is that a little over a year ago I joined a big band, where I'm playing rhythm! Being exposed to other musicians playing the musical genres I like, gigging with the band, and by necessity having to learn the most efficient ways to comp while staying out of the bassist's way (don't play power chords) has been great exposure for me. Arguably the next best thing to having in-person lessons.

In person lessons are just soooo much better. I think some people can make online lessons work. I put effort in getting a good sound and camera setup to try to makeup for the quality loss and it can work ok sometimes. It also depends on the student. If they’re intermediate students it’s less of a problem but if they are very new, new to music period, or have a learning disability it can be challenging, and they get more immediate feedback and clearer instructions. It’s also easy to miss stuff as an instructor. They may have poor lighting, or a low quality device and we may not clearly see some fundamental technique mistakes, and I find it so important to develop those good habits early on.

I spent my life learning the guitar at home on my own. I used books, copied leads from records and learn from my friends too. Life happened and made my musical life an on-and-off occasion. Now that I use a phone as part of my musical education, my understanding has been much better and constant. Jen's has been a big factor in playing and musical understanding and I'm a better player and I'm rarely without direction or motivation. Yes, if I could have afforded a teacher it would have been faster and less confusing mainly learning to play Jazz. Don't get me wrong, I'm not a Jazz player, but it influences my music a lot. Thanks Jen!

The jazz guitar roadmap is awesome 😎

"Jazz is just not a solo art form". Perhaps I'm misunderstanding your intent behind this statement but artists who can play these beautiful chordal melodies are the reason I was inspired to learn Jazz. When I look at artists like Joe Pass and Jim Hall who could sit down alone and deliver a wonderful concert experience, I think of them as solo artists.

I only started learning how to play guitar about a month ago & I'm documenting my journey on here but this is both super motivational & inspirational! Time to source a great local teacher.

Hello, I don't teach guitar, but I teach Data Science & innovtion to students. I have found that 1:1 face to face tuition is by far the most effective way for two way communication. As the teacher and student can easily pivot on a given subject once it is clear the level of understanding of a student on a given topic. Failing face to face, 1:1 tuition is probably the next effective means. Due to part that you may not always be co-located with a student. Third most effective is a student watching videos/reading books and other 3rd hand reference methods. Yes and No. For a new student starting off this third method is probably less effective, due to their lack of concepts and context on how to apply such concept. However for a student with a deep background that is looking to try a new concept, this third option can be effective. However I would say that if you have a growth mindset a student can make any training situation/setup work to their advantage. All the best Jonathan

"First: Tonewood". You're hilarious.

Started piano as a second instrument with a killer vibe and piano player. I didn’t read but he kicked me into the deep end with Jobim arrangements. Some tunes took months to decipher. So while I learned to play some hard tunes pretty well after 4 yrs of working at it I had some seriously huge rudimentary holes I had to fill on my own and my reading skills weren’t developed since the material I was working with was to challenging to effectively read. When he demonstrated lines over an arrangement they were technically way beyond me. Finally gave up, dug up some beginner books to improve reading, went online and actually made progress….your friend Ames Nolte has killer online lessons as do you. I can see where the right instructor would be beneficial but finding the Right instructor is the critical element. Jamming with killer players is one of the best ways to improve.

I very much agree that lessons in person are really helpful. I know just enough to recognize possibilities and be lost. My instructor helps me focus on what I need to do next saving me so much time being lost in the mystery.

I studied with the late great Harry Leahey for 2 years after playing for 12 years trying to learn jazz on my own. Harry showed me things that would have taken me much longer to learn by myself. Also he was a great performer. In my career I have met many reachers who could not perform. My view is to find a teacher who can also perform and has turned out exceptional students.

took lessons for two three years when i first started playing it helped a lot teacher exposed me to different types of music even though i mainly wanted to learn rock sset me up with a great foundation and he always new when i didn't practice enough

