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Online Guitar Lessons

Quick Start Guitar-Acoustic

Quick Start Guitar-Acoustic

TrueFire Learning Path has just what you need and at the right price.

The Quick-Start for Beginner course is the perfect place to start if you know some chord and strumming patterns and are able to play some songs and single-note lines.

If not, check out TrueFire’s other courses in the Learning Path.  Get started on the right path.

The Quick-Start Acoustic Guitar Course will help you get to the next level with the help of 3 top TrueFire teachers: Corey Congilio, Brooks Robertson, and David Hamburger. Watch this video by Brooks Robertson to see what the lessons are like.

Are you concerned about having to practice all the boring things like reading music, tedious exercises, music theory? Don’t be!! Not in this course!! This course teaches you to play the guitar. In fact, you’ll be playing your guitar through the whole course.

What You’ll Learn:

  • You’ll get in the groove with a classic rhythm pattern.
  • Learn a chord progression that many songs use.
  • Versatile Fingerstyle technique for use in any song.
  • Acoustic guitar techniques.
  • Acoustic blues.
  • 12 Bar progression.
  • New chords.
  • New essential rhythm patterns.

How The Quick Start Program Works

You will see demonstrations of all the key examples played over jam tracks (if applicable). This will give you an idea of how to play them in the real world. You will also see how to apply them in a musical, performance context.

You will also see key examples of tabbed and notated for your practice. Everything you need for practice, reference, and studies are included in the lesson.

Also included are the Guitar Pro files which enable you to play, loop, or slow down the tab and notation as you practice the lessons. You can repeat any section as needed so you can learn the material. It is all under your control.

The great thing is that all the jam tracks are yours to use as you work on your own.

Take the course at your own speed. Go at the speed that is comfortable for you. It gives you the opportunity to really learn the lesson before moving on to the next lesson.

Supplementary Material

Supplementary material is available if you want to dig deeper or wider into any part of the material covered in the core course. The Supplementary materials contain more examples, techniques, and insight from the top TrueFire teachers.

Are you ready to get started? Click here!!

by Dena Warfield

Alex Skolnick's Solo Factory Heavy Rock

Unbound Guitar by Alex Skolnick

When you hear the name, Alex Skolnick, you automatically think of Alex, the original melodic thrash guitarist playing with Testament. But, Alex is a man of many talents. He has released several critically acclaimed jazz albums with the Alex Skolnick Trio. He also plays with the Planetary Coalition. The Coalitions is a group of musicians from different walks in life and various regions around the globe. They work toward a cross-cultural musical vision.

Alex is pretty much a household name in heavy and thrash metal arenas, but refuses to be labeled in any specific musical genre.

Alex’s course, Unbound Guitar, Rock Guitar Lessons, is a great addition to TrueFire’s course selection. No matter your preferred style of music, Alex’s ear and eye-opening courses reveals underlying harmonic, creative, and technical foundations of his exceptional musical ability.

”Over the course of my career, I’ve played, recorded, and performed many different styles of music. What you might be surprised to know is that the building blocks of metal, jazz, acoustic, blues, world music (or really any style) relies on the same harmonic concepts, techniques, and expressive approaches at their foundational framework. I’m excited to share that framework with you here in Unbound Guitar,” Alex Skolnick.

Rock Guitar Lessons - Secret Sauce - by Jeff Scheetz

Jeff Sheetz, a world-renowned guitarist demonstrates his “secret sauce”, in Jeff’s Blues Rock: Secret Sauce Blues-Rock guitar Lessons. These are just a sample of the courses offered on TrueFire. These courses equip you with five essential concepts and techniques used in many blues-rock settings. You will learn how to slip “outside” and back again incorporating intervallic lines in your playing. Jeff also teaches the ins and outs of dynamic phrasing, melodic playing and modal playing, techniques used creating exceptional solos and comps.

Professional Review

I’ve been a fan of TrueFire for many years because they put out high quality education videos that expand on many of concepts I teach my students in different genres. The site can be a bit overwhelming because there are thousands of lessons, so I’ve picked out some of my favorites below. (If you find there are just too many good ones, you can sign up for an All Access Membership, which you can get for a month, year, or lifetime,)” Susan Palmer, Founder of Lead Cat Press.

