Guitar Lessons
Frequently Asked Questions

Online guitar courses allow you to learn core guitar concepts in a clear, structured way, with the flexibility to revisit lessons any time and learn at your own pace.

I’ve developed teaching methods that help students visualise the guitar fretboard instead of memorising endless scale, arpeggio, and chord shapes. These ideas have been refined over many years of professional teaching and are used with my private students to accelerate progress and improve musical understanding.

If you’re new to my teaching approach, a great place to begin is my short guitar modes mini-course, which introduces the core ideas behind how scales and harmony work across the fretboard in a practical, musical way. It’s designed to give you clarity quickly and provide a strong foundation for further study.

I teach from my studio which is situated north of Norwich, not too far from Norwich airport. I will email a detailed map to you when you book a lesson.

Unfortunately, I do not travel to students' houses as I have everything I need for teaching set up in my purpose-built studio. I am also very busy with teaching and have no time to travel. I do not know of any local professional teachers who would be prepared to travel to a student's house.

I teach all popular styles of guitar playing such as Rock, Jazz, Metal, Blues, Pop, Classical, Acoustic, etc., and I have many years of experience playing professionally in most styles. I have played in countless rock bands, soul bands, and function bands, have played in theatres throughout the country, have recorded sessions and played at many jazz festivals and clubs here and abroad. You name it, I have probably gigged it!

Yes, I do teach bass guitar.

I have been teaching guitar professionally for the last 29 years both privately and to groups of all sizes. I have taught at many schools and colleges and given seminars on different aspects of guitar playing at various London universities. I am a registered teacher with the Registry of Guitar Tutors and I am an examiner for the London College of Music. I am also the author of the popular book ‘The Paul Hill Guitar Theory and Technique Book’ which is a revolutionary technique into teaching the theoretical aspects of the guitar. Online guitar video courses are also now available. I am a Fellow of the London College of Music – the highest diploma awarded by the London College of Music.

Just bring your guitar to the lesson as amps, leads and any teaching materials are set up in my studio. For online lessons, please see visit my online guitar lesson page.

The most suitable guitar will depend on the kind of music you would like to play, whether you prefer electric or acoustic guitar, and your approximate budget.

My main advice is to purchase from a reputable specialist guitar dealer. They will know the best current options and prices and should be able to make sure that the guitar is comfortable to play and properly set up. This is important because a poorly set-up instrument can be unnecessarily difficult and frustrating for a beginner.

As a general starting point, Yamaha guitars tend to be reliable and well made. The Yamaha Pacifica range is a popular option for electric guitar, while the Yamaha FG and FS ranges are worth considering for steel-string acoustic guitar. Squier also produces several good beginner electric guitars.

I would generally avoid the very cheapest unbranded guitar packages. Saving a little money initially is rarely worthwhile if the guitar is uncomfortable, difficult to tune or unpleasant to play.

You do not need to start on an acoustic guitar before progressing to electric. The best choice is usually the type of guitar used in the music that you are most interested in learning.

Students are always welcome to send me a link before purchasing a guitar, and I will gladly check whether it appears suitable.

Yes, I do take on beginners. The teaching methods that I have developed over the years (the theoretical concepts are clearly outlined in my book ‘The Paul Hill Guitar Theory and Technique Book’) work for all levels of ability. Beginning guitarists advance quickly and the more advanced students that start lessons often wish that they had been shown the methods when they were learning early on.

Many of my students are actually full-time guitar teachers themselves. I often take on students who are great players and have been playing for years or passed their grade eight exam or even diploma and are stuck in a rut.

Guitar lessons are one hour long, although half-hour guitar lessons are also available for younger students.

How often a student comes for a lesson depends upon how much practice time they can put in between lessons. This often depends on work commitments, school commitments, etc. It is pointless for a student to have weekly lessons if they have not had a chance to cover the content of the lessons in between. Some students have weekly lessons and some have lessons every now and again. The most common frequency of lessons is once per fortnight for hourly guitar lesson slots.

As teaching is my profession, I have to charge for the lesson if less than 24 hours' notice is given. I am flexible on this if there is a genuine reason such as the student in question is seriously ill or has another valid reason otherwise the charge has to be made.

I occasionally teach students privately in pairs but one-to-one tuition is highly recommended. Even if two students are at the same playing level when they begin lessons, everyone advances at different rates and learns in different ways which result in slower progress for both students.

Yes. I do not however force exams onto students as I have my own teaching methods and students are often not interested in taking exams. I have been an examiner for the London College of Music for many years now and so have an excellent knowledge of what is required to pass the exams.

There is no right or wrong answer to this question and there are many different points of view on the subject. One teacher might say that there are no left-handed pianos, saxophones, etc. and that left-handed guitars are a gimmick.

Many famous right-handed guitar players are actually left-handed in other activities. It is the left hand that does a lot of the work anyway when a right-handed guitarist plays so why switch to left-handed? Then there are left-handed players who passionately argue these points and swear that they could never play a right-handed guitar and that the left-handed guitar feels natural to them.

I personally am right-handed and when I try to play a left-handed guitar, well let's just say that it’s not pleasant! I once taught a student who was left-handed and started out on a right-handed guitar. He then convinced himself about six months later that he would be a much better player on a left-handed guitar and purchased one. He struggled for a while and eventually returned to the right-handed guitar as he concluded that he was more advanced this way round.

My best advice is to try both out in your local music store to see which one feels best to you. If there is no definite preference, it might be a good idea to stick to the right-handed model. this is because there is a much greater choice of right-handed guitars and you will probably not have to invest as much money to obtain a good instrument. There is also the fact that if there is a guitar lying around one day that you want to play or if you attend a jam session and borrow someone’s guitar, the instrument is highly likely to be a right-handed guitar.

Unfortunately, I do not. Students sometimes pay for a block of lessons at a time although there is no reduction in cost.

Yes, I do. Many years ago, I was asked if I could provide gift vouchers for a lady who wanted to present her husband with them for Christmas. This has proven popular on many occasions as presents for birthdays, Christmas, etc.

I have more information on my Guitar Lesson Vouchers page.

Students should ideally practise their guitar every day. This is obviously not always possible and the length of time available for practising is dependent on many factors. When I was younger, I spent a couple of years where I would practise for 10 to 12 hours every day, sometimes even more. nowadays, I am so busy with teaching and gigging that I hardly get any time to practise. Little and often is better than a long practice session once a week. However much time a student gets to spend practising, it is important that the time is spent productively.