I was around 12 when I started playing the guitar. It was the early '80s. My first three guitar teachers were all essentially scam artists who either couldn't, or wouldn't, teach me anything about music theory, much less guide me along a better path than the one I was on. They just showed me licks, or how to play songs, all without explaining why this or that chord was named as such, what was going on rhythmically, melodically, harmonically, etc. Being the naive youngster that I was, I deferred to their honorific title of "guitar teacher" and followed what I thought at the time was sage advice. After seven years of that, I still didn't know the notes on the neck, intervals, the modes, why chords were major, minor, diminished, etc. After all the time that I'd spent practicing, and money that my mom wasted on me to have lessons, I was nowhere near where I should've been. All of those so-called 'teachers' promoted this idea that the mysteries of music would eventually reveal themselves to me over time but that I just needed to be patient, practice more, and continue with their lessons. After my first, and last, garage band experience, I'd heard from my former bandmate that he'd enrolled in a fledgling music school in Atlanta that was connected with GIT in Los Angeles, California. After just a couple of months, he went from being well behind where I was, to eclipsing far ahead of where I was. Luckily, we were also good friends and he'd pass on some of what he'd learned on to me. In one ten-minute phone conversation, I'd learned the layout of the notes on the neck. There was no mystery to it at all. It was actually really quite simple and easy. It was during that phone call that I'd realized what I'd increasingly suspected all along about my guitar teachers. Needless to say, I quit my lessons and started inquiring about my friend's school. While the school was ultimately too expensive for my budget, some of the teachers there offered private lessons on the side -- and I could afford that. My friend kept raving about this one teacher that I supposedly just had to go see. When I did finally get to catch him at a small gig in Atlanta, I was blown away. But it wasn't just his playing, it was also his approachable, humble, sincere, and easy going manner. A couple weeks later, I got in touch with him and we eventually had our first lesson at his home. I learned more in that one lesson that in all my previous years combined. Again, there was no mystery or magic involved. For the first time ever, I came to understand what music is made of -- and the nigh limitless possibilities within it. Needless to say, I continued with the lessons for as long as I could. As his career began to take off, it became increasingly difficult to get lessons with him. Despite my selfish reasons for wanting to continue the lessons, I was more than happy to witness his evolution and well-deserved success. To Jimmy Herring, the greatest guitar teacher I ever had. With so many variables involved, like most things in life, in-person (private) lessons can either be the best thing ever, or just a massive waste of time and money.

Here are some observations from places in the head; 1) I've had brilliant teachers and terrible teachers; however, most cluster somewhere in the middle. 2) Most teachers have focused on the technical and finger aspects of playing. Only two addressed the internal motivation and related processes involved and musicianship. Both were enormously valuable, but polar opposites in approach. The first one was crude and rude; when I expressed my frustration over my lack of musicality and jagged flow, he told me my practice was that of a "pussy", (not feline type) that I did not drill and would never learn to play, until I mastered drills. Of course, I stopped and stewed for a while but over time I came to see that that was the exact remedy for my most prominent musical disabilities. The second would become so excited at the tinniest insight or progress, that he would go off on theory tangents, and connect what I was doing to all sorts of interesting things. He was a composer with a Ph.D., and he was easily able to put things simply and did not hide behind jargon- he made things clear and logical. Both Influenced my thinking and playing enormously. In that year of study, I never heard the phrase "I don't know" or I'll get back to you on that" - each question generated a pyramid of unimagined relationships and possibilities. Both teachers moved me further than any others and I liked most of the others, very much. 3) Music happens in the head, not the fingers-I think it was Galper who said, "You are the instrument, not the keyboard" (or fretboard) 4) There are developmental leaps and plateaus; I've made friends with the plateaus and approach them as consolidation meditations. When I notice a leap episode, I focus on eliminating my bad habits- I get metronome going, focus on the exercise, and, limit my scope. I shoot for the "one perfect repetition" while realizing that it is not under my direct conscious control and just let what happens happen without emotion, not avoiding or trying to make a thing happen. Then, like a samurai bowman on horseback, I hit the target on occasion without really looking. I note it, though it's not an occasion for celebration. 5) My ears have developed, mostly unnoticed; I know that it is important to work on them, but I felt I had too many other fundamental skills to address, first. Slowly I started to hear II-Vs all over the place - rhythm changes where I had no idea they were hiding previously, Bird Blues are obvious. Coltrane changes in some blues form, etc etc. A work in progress.