All of TrueFire’s lessons are designed to have you up and playing quickly. The Bass Guitar Lessons will teach you how to play essential bass lines and rhythms. It also teaches you basic hand positions that lend to a good solid tone and how to strengthen your fingers for playing open and fretted notes. 

As with the other courses the First Steps For Beginners is Free. Stu Hamm who attended Berkley College of Music in Boston is the educator in the First Steps and also the Next Steps For Beginners

Stu met Steve Vai, who’s musical style is unclassifiable, at Berkley and subsequently met Joe Satriani. Hamm played bass on Flex-Able, Vai’s debut solo album in 1984. He has recorded with Vai, Frank Gambale a Jazz Guitarist from Australia, Joe Satriani, a rock musician and other well-known artists.

Bass Guitar is used in every style of music, especial Rock.

 

Bass Basics by Stu Hamm

Are you thinking of playing in a band as a bass player? Bass players are in high demand. It’s easy to find gigs and bands to play with making the bass attractive. But, you still have to learn how to play it well.

Stu’s beginning course lays down the basics for almost every style of music. He bridges the gap between percussion instruments and the melody played by the lead instruments and the vocalists.

Bass Guitar Lessons Online by Ariane Cap

Back Tracking Fifths

The Country Learning Path, taught by 2 top TrueFire instructors, Corey Congilio and Jason Loughlin, will have you up and playing as quickly as possible. The course begins with a classic country alternating bass rhythm and a single note country melody to help you get your twang on.

The next step will be to learn a bass line walkup which will link your country chords together. You’ll also learn three new strumming patterns and a bass line walkup which will help you spice up any tune.

You’ll then move into movable barre chords which will open up more country music songs as you learn to apply them to classic country songs.

 

What do you hope to accomplish as a guitarist?

Is your goal to be able to play and sing at the same time? Do you want to be a great guitar soloist like Tommy Emmanuel? Is your dream to play in a Country band and make it big in Nashville? No matter your goals, find a guitarist that can play at a higher level than where you are trying to get to.

This is where TrueFire shines. Their instructors are experienced guitarists in their own right. Many are GRAMMY winners or top studio guitarists. They are guitarists who can take you to where you want to go if you’ll put in the work.

Decide where you want to go as a guitarist. Focus on that goal instead of trying to do everything at once. Allow TrueFire’s instructors to help you reach your goal. After going through the beginning lessons you may decide you want to go a different direction, such as, playing bass or rock guitar.

Is it going to take work? 

Absolutely!! Weight out the cost in time and energy. If you are willing to put in the time and effort the TrueFire instructors will help you achieve your goal.

If you need some one-on-one help, TrueFire has private lessons to help you get over the hump and on your way to success.

Yes, the private lesson does cost more, but it is nothing like having to pay for private lessons one-on-one near where you live.

I did some research on how much private lessons cost on average from $225 per lesson to $40 per lesson. With private lessons, you do not have video lessons and jam tracks to play with. You have a music book and it’s up to you to remember how the teacher said to play it.

I took private lessons for years. Sometimes I would remember how the teacher said to play the lessons and other times I wouldn’t. If not, we’d be on the same material for weeks until I got it right.

TrueFire’s private lessons give you a video and documentation of the instructor’s comments and what he said to change. Trust me. It is far better to have video lessons than one-on-one private lessons.

More Sample Country Lessons

Country Guitar Instructors & Supplementary Information

At this point in developing your guitar skills, you’re building up your chord vocabulary, a list of rhythm techniques, and several fingerstyle patterns. You have also learned  to play some classic songs in your genre. It’s now time to move to the next level.

TrueFire's Online Acoustic Guitar Lessons

Learning to play an acoustic guitar is a technical skill. If you focus only on what is in your lesson or play only songs you know, you are only learning to repeat what you have been shown. Some guitar lessons online teach mainly how to play songs.

TrueFire, on the other hand, focuses more on technique so you will have a solid foundation for advanced playing. Yes, you will learn how to play chords, keep a steady rhythm, and be able to change chords smoothly. As you progress you will learn how to arpeggiate chords and incorporate rests for more dynamic rhythms and strumming patterns.

