|
By: Jan Bay
You've known for years that your child had an ear for music. The
time has come to begin music lessons and he says the guitar is
his instrument of choice. No reason for you to worry, there's no
rule that says bad habits and guitar playing have to go hand in
hand! The guitar is a versatile instrument that he can enjoy
playing for the rest of his life. WHAT KIND OF GUITAR WILL I NEED? A common mistake I see parents make is buying a poorly made
guitar so they will not have wasted a large sum of money if
their child decides the guitar is not the instrument for him. To start a child out on a guitar that has poor tone and is
difficult to play is practically a roadmap for failure.
Mastering the guitar is not a simple task. A child deserves some
reward when he does something right and this is something only a
quality instrument can give. Buy a guitar suitable for the age and size of the child. The
neck and body must be the right size the child's hands and arm
length. For younger childer (10 and younger) three quarter (3/4)
size guitars are available. ACOUSTIC OR ELECTRIC? I'm sticking my neck out on this one, but for instant
gratification you can't beat an electric rig. In addition to a
guitar, you will need to buy a small amplifier and this will
stop some parents in their tracks, but hear me out. A lesson or
two will focus on setup of the rig and what the knobs on the
guitar and amp are for, but an electric is easier to play and a
kid can get a few good sounds out of the guitar much faster. You
can always branch out into acoustic later once the fingers get
stronger and more conditioned. NEW OR USED? There's nothing wrong with buying a used guitar that's in good
playing condition. Guitars are not like cars; a good guitar
having been handled with reasonable care improves with age. Look
at the guitars that the professionals play. Do those instruments
look brand new to you? Hardly Cruise the pawnshops, Ebay and the classifieds for
possibilities. Of course these avenues have a huge "Buyer
Beware" sign on the corner. No returns allowed. Do you have a
friend that plays guitar? If this is the case, I'm sure that he
won't mind if you ask him to go by the pawnshop or to the garage
sale with you, play the guitar you found and give you an
opinion. Go to the guitar forums on the internet and see what the others
have to say about the instrument that you are considering.
Expect to see contradicting opinions. But if a large percentage
of the posters say any given guitar is a piece of junk it would
be a good idea to look for another axe. HOW DO I KNOW WHAT THE GUITAR'S WORTH? Try checking on Ebay to see what guitars comparable to the one
you are looking at have sold for recently. It's hard to know if
you are comparing apples to apples even when comparing identical
model numbers of identical brands but you can get a general
idea. You can check the Blue Book of Electric Guitars, Acoustic
Guitars and the Blue Book of Amps for a value, but again these
figures are merely guidelines. WHERE DO I GO FOR HELP? While the advice that can be
obtained at a local music store can be invaluable before you
take the suggestions made by the salesperson you should ask the
following question: Are you a guitar player? If the answer to
your question is no, ask for a salesperson that plays guitar to
help you or go and get that guitar playing friend to help you
choose. That's one of the perks of playing guitar, the friendships you
make along the way. Freelance Author of Nursery Decorating Articles,Baby Gear
Reviews and Webmaster for UNIQUE BABY GEAR
IDEAS Use of article requires an active link to
http://www.unique-baby-gear-ideas.com About the author:
Jan Bay has been closely associated with music for years.
Working with musicians and promotion has given her unique
insight into the industry. Her love of interior design and
parenting motivated her to build, UNIQUE BABY GEAR
IDEAS.
People searching for the term "Learn To Play Guitar" found this page helpful.
| 