Completely agree. Sadly only now, at 60 do I realise what I missed out on earlier. That know the notes but making up my own melodies didn't work frankly.

😬 Jens you are a legend. i love your videos.

Just make like John Scofield at his beginning : borrow a guitar

I’ve been teaching for about 15 years. I’ve noticed that my in person students are much better players than my online students across the board.

same here, Lars. my pupils like to have lessons with me because we have a fun time. in the meantime I teach them practice skills, help develloping their hearing, play with confidence and let them experience the wonder of music (hey, listen to this; does that sound wonderful or not?). and of course the feedback they get is far more precise than you would get online. cheers, Joost, guitar teacher from Utrecht

I hear ya on the angry student, I've had several of those over the years. One thing I heard a lot is "Why doesn't mine sound like yours? I'm doing exactly what you showed me, yet it doesn't sound like you!" Not necessarily an angry student scenario, but a common thought for a student. My answer "Well I'm playing the tune in my style. You're playing the notes and hoping they sound like the tune, in my style. It will never sound right until you play the tune, in your style."

If I never sought out a teacher, I would have never got off the ground in this music at all, let alone progressed

As someone still learning jazz I’m finding that getting triads to sound and feel as second nature like scales to be a big help. I think being in front of a teacher face-to-face explaining something like that would’ve helped a lot. Learning to phrase well with triads is different because they don’t fall under the fingers the same as scales do…

Of course, face to face is much better way to learn everything. I've made progress from video lessons just because i had solid base before.

Hi Jens . I think that the reason many people need a guitar teacher is because they dont know the right information too look for , it is important when you start out to have a teacher.

2:31 Did you finish the puzzle yet?

The teachers I’ve had either didn’t know much or taught far above the level I was currently at. Checking in with the latter from time to time has worked for me.

I never understood people who try to learn to play jazz without listening to it. If you don't like listening to jazz, why are you trying to learn how to play it????

My answer: you are right and you are not. The online-offline mix has been for me a perfect solution.

I think lessons are for people who are average musicians to sound a little more fancy. The people who have a calling by the universe to play music don't need teachers. Allan Holdsworth pretty much learned by himself, for example.

There may be lots of great jazz guitar teachers out there, but I haven't found any yet. I've tried five or six times, and found a lot of really nice guys who play a mean jazz guitar, but who haven't the faintest notion of how to teach. They don't have a syllabus or roadmap, they can't articulate how someone at my level can get better, they really can't explain theory or practice very well, they're unwilling to provide honest feedback and, in general, they're a waste of time and money. A typical series of lessons will start with a bit of playing, but by the third session the teacher is doing nothing but chatting about his favorite bands, his personal experiences on the stand, and generally anything to eat up the time and hide the fact that he's done nothing to prepare for the day's lesson, has forgotten what we discussed at the previous class, and that he has no clue what he should be teaching me today. Worse are those who start each class with "So what should we study today?"; if I knew the answer to that question, I wouldn't be paying for his time in the first place. The frustrating thing is that this needn't be difficult. A simple process of assigning a piece of music and a couple of licks each week, then going over them at the next class and assigning yet more, would do wonders. Sorry for the rant, but any discussion of jazz guitar teachers (present company excepted, of course) inspires it.

The guiding through all the information and showing what to study to improve certain skills are the most important things in having a teacher (I only had teachers of classical guitar not jazz). One aspect that keeps me off of having a teacher now is the commitment - I fear it will become another obligation and remove the joy of playing and we already have so many of those in the adult life ;)

I think when you have kids for example and your free time is very limited, online videos and lessons can help supplement in-person lessons for the time being. You can't beat in-person, one-on-one lessons in anything whether learning chess, music, or something else. When life happens, you have to find the tools available that are within your reach at the time and use them, even though they may not be the best tools to use optimally. If your remodeling a home and you only have a hammer, it's still better than nothing, but a sledgehammer would make remodeling easier.