TrueFire’s “Easy-To-Digest” Approach

TrueFire is known for presenting guitar lessons in “easy-to-digest, bite-sized chunks” so you never feel overwhelmed or frustrated. Your instructor guides you through every step of TrueFire’s unique play-along jam practice session. You are never sent off to practice on your own.

Some lessons or teachers launch into teaching music early in the lessons. TrueFire teaches technique leaving the study of music until later in your intermediate or advanced lessons. Why?

Many people who are taught music theory early in their guitar lessons either get bored and won’t practice or get really confused with the lessons. TrueFire has discovered after years of teaching that people can become a great guitarist without learning music theory. When a guitarist needs or wants to study music, it is available in TrueFire.

There are six styles of guitar playing, Acoustic, Jazz, Blues, Country, Rock, and Bass.

 

Acoustic Rhythm Guitar Lesson Samples

Tips For Learning To Play Acoustic Guitar

Tip #1 Practice every day. TrueFire lessons start you with easy chords and fingering. You have video lessons and practice tapes. When I was learning to play, an important principle was, “if you don’t practice you can’t learn.” Practice as much as you can with the Jam Tracks. When you play with the track it will be more fun, therefore, you will stick with it longer.

Tip #2 Don’t try to master everything at once. Follow TrueFire’s schedule. Take the lessons in bite-sized chuncks. Learn the first part first before moving on to the next part.

Tip #3 The basic chords and rhythm styles or basically the same. After finishing the first tape and you want to choose a different style, do it. Pick the genre of music you like to listen to. That will make taking lessons much more enjoyable and you will be able to stick to it.

Tip #4 As you begin your lessons select a 15 min slot per day that you can stick to. In learning to play acoustic, you will want to stick with 15 minutes in the beginning until you get used to playing and your fingers are less painful, then increase the practice time. Until your fingers get tougher, stick with short practice periods with focused practice on your lessons. It will get better if you stick to it. Don’t give up.

Tip #5 As you learn to play the songs in your lesson, slow them down at first. Increase the speed as you begin to play them smoothly.

Tip #6 If you’re considering an electri guitar over an acoustic, there are several things to consider. Electric guitars do have thinner strings with lower action, which can help ease the pain some what as you learn to play. Remember that with an electric you do have to have an amp, cables, headphones, effects which is an added cost. But, starting with an acoustic will help you develop your overall skills better. Since the strings on an acoustic are thicker, you will develop your fingers faster than with ana electric.

Tip #7 Your beginning experience with your first instrument is vital to your long-term success. If you don’t like your guitar or the music you are playing there is a higher likelihood tht you wo’t stick with it long term.

Tip #8 How to Toughen your finger tips by GuitarTricks.com

– Increase your guitar’s playability. Have the strings lowered.
– Keep your nails trimmed.
– Get the light gauge strings.
– Learn on a steel string acoustic guitar. Don’t press on the strings so hard.
– Don’t play with wet fingers.
– Refrain from biting, picking, or shaving off your hard-earned calluses.
– Soak your fingers in apple cider vinegar.

Remember, the First Step in Blues Guitar Lessons, as in all style paths,  is FREE – on the house. No credit card needed. 

Some of the first things you will learn in the Blues Path are chord shapes, how to play a steady rhythm and how to change chords smoothly.

A Bit Of Blues History

 

 

Blues, secular folk music, was heavily influenced by the African Americans originally in the South, south of the Mason and Dixon Line.

The Blues was recognized as a musical style toward the end of the 19th Century. It eventually evolved into Jazz around the 1920s.

In the 1960s blues changed to a simpler but expressive form of music that greatly influenced the development of popular music in the US.

The Blues is still alive and well in the US music scene. But its popularity has shifted from Blues and Jazz to Rock and Roll, R&B, Rock, Funk, and Disco.   

The peak for traditional Blues was between the 40’s – 70’s, some artists breaking out of the traditional form. 

Blues is not a dead musical style because interesting music is still coming from that arena. It also influences other music forms such as Jazz and even Country. Acoustic Guitar Skills are also important in Blues Guitar Music

Get enrolled in Blues Guitar Lessons today to enlarge your guitar skills. 

Blues is also very important you want to specialize in Country Guitar.

