Guitar Lessons

This is strictly a matter of personal preference. If your favorite entertainers play acoustic guitars and you love the sound, then you probably would want an acoustic guitar. An electric guitar is easier to play but your endurance and finger strength is improved with the acoustic. Electrics generally are more expensive at the beginner level but when you get into pro-line guitars the cost is about the same.

• Don't leave your guitar in a car for several hours in hot or cold weather.
• When you finish playing your guitar, wipe it off with a lint-free cloth and put it in your case (or on a stand).
• Use guitar polish (available at the local music store) to clean your guitar. Don't use furniture polish.
• Your strings will last much longer if you clean them after each use.
• You may want to put a dab of lemon oil on the neck once a year to avoid cracking from the wood drying.
• If you are storing a guitar for a long time, you may want to loosen the strings.
• Have your guitar serviced by a professional guitar technician periodically.

You should experiment with different styles of picks and find one the feels right for you. Thin picks tend to be floppy and hard to control. Thick picks tend to be noisy when you are strumming chords. A medium to heavy gauge with the traditional shape is recommended. Nylon picks is better than plastic because they don't break and they have a texture that is easy to grip.

If the strings have a dull color, sound dead, muted, or are hard to tune, then it's time to change them. Many beginners don't realize their strings are dead until they hear how good their guitar sounds with new strings.