4 Best Classical Guitar Lessons (free, & paid)
Best Classical Guitar Lessons: JamPlay
Evan Taucher’s JamPlay course gets you into classical guitar in a way that makes the material applicable to other playing styles, yet also strengthens you in the core disciplines of classical music.
One of the most formalized areas of musical study is classical guitar. Those wanting to learn it will almost always need some form of organized education, like a tutor or some kind of class.
In this article we’re rounding up some of the best classical guitar lessons from websites that we’ve vetted personally, highlighting specific courses within those websites.
We’ll look at classical guitar lessons from the following programs:
- JamPlay
- Guitar Tricks
- TrueFire
Instead of broadly reviewing these programs (full reviews are linked), we’ll look at specific courses within each one that most effectively teach classical guitar.
Different websites will employ a variety of instructors and teaching methods, so we’ll look for the best possible combination of content, education quality, topical order, and value from each program.
Let’s start by listing the courses we’ll recommend in an easy-to-read table:
Classical Guitar Lessons Comparison Table
- JamPlay’s Classical Guitar for the Modern Guitarist: Try JamPlay Courses for Free
- Guitar Tricks Classical Lessons with Chris Schlegel: Try Guitar Tricks Courses for Free
- Truefire’s Beginner Method for Classical Guitar: Try TrueFire Courses for Free
1. JamPlay’s Classical Guitar for the Modern Guitarist
Taught by Evan Taucher, this course is setup in an explain/practice rhythm where you’ll have a concept introduced in one video and practiced or applied in the next. He covers a lot of fingerpicking technique related to the right hand in the first half of his course before moving into more left hand study in the second half.
In the course’s final section of lessons you’ll apply what you’ve learned about tension, slurs, major scales, and ascending melodies. You’ll even get some help with the mental side of performance.
Of all we’ve reviewed, it’s our favorite online classical guitar course.
Streaming was a bit slow in 4k (though that could be our internet connection), and audio sounds a bit too hot in quieter parts of the video. We’d also say having the intro in front of every video isn’t really needed.
However, these are small content-related complaints.
The overall organization and education of this course is top-notch.
Read the full review: JamPlay
IDEAL FOR: Getting a more advanced understanding of right and left hand classical technique
- CONTENT: 83
- EDU: 94
- ORGANIZATION: 89
- VALUE: 94
PROS
- Evan Taucher’s teaching and communication skills are top-notch
- Does a good job of addressing left and right hand separately
- Explanation/application cadence to course layout
- Camera angles are fantastic
- Great course for applying classical concepts to other styles
CONS
- Streaming is hit or miss on high resolutions
- Intro in front of each video feels unnecessary
- Mic sounds hot on certain videos
2. Guitar Tricks’ Classical Guitar Lessons with Chris Schlegel
Try Guitar Tricks Courses for Free
Instead of having a few lengthy courses, Guitar Tricks groups all of their classical study into a few smaller groups of lessons that emphasize learning performance pieces. There is a limited amount of instruction, but the material — taught entirely by Chris Schlegel — is mostly focused on learning classical songs.
There’s a breakdown of skill level for beginners, intermediate, and advanced players, but definitely less careful organization than we’re used to seeing from Guitar Tricks.
Still, it’s one of the best places to find classical guitar lessons, especially if you’re looking to learn classical pieces and already have the form and technique in places.
We’d consider it a somewhat advanced body of instruction.
Read the full review: Guitar Tricks
IDEAL FOR: Focusing on learning performance pieces
- CONTENT: 87
- EDU: 91
- ORGANIZATION: 82
- VALUE: 90
STRONG ON
- Plenty of classical pieces to work on
- Chris Schlegel is an excellent communicator and explains topics clearly
- Lots of skill levels addressed
- Better for intermediate players or even advanced study
WEAK ON
- Older videos only go up to 540p
- Organization isn’t as good as what we usually see from Guitar Tricks
3. TrueFire’s Beginner Method for Classical Guitar by Andrew Leonard
Andrew Leonard’s course might be one of the most intricate classical guitar courses for beginners that I’ve ever seen.
It covers the basics, but does so in a way that prepares you for a more in-depth study of classical guitar, which differs from Evan Taucher’s JamPlay course which prepares you more for applying classical concepts to other styles.
