How hard is it to Learn Guitar

How hard is it to learn guitar is a common question asked by beginners looking to learn this beautiful instrument or by those who have just started

It is a difficult question to answer as the level of difficulty will vary person to person

However when you break it down. The level of hardness depends on a few factors:

• Amount of practice
• Your age
• Patience
• Your commitment
• Learning methodology
• Motivation
• Good (Guitar\Physical)physiology
• Having a good teacher

If you have all the above then you’re on your way to learning the guitar easier than others, for each factor you’re missing the harder it will be to learn

Regarding age, on average very young children (3 to 7) and senior adults (65+) take a little longer to grasp and maneuver than people between those ages

What the study of guitar involves

The level of hardness also depends on how good on guitar you want to be and if you want to master all areas of guitar

In order to get to teacher or advanced level you’ll need to study and master the following facets

• Finger Picking Technique
• Plectrum Technique
• General Technique
• Timing
• Lead Guitar
• Rhythm Guitar
• Scales, Modes, Patterns
• Styles
  • Classical
  • Rock
  • Jazz
  • Blues
  • Country
  • World
  • Etc
• Notation, Music/Guitar Theory
• Improvisation, Arrangements, Composition
• TAB

Each item in this list can be expanded further, however due to wanting to keep this article short and give you a quick answer I’ll leave that up to your guitar teacher

However you get the idea of whats involved

You can see from this list there are a fair few facets to learn and master.

In terms of difficultly some facets will appear easier than others and what might be difficult to you may be easy for someone else and vice versa,

Most of your progress will come down to whether you like what you’re playing

Some people only choose to master certain facets of guitar such as Rhythm Guitar

However, If your aim is to master all the facets of guitar then you’ll be looking at a lifetime and more, this will also increase the difficulty of learning guitar

I personally believe it is not possible to master everything in guitar (as per above list) I’m yet to meet, hear or see anyone who has

However you will be able to achieve a very good understanding of each facet, master some areas and easily reference resources when needed

Physiological Requirements

The main physiological reason people give up guitar is because they are not able to progress fluidly, produce a clean sound, reach notes, sore fingers,  play chords or not be able to make finger changes fast enough and so forth

They often blame injuries, short fingers and anything else they can find

To a certain degree this is correct, there is a very small percentage of people who have physiological issues which will prevent them from playing at a level they’d like to achieve but for most of us this disappointment is due to a lack of commitment, dexterity muscle memory and strength we are yet to achieve (There are also other reasons such as bad teachers or lack of structure however I’m only focusing on physiological)

Also if you purchase a guitar which is uncomfortable to play such as a guitar with a very high action (distance of strings to fretboard) and a wide neck then as a beginner you’re not going to make the task of learning any easier

In order to increase your chance of physiological success, purchase a guitar that feels as comfortable in your hands such as a guitar with a thin neck and where the strings are close to the fretboard (low action) this will make the instrument easier to play

You may also want to consider starting with a softer stringed guitar such as a nylon string guitar

You’ll then need to slowly play though your weekly exercises until you build enough muscle memory, dexterity and strength to increase speed.

You should start with beginner exercises progressing to advanced adding supplementary material along the way

Conclusion

How hard is it to learn guitar? Well that depends on what level you want to achieve, having a good teacher, motivation and time to practice will help

If you have these things then you should be able to move quickly through the learning process measuring your progress by moving from exercise to exercise weekly

If you’re after a quick win or happy to only master some or one of the facets such as rhythm guitar then your guitar teacher will be able to give you a starting point and guide you, getting you there sooner.

Whatever you do, it will require lots and lots of patience and practice

I hope this article has given you an insight on ‘How hard is it to learn guitar’ if you have any comments or questions please leave them in the comments section below