We asked, “How long have you been playing guitar?” and offered four choices: 1–5 years (15%) 6–10 years (10%) 11–20 years (14%) more than 20 years (62%). More than 600 people responded to the poll (thank you!), and as you might expect the answers were all over the map (and came from all over the map, as well).įirst some demographic information about who responded. In the spring of 2019, we conducted an online poll of CG readers to find out which methods, etudes, and exercises have been most valuable to them as they’ve developed as players. But either way, you’re likely to encounter various methods during your journey to musical greatness! It could be argued that it’s never been easier to become a well-rounded self-taught guitarist-assuming you have the self-discipline and knowledge of available learning tools to keep progressing without a formal teacher. What I learned very quickly is that virtually every classical guitarist on the planet has relied on a combination of different methods over time-some literally from books old and new others from techniques passed down by a teacher (or teachers) who themselves might have studied specific methods and many from patching together bits of knowledge absorbed from everywhere, whether it’s a master class, books and/or magazines, or the thousands of YouTube videos and online courses that are available these days. People progress at different paces, and the “building blocks” that might make developmental sense to one person, could be hopelessly difficult for another and require a different ordering, or even a complete rethinking. Yes, there is certainly much to be learned from the “classic” methods of Carcassi, Sor, Aguado, Carulli, and others but also from modern figures such as Frederick Noad, Christopher Parkening, Abel Carlevaro, Scott Tennant, and so many more.
And to a person, the answer came back an emphatic “No.”Įvery guitarist is different, every teacher is different.
In my curious naiveté, I have often asked both guitarists and teachers whether there was some preferred road to excellence-some combination of repertoire milestones and technique exercises that assured a smooth evolution as a player. During my nearly five years here at CG, conducting numerous interviews and reading just about everything that comes my way on the subject of classical guitar, I’ve been struck by the sheer number of methods, etudes, and exercises that guitarists cite as having significantly influenced their study of and progress on the instrument. It goes without saying that there is no one way to learn the guitar, nor a single foolproof method that excels above all others. BY BLAIR JACKSON | FROM THE SUMMER 2019 ISSUE OF CLASSICAL GUITAR