Half hour vs hour lesson's

[banditcosmo]

I want to start lessons with a guitarist and I'm trying to decide whether I'm better off with 4 weekly half hours lessons or two bi-weekly 1 hours lessons.
I feel like 1/2 hours lessons go by so quickly and I like to ask questions and it just seems to short to me. I wish I could afford to do four 1 hour lessons but at $50 for an hour it's too expensive for me.

How long do you take lessons for?

[mr. beaumont]

I'm a teacher.

For beginners, I think a half hour is fine. Most people tap out after 15 minutes or so of new information or so, and then there's 15 minutes of question time, or "practicing in front of the teacher." I also think going every week is important at the start.

For more advanced students, 1 hour, maybe even longer, less frequently is fine, because I'm not as worried about catching little technique things that'll pop up and haunt the player later.

[ljguitar]

Originally Posted by banditcosmo

I want to start lessons with a guitarist and I'm trying to decide whether I'm better off with 4 weekly half hours lessons or two bi-weekly 1 hours lessons.
I feel like 1/2 hours lessons go by so quickly and I like to ask questions and it just seems to short to me. I wish I could afford to do four 1 hour lessons but at $50 for an hour it's too expensive for me.

How long do you take lessons for?

Hi Banditcosmo…

Are you a beginner, or are you more advanced? I think a modern approach to lessons is to take a series of lessons to advance your playing, and then take the time to work it into your brain/fingers.

I had a lot of intermediate and advanced students who came for 90 minutes every 2-3 weeks, and they often brought either an audio or video recorder to lessons so they didn't forget what we'd covered in addition to written assignments.

Thirty minutes would not have given us time to review last week's lesson, measure progress, assign new material, and even discuss minor issues.

I had many students who just wanted to learn two or three new techniques to take their playing up a notch, and the spaced lessons made sure they 'got it'.

[lowrider]

I'm taking voice lessons and it's 1/2 hour every week. There is no chatting or fooling around, not even on the first lesson. She called me previously to talk about the lessons and get introductions out of the way. Come in, sit down, and start. If there was any bs-ing, it could be too short but as it is, it's just right!

[banditcosmo]

Originally Posted by ljguitar

Hi Banditcosmo…

Are you a beginner, or are you more advanced? I think a modern approach to lessons is to take a series of lessons to advance your playing, and then take the time to work it into your brain/fingers.

I had a lot of intermediate and advanced students who came for 90 minutes every 2-3 weeks, and they often brought either an audio or video recorder to lessons so they didn't forget what we'd covered in addition to written assignments.

Thirty minutes would not have given us time to review last week's lesson, measure progress, assign new material, and even discuss minor issues.

I had many students who just wanted to learn two or three new techniques to take their playing up a notch, and the spaced lessons made sure they 'got it'.

I'm probably more intermediate, not a beginner. I want to work on my fingerpicking. That's a good thought on the 90 min lessons.

I definitely feel like 30 min's goes by too quickly. It was my first lesson with this teacher and we actually went over by 10-15 and it still felt too short.

[ljguitar]

Originally Posted by banditcosmo

I'm probably more intermediate, not a beginner. I want to work on my fingerpicking. That's a good thought on the 90 min lessons.

I definitely feel like 30 min's goes by too quickly. It was my first lesson with this teacher and we actually went over by 10-15 and it still felt too short.

Hi bc (I'm guessing your handle is bandit-cosmo)

Yeah, I'd sure discuss it with the teacher. Have fun growing!!!

[reeve21]

Originally Posted by banditcosmo

I'm probably more intermediate, not a beginner. I want to work on my fingerpicking. That's a good thought on the 90 min lessons.

I definitely feel like 30 min's goes by too quickly. It was my first lesson with this teacher and we actually went over by 10-15 and it still felt too short.

Short answer--I felt the same way for the first couple lessons but in the long run 30 minutes has proven just right.

I was in your shoes about 7 months ago. Intermediate player wanting to improve as a finger picker. Had never had a lesson before despite playing on and off for a long time.

