Tonal Center Guitar Instruction

Lessons allow you to learn faster than teaching yourself from books and videos. There is no substitute for one-on-one instruction from an experienced, qualified instructor. Also, individual instruction allows us to tailor a lesson plan to you unique interests.

Absolutely! With a little work and guidance from one of our instructors anyone can learn to play guitar.

Yes. Consistent practice is the key to improving. You must have a guitar to practice.

This is a hard question. There are many variables. First, it depends upon what you consider "good". If you just want to play some songs for campfire sing alongs, probably not that long. If you want to be the next Eric Clapton, A LOT longer. The more you practice, the faster you learn, it's that simple. Also, some people have more natural ability than others, they tend to learn faster. Although, even people with no natural talent can become very accomplished through hard work.

In most cases yes. We are very good at making efficient use of your lesson time. We don't mess around. Some students benefit from longer lesson time. They are usually practicing more than two hours daily. These students often want to become professional musicians or are preparing for a university music program.

Usually, no. We provide most instructional materials. For young students (7-12yrs) I often recommend the Hal Leonard Guitar Method. It is widely available at most music stores or online.

It depends. For young students (7-12) I usually start them with the Hal Leonard Guitar Method (a traditional note reading method book). However, I supplement this by teaching them to play songs that they like, such as movie themes, video game soundtracks, popular songs etc. 

For older students I take it on a case by case basis. If you just want to play songs by your favorite rock band or do the campfire thing, it isn't necessary. But it is helpful. There is a simple way to read music for guitar called tablature or TAB. It works great for rock or popular styles.

If you want to play classical or jazz guitar, reading standard notation is a must. 

We only provide individual lessons. Students learn at different rates and we feel that one-on-one lessons are the best way for students to learn. If you have multiple students in your family, we can usually accommodate concurrent lessons with two teachers to minimize the time you spend in our studio

Seven years old is usually the youngest age that we start students on guitar. Guitar is very physically challenging for students younger than this.

No, we specialize in teaching old dogs new tricks.

Just give us a call. We will tell you what times we have available and place you with a suitable instructor.

Yes, but we prefer you make an appointment rather than just drop by. We don't like to interrupt our lessons. Just give us a call.

Just call us and we will tell you what appointments are available.