I am a teacher, I play jazz and improvise, but rarely teach it because it's not what most people want. I've been teaching for 37 years although it's not my only job. As a teacher my objective is to guide and coach a student to performance level quicker than they might on their own. When students come to me from other teachers they are generally staring at scraps of paper and doing nothing meaningful musically. At the end of their first year with me they are playing songs from memory that we basically rehearse every class. Anyone can do this on their own but many don't know how to get there. My job is to help them understand what it is they need to do and learn to fly solo. Some do while others simply like to keep the 'coaching' relationship going. Many of my students stay with me for about 7 years.

I’ve been teaching since 2003 and I approve of this video. I Especially identify with the lack of trust with adult students. It’s like A, this is hard. It might look easy because your daughter’s burn out boyfriend can shred. But it’s not. B, I’ve been doing this a long time. There are a million people who teach guitar. I had one guy who wanted to learn how to write music so I started teaching him basic cadence and song structure and he told me “I don’t think this is applicable,” while also telling me in the same lesson that all of the songs he writes “have no structure.” 🤦‍♂️

I wish I could find a good jazz guitar teacher to take lessons from in person, but I've found it to be quite a challenge to find one 😥

Estoy completamente de acuerdo. Tristemente los maestros mas cercanos solo estan en las redes sociales y no todos son buenos maestros, eso si; para colmo hay montones de instructores que solo repiten lo que aprendieron. Y ni que decir cuando se es un perseguido y marginado de las redes sociales como en mi caso que solo me son utiles para ver publicaciones y creo que para hacer cometarios. No me malinterpreten pero de esta manera es imposible aprender porque uno o muchos videos, lo mismo que uno o muchos libros son insuficientes. Ah si casi lo olvido, me hubiera gustado vivir en barcelona para haberme iniciado desde pequeño como trompeta jazz con el maestro joan chamorro.

I used to work as a Secondary School teacher of Music about twenty years ago. It was soul destroying. Music coordinators (who couldn't write a melody) would tell me to use every shortcut possible to make the students play something for school concerts to make the school look good. Never again ! I also taught guitar and theories privately for about twenty five years. I could write a book on the subject(s). One guy turned up one day and wanted me to teach him EVERYTHING I knew in one lesson - and if we ran out of time, maybe I could write the rest of it down on a sheet of paper so he could take it to read later at home. Another guy used to tell his wife he was 'going out to have a guitar lesson.' He actually was going out to do something else (I won't say what, but it made his wife very angry). He was always late, or didn't show. I found out what was going on when his wife was banging loudly on my front door one day. I opened the door and she said 'Where is that #$%&@#% ?' I never saw him again after that. I've also had students tell me I didn't know what I was talking about. My doctor once told me he has had many patients tell him the same thing - and he's a doctor !!?? I felt better when he told me that. Maybe I should write a book. 😁

So you're not offering tone woods classes?

Just avoid teachers that use tab and tell you things like "Put your 1st finger on the 2nd sting on the 4th fret" because tab keeps you ignorant.

in the end you teach yourself. learning how to play music is not like learning history. you don’t have to practice history until you can whip it out on cue note perfect in front of a crowd. you have to do the practicing, nobody can do it for you…

My experience of a teacher was not good. I won't even tell you what he was like. All I can tell you is that he made me forget about the guitar for 20 years. I was young then but now I know that he was the problem and not me.

There are some autididacts that acutally are groundbreaking. These are few. Most people need a coach and trainer or teacher to effectively progress. I don't see a world class sportsman without specialized coaches. Yes, that is plural. Even the best seek a guitar teacher every now and then. Eddie Van Halen asked Alice Cooper to ask Glen Campbell if it was possible to have a guitar lesson taught by Glen. (ru-vid.com/video/%D0%B2%D0%B8%D0%B4%D0%B5%D0%BE-B6q2hsdXenQ.html)

i have learned jazz guitar and i am still learning only from videos and jazz courses on line.i i had a teacher for 8 months and i was lucky because he teach me all the tools to be able to learn alone.not for all this way of learning.i guess i am the exception to the rule and i am learning better alone

La Linea ♥

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