Blues Sample By TrueFire and Robben Ford

As with the other courses, TrueFire’s objective is to get all students playing as quickly as possible, with no music theory or boring exercises. Some of you may question the “no music theory,” but music theory is a stand-alone course if you choose to learn to read music or music theory. It is not mandatory for guitar lessons.

Blues Guitar Lesson Includes:

  • Classic blues shuffle in the key of A
  • 12-bar blues in E
  • 7th Chords a blues staple
  • use the 7th chords in 2 Blues songs
  • Cool blues lick
  • First blues turnaround

The Blues instructors demonstrate all of the lesson examples on the practice tracks, when necessary.

The practice jam tracks are designed to look and feel like you are playing in the real world musical setting. Included in the lesson downloads are key example tablatures, notated for your practice, references, and study purposes.

You will also get Guitar Pro Files that you can be played in loops or at a slower speed so you can follow the tab and notation as you play through the lessons. All of the jam tracks for each lesson will also be included.

An important feature, TrueFire courses allow each student can take as much time as needed on each lesson before moving on to the next lesson. TrueFire’s goal is for each student to understand the material and be able to play through each lesson.

Supplementary information and courses are available if a student wants to dig deeper into the lessons or if they need additional help to understand and play the lesson material.

Blues Educators & Supplementary Blues Info

This Blues Learning Path core course is presented by 3 top TrueFire educators: Jeff McErlain, Corey Congilio, and Jeff Scheetz.

The supplementary info will give you more examples, techniques and insight from TrueFire’s top instructors.

In the first lesson in the Jazz Guitar Lessons, you will learn jazz chords, rhythms, single-line melodies, and a couple of songs. As you move through the class you will learn more jazz chords and classic jazz progressions such as Killer Joe. One of the songs you will learn to play is “When The Saints Go Marching In.”

Jazz Guitar Lesson - What You Will Learn and How It Works

The following information is also contained in your Jazz Course:

  • 3 Essential Jazz Rhythms
  • Versatile Jazz Chords
  • Lead Fundamentals
  • Walking Bass Line
  • How to play a ii V I Progression
  • Pentatonic scale
  • Beginning Improvisation

As with the other lessons, the instructors will demonstrate all of the key examples on practice jam tracks. You will also get tablature and notations for the examples, plus references and study purposes. Included in the jazz course you will get the Guitar Pro Files which enable you to slow the jam tape down or loop any section as you work through the lesson.

TrueFire encourages you to take as much time as needed to get through each lesson before moving on to the next. They also have lots of supplemental material if you want to dig deeper into any topic covered in the course. You will find more examples, techniques, and insights for each course in the Learning Path Section.

A Taste of Jazz

You many think that Improvisation is only for the Jazz Guitar, but it’s actually found in many types of playing. You could be playing lead in a rock band, a jazz guitarist or a songwriter who uses improvisation in your music. Improvising on a song helps create new melodies and arrangements. Learning to improvise in your guitar lessons should be an important focus.

An important technique in learning to improvise is playing the pentatonic scale. In your lessons with TrueFire you will learn scales and how to use them in improvisation. 

You will also learn how to read and use tabs which will help you with improvisation.

Jazz Samples From TrueFire

Tips For Playing Jazz Guitar

One of the best ways to enter the jazz world is through the blues. The classic swing and bebop tunes are nothing more than twelve-bar blues with a swing rhythm and fancy chord changes. Most people start with the minor pentatonic scale when they are learning how to play jazz and improv. Charlie Parker is a great example of using swing blues.

The next step is often learning the play the jazz standards. These require some memorizing key changes and how to play through them. If you focus on playing well on jazz standards (tunes), you will be quickly on your way to playing jazz guitar.

Focusing on jazz standards means playing the melody with some accompanying chords, improve with some single-note solos, and add a touch of chord melody from time to time.

If you are new to playing jazz the above statement may go right over your head, but don’t worry. As you follow your lessons and practice with the practice jam tracks, your TrueFire teachers will have you playing the jazz standards, and everything else mentioned above before you know it. It’s a step-by-step process. You Can Do It!!!!

