Guitar Lesson Survey

ok - from the top

Do you know anyone (including yourself) who is looking for rock/metal guitar lessons? - Yes, one of my students has just switched from the Rockschool Syllabus to Trinity Rock because of the content (Rush, Dream Theatre, Black Sabbath, and so on)

How many people do you know are looking for these lessons? - Any male learner aged 15 and over

If you or anyone else is looking for rock/metal guitar lessons, are you/they having difficulty finding a teacher who teaches these subjects? - No, we have a chain of music tuition "shops" round here called "Clive's Music School". If the question was re-written to ask if they're having trouble finding "competent" teachers then I would say 'yes' without hesitation.

Do you or anyone else you know already take such lessons? - one of my students (aged 9) dropped lessons with Clive's because they didn't have a clue how to play anything on the guitar except power chords.

If so, how long have you/they been taking them? - they survived 6 months, as I recall

Why did you/they choose to get these lessons or why do you/they want them? - it's their preferred music style

If you are taking such lessons, how did you find out about them? - I'm a tutor

If you know anyone else who is taking such lessons, how did they find about them? - Don't have an answer for this one.

How much are you willing to pay for an hours rock/metal guitar lesson? - the Musicians Union rate in the UK is GBP 30.00 for a one-hour one-on-one lesson. GBP 15 for a 30-minute lesson

If you are getting/looking for these lessons, what age and sex are you? - I find that girls want to play guitar and sing, boys want to play rock/ metal

If you know anyone else getting these lessons, what age and sex are they? - as above

What I find is that parents who are paying for lessons want their offspring to have a good all-round guitar education. Adult learners also want a good all-round education - some want to play and sing, others want to write - but they have some idea of what they like so they'll say "I like ......" at that first lessons. I teach an 11-year old girl; she sings and plays Taylor Swift and other stuff of the radio but she turns up to lessons with the syllabus book for her next Grade exam. With teenage boys, I can roll out Pinball Wizard, Crazy Train, Day Tripper, Purple Haze, Sweet Child Of Mine and similar stuff year after year and they'll be happy - don't bother with Trivium, BFMV, or anything out of the US "Pop Punk" stable though because it's no technical challenge, and "Eruption" is a definite no-no if you want to retain credibility.

Ok, that's great, thanks. If anyone else has any more information, please let me know.

Well from what I saw looking for lessons as a teen, and agean as a adult, first off I would discount any teacher that advertises "rock lessons". The reason you ask? Well a person starting needs to learn the basics of guitar, and paying before they are really ready to focus on one tiny aspect of music. A more advanced player doesn't need to learn " rock" but would look into lessons that help them in aspects of their playing that's holding them back in playing more rock based music.

Next most players I have know find playing music outside of there normal taste more enjoyable to them. What you like listening to, is not always what you enjoy playing. Not having well rounded skills is limiting your choices.

I know it doesn't answer your polls but I feel limiting lessons to rock, short changes the Lerner

Ok, thanks for that. I do teach all abilities, though, so I can cover all the basics and in any style. I'll be sure to mention that I teach all the fundamentals in my advertising. In my experience, people tend to play what they like listening to, however...