Alfred's Teach Yourself to Play Guitar: Guitar Book & Online Video/Audio

This method respects the diversity of guitar students by offering genre breadth from the start. Rock, blues, country, and folk appear throughout the instruction rather than being afterthoughts, so learners see their musical interests reflected in the curriculum from day one. The balance between notation and tablature ensures students develop real reading skills while staying engaged with material that feels immediately playable.

Structured but not rigid. You move through concepts systematically, building each new skill on the previous one, but the variety of musical styles keeps the experience from feeling like you're climbing an endless ladder of exercises.

Anyone picking up a guitar for the first time, whether you're eight or eighty. The method works equally well for self-directed learners and those in one-on-one lessons, since the video instruction fills the role of a patient guide explaining concepts visually.

• Work through the fundamentals section deliberately even if you're tempted to skip ahead. Understanding fret board geography and basic care habits prevents frustration and damaged instruments later.
• Use the tablature techniques dictionary as a reference while playing, not something to memorize all at once. Return to it each time you encounter a new symbol in the songs.
• Play the accompanying video at half speed or pause frequently during technique passages. Two hours of instruction is meant to be absorbed across weeks, not watched in one sitting.
• Keep the fingerboard chart posted near your practice space. Your hands will internalize the layout faster when you can glance at it without hunting through the book.

Assign this to students who are starting private lessons mid-year or who need a parallel resource alongside ensemble work. Teachers can reference specific chapters when introducing chord shapes or notation concepts to the ensemble, knowing students have detailed instruction at home.

• Reading standard notation and tablature concurrently
• Chord formation and transitions across multiple voicings
• Fret board navigation and spatial awareness
• Technique execution in rock, blues, country, jazz, and folk idioms
• Advanced tablature interpretation (bends, slides, palm muting, hammer-ons, pull-offs)
• Proper instrument maintenance and care
• Scale construction and playing across multiple positions