Based on what I read here I was sure I wanted one hour lessons, every other week. The teacher I liked the best (I communicated with several via lessons.com) only had a half hour opening that fit my schedule, every week.

It is perfect. In the beginning it was 2 or 3 exercises a week. Now it is one exercise and one short tune. Sometimes it takes me 2 weeks to get a decent handle on the tune, we use the middle session to correct errors. I will record him playing the tune as a check and someone to play along with at times while I practice. Mostly it is just me and the metronome.

I couldn't digest any more than this in a week, and going every weeks keeps enthusiasm high. I'm pretty motivated to practice anyway, but I know I can't afford to take many days off if I have to give an account every week.

[jseth]

I am not a full-time teacher, but I've had more than a couple students over the years. I have found that, once a student's "saturation level" had been reached, any further information was pointless... and that "wet sponge" level was usually rached in the first half-hour.

I would never just stop a lesson at 30 minutes, either... most times we'd go over that allotted time, many times up to nearly an hour.

If your teacher is really committed to his students learning, he's going to do what's best for you.

I'd say, start with the half-hour lessons and see how it goes, then modify as needed. I agree with Larry that having a way to record the lesson would prove invaluable to you when going over what was presented. Nowadays, having a video/audio recording of a lesson can be easily accomplished with the right piece of equipment. Maybe you already own a small video recorder or a smart phone that has that capability.

Have fun, and I hope you receive what you need.want from these lessons and PRACTICE!!!

[grayback]

I've just started playing guitar in the last six months, started lessons 2 months ago. I have a half hour lesson every week, and it seems to be plenty of time. Just when my brain is starting to slosh, the half hour is up. We frequently go over the time frame by 10-15 minutes if things are either going well or I'm not getting it. My teacher follows up by emailing me lesson notes and links for songs we've worked on. He is easy to reach if I have questions. Kudos to Will Kiel!

[RustyAxe]

One hour. The first part of a lesson is making sure the student understands and has practiced the previous assignment. (No sense going further if the next lesson is built upon the last and the student hasn't got it). Then demonstrating and discussing a new concept and assigning work to practice for the next lesson. And every lesson should include a little "fun time", too ...

[Bob from Brooklyn]

I teach a few guys out of the house. I give them 45 minutes for what the music shops charge for 30. It's nice and relaxed and I can go over without worrying about the next guy coming in.

[rokdog49]

Originally Posted by mr. beaumont

I'm a teacher.

For beginners, I think a half hour is fine. Most people tap out after 15 minutes or so of new information or so, and then there's 15 minutes of question time, or "practicing in front of the teacher." I also think going every week is important at the start.

For more advanced students, 1 hour, maybe even longer, less frequently is fine, because I'm not as worried about catching little technique things that'll pop up and haunt the player later.

Good advice.
I'm doing bi-weekly one hour sessions. I consider myself a notch or so above an intermediate skill-wise.

[Big Band Guitar]

The college level guitar lessons I am taking are 1 hour a week.

[jseth]

Originally Posted by RustyAxe

One hour. The first part of a lesson is making sure the student understands and has practiced the previous assignment. (No sense going further if the next lesson is built upon the last and the student hasn't got it). Then demonstrating and discussing a new concept and assigning work to practice for the next lesson. And every lesson should include a little "fun time", too ...

This is one reason I haven't taught many folks... if I'm giving someone lessons and they don't practice what we go over, I'm likely to give them one warning... and then I fire them! I don't need their money enough to have to repeat myself or deal with people who won't work at getting where they want to go... and I tell people this, before I even begin to work with them.

I think I've had about a dozen students over the past couple decades... and I've fired more than half of them!

[RustyAxe]

Originally Posted by jseth

I think I've had about a dozen students over the past couple decades... and I've fired more than half of them!

Probably why I've never been inclined to teach guitar, despite having been asked many times over the years. I don't need the money, so it was an easy choice. Many people are enamored by the idea of being a guitar hero, but don't understand that it takes more than a few extra dollars and a spare hour a week.