Student's Rave Review

“At 50 I finally decided to learn to play guitar. With my hectic schedule, I needed something that was ready and available when I had time. Learning Guitar 1 was a fantastic introduction to guitar basics. I love that it started with elementary, straightforward concepts and chords that I could grasp and learn. It even talks about HOW to practice. Then the course built on those simple things by adding other simple chords, strumming, and then working up to simple songs. I’m on my way!” – Daniel Rode, TrueFire Student

Supplementary Jazz Courses & Jazz Instructors

TrueFire Jazz Supplementary Courses
TrueFire's Jazz Supplementary Courses
TrueFire Jazz Instructors
Jazz Learning Path is presented by 3 top TrueFire Educators

Video Lessons with SoundSlice

TrueFire’s website is easy to navigate with high definition photos and videos. The lessons feature multiple angles providing close-up views of the guitarist’s hands as he/she plays. They also use SoundSlice which is a music learning platform with interactive music notation. As the teacher plays through a lesson, in a different camera angle, Soundslice follows the music notation or chord chart as the music is being played. TrueFire has teamed up with SoundSlice to provide the best way to learn any song. You will find SoundSlice used in all the lessons, plus the Jam Tracks.

TrueFire’s In The Jam delivers an unparalleled jamming experience for the beginner or advanced musician. The Jam Track is the next best thing to jamming in real life. To make it even better you get to jam with well-known artists.

Each Jam Track includes 10 multi-track videos arranged in separate video and audio tracks for each of the instruments on the video. The video gives you the ability to mute, solo, or adjust the volume of any track. You will also get lead sheet charts which enables you to follow the chord change and jam structure.

Jam Tracks with SoundSlice video is the best way to develop your improvisation skills so you are ready to jam with a band on stage with a solid rhythm section and other musicians.

With the Jam Tracks, you will have a bandstand right in your practice room! room!

TrueFire Lesson Video Views
Music & Tabs

TrueFire is currently focused on teaching techniques instead of learning numerous songs so that the guitarists are able to apply their skills in any situation. This could be a negative for a guitarist who just wants to learn songs, but it is a plus for someone who has the dream of playing professionally.


TrueFire Private Lessons

They also offer private lessons with an instructor of your choices for an extra cost. There is a wide variety of programs and costs for private lessons. In the private lesson, you get 1 topic-specific lesson with the instructor of your choice. The lesson includes a skill assessment, video messaging, file attachments, and a discussion thread for a one-time fee. The cost of the private lesson, considering the video and written assessment, the cost is very reasonable. There are several plans to choose from.

In comparison, I priced lessons in our local city. The prices ranged anywhere from $30 to $276 per hour.

I took music lessons for years. Online video lessons with an occasional private lesson, in my opinion, would be much more productive. With a video lesson, you have something to listen to and compare to your playing, whereas, with face-to-face lessons, you often miss something the teacher is saying causing your practice to be less effective and your learning slower.

TrueFire’s private lessons give you the benefit of learning from an experienced guitarist and teacher while learning from home with the video lessons and practice tracks. This is one area where TrueFire provides more opportunities than other online guitar lessons.


TrueFire Logo

TrueFire has been teaching guitar lessons since 1991. Currently, they have amassed over 40,000 video guitar lessons and 700 full courses. Over the years they have collaborated with over 600 world-renown guitarists and teachers. They currently have a million members that use the site regularly. They specialize in advanced and intermediate guitar lessons.

 

World-Renowned Guitarists and Educators

One of the most important reasons for TrueFire’s success is the level of their educators. Among them you will find Steve Vai, Robben Ford, and Tommy Emmanuel, each of whom is a guitar icon on the music world stage. These are just three of the current 200 incredible guitarists currently teaching TrueFire’s intermediate and advanced courses. As you go through the different posts on this site you will see different instructors and snippets of their courses available on TrueFire.

Advanced and Intermediate Guitar Course Samples

As mentioned above, TrueFire really excels in their advanced and intermediate guitar lessons. They are known among the online guitar lessons and others as having exceptional material and educators in their more advanced courses. In the intermediate and advanced courses, you will discover a wide variety of courses and supplemental material in all guitar styles. These courses are designed to equip guitarists to be able to step into the professional arena. It is important for working guitarists to excel in rhythm guitar as they will spend on an average of 90% of their time playing behind vocalists and other musicians. Therefore, TrueFire focuses on a wide variety of chords, rhythm styles, and picking techniques that will prepare the guitarist to be proficient in any musical setting.

Many more courses are available in the Advanced and Intermediate courses offered. 

Creative Blues by Tim Pierce

My Guitar Heroes

Technique Builders

Help With Practice

Southern Roots

Corey Congilio

50 Blues Rhytms

Corey Congilio’s “50 Blues Rhythms You MUST Know

“You’ll learn a truckload of new voicings, new rhythmic patterns, new fills and even new right-hand techniques, all of which can be combined, transcribed and crafted into countless blues applications,” Susan Palmer.

Jason Loughlin

Jason Loughlins Take 5

Jason Loughlin’s “Take 5: Blues Chord Melody

“You’ll start the course with a quick primer where Jason will introduce you to dominant seventh inversions, using substitutions, harmonizing the blues scale, contrary motion and altered chords — all in an effort to add more harmonic depth to your blues solos,” Susan Palmer.

Mimi Fox

Jazz Trio Comping Mimi Fox

Mimi Fox’s “Jazz Trio Comping”

“Chord selection, locking in with the rhythm section, playing in different meters, establishing the harmonic texture and character of the tune — these are all crucial responsibilities,” Susan Palmer.

Mimi Fox's "Flying Solo"

Mimi Fox Flying Solo

Mimi Fox’s “Flying Solo”

“Mimi covers it all in Flying Solo; you will learn how to play solo jazz guitar utilizing integrated walking bass lines within both blues and standard jazz styles; playing Latin grooves; the effective use of odd meters; advanced melodic and harmonic concepts; the use of voice leading within solos; chord soloing; integrated soloing in blues, standard and bossa styles; chordal development; the importance of developing strong intros and endings; the effective integration of texture and dynamics; major, minor and dominant substitutions; rubato playing; utilizing harmonics and open strings; improvisation; and a special two-part section on arranging pieces utilizing a composer’s mindset,” Susan Palmer.

Sheryl Bailey

Trading Solos

Sheryl Bailey’s “Trading Solos: Bebop”

“For each of the five bebop progression jam tracks, Sheryl will show you a handful of licks and comping approaches that you can use. Then, you’ll take turns applying those ideas, trading solos and comping for each other,” Susan Palmer.

Fareed Haque

FareedHaque's Jazz Comping

Fareed Haque’s “Jazz Comping Survival Guide

“Fareed Haque’s Jazz Comping Survival Guide is based on a very simple, yet far-reaching concept; building chords from the inside out. Your tutelage begins with basic guide tones and an intuitive system for building your chord vocabulary with extensions until you’ve rapidly acquired and have command of ALL of the chords and colors used by jazz guitarists,” Susan Palmer.

Frank Vignola

Frank Vignola’s “30 Jazz Turnarounds”

“Jazz guitar players need a wide and diverse vocabulary of turnarounds to spice up their comping for the vocalists and soloists in the band. In this collection of 30 Jazz Turnarounds, Frank Vignola stocks your inventory with a wide variety of diverse turnarounds that will take your comping skills to the next level on the gig or at the jam,” Susan Palmer.

Matthieu Brandt

Guitar Lab

Matthieu Brandt’s “Guitar Lab: Triads and Hendrixian Double Stops

“The first part of this course will give you the theoretical backbone of the triadic system. It’s a fresh look at the fret board, which will be used in about 20 different songs in the second part of the course. In the last part we’ll dig deep into Hendrix’ challenging style of accompaniment / solo,” Susan Palmer.

Andrew Ford

50 R&B Bass Groves

Andrew Ford’s “50 R&B Bass Grooves You MUST Know

“Andrew presents the material and connects the dots in such a way that you’ll be able to apply the underlying techniques, rhythms and bass grooves in whatever style of music you play today. Consider these 50 bass lessons as your personal rite of passage to the land of groove,” Susan Palmer.

In Summary

TrueFire offers a 30 day free trial which gives you the opportunity to access all of the courses and videos.

After the 30 days you can continue your membership for $19 per month or $199 per year. This is a great value when compared to face-to-face private lessons, as mentioned above.

The quality of the videos and the instructors make TrueFire’s lesson well worth the cost.