While Leonard is a bit awkward in front of the camera, he’s actually an incredibly gifted player and teacher.
You’ll get plenty of detailed explanation resulting in a deep understanding of beginner classical concepts.
Read the full review: TrueFire
IDEAL FOR: Getting the basics of classical guitar in preparation for more advanced study
- CONTENT: 86
- EDU: 92
- ORGANIZATION: 89
- VALUE: 90
PROS
- Lots of detail on right hand technique
- Does a good job of helping you see classical patterns come out of basic chords and scales
- Andrew Leonard is a good teacher
- Course can be downloaded for a one-time purchase
- Good ordering of content by skill level
CONS
- Andrew Leonard can sound awkward in parts
Why trust our opinion?
Our process for selecting particular courses starts with reviewing online guitar lesson websites.
From there, we select courses within the websites we trust most and go through the material to make sure we’re recommending relevant and helpful lessons for particular situations.
In this case, that situation is classical guitar.
Additionally, myself and those who I enlist to help review these courses, are all guitar players with a background in music.
We don’t believe that you should be recommending guitar courses if you don’t:
- Play guitar
- Play guitar well
- Buy the courses you recommend
- Use and test them regularly/thoroughly
To be certain, plenty of people who have no real understanding of the guitar — much less what it means to teach it — recommend these programs too.
Yet, they give little or no specific detail about what you can expect or why one course might work better for you then another.
Lesson Evaluation Process
Classical guitar lessons are a bit harder to find than other styles of music.
This is partly because they’re a more formal discipline and many people seek them out in a tutor or classroom context. However, we can use some basic guidelines to help find the best options.
Some of it is just common sense.
For example, one of the courses we looked at in JamPlay had a really nervous teacher that didn’t seem super confident and was noticeable uncomfortable.
Regardless of the style of music, that just makes for a bad course and a poor user experience.
But otherwise we can use four simple criteria to rate and measure these lessons.
- Value
- Content quality
- Education quality
- Topical organization.
For those interested, I’ll delve a little more into each one, just so you know there’s a thoughtful method to our recommendations.
Measuring Value in a Guitar Course
Value is measured by the quality of lessons you get compared to what you pay.
One of the simplest ways to measure a product or service is by getting a feel for its overall quality and crossing that up with how much it costs.
Since we’ve reviewed and rated all these parent programs, we can plot the rating of each one on a chart with the monthly cost to get an idea of which one gives you the most quality for the best price.
Simply put:
Lower and further to the right is better.
This means we’re more likely to recommend courses from within the higher scoring programs like Guitar Tricks, JamPlay, TrueFire, and Guitargate.
Do the classical courses emphasize music theory?
Classical guitar, by its nature, relies on a lot of music theory, which should be heavily represented in a good classical guitar course.
Music theory concepts like arpeggios, major scales, and anything else specifically relevant to classical guitar, should be explained, demonstrated, and applied in these courses.
What about technique?
Technique, particularly as it relates to the right hand and picking, is an important aspect of learning classical guitar.
Courses that cover classical guitar will need to give a lot of attention to right hand technique, and perhaps even devote large portions of time and energy to that side of playing.
The courses we liked separated out right and left hand technique and dealt with each one individually.
Balancing skill levels
Classical guitar courses should either serve a specific skill level demographic or address it broadly enough to be widely applicable.
While all classical guitar lessons will have some element of complexity, they should take care to ease a student in by covering beginner topics that are uniquely important to classical guitar.
Basic chords, scales, and fingerpicking technique should be included.
Organizing by topic
Though it’s less relevant within a course that is this specific, classical guitar courses should still be organized to build on concepts in a proper topical order.
Complex patterns, like performance pieces, should be built on a foundation of simpler and more basic concepts.
Like any guitar course, difficult should increase incrementally and in a way that makes sense to the student.
What else did we focus on?
Beyond the criteria already mentioned, there are a couple additional factors to keep in mind as you browse through your classical guitar lesson options.
These relate more to your situation and what you bring to the table as a unique student.
Starting skill level
One of the most critical things to think about is simply this: How good of a guitar player are you already?
How much of the basics do you know?
Those who are closer to the beginner end might want a more beginner-friendly classical guitar course.
Your Level of Interest in Classical Guitar
Do you want to learn classical guitar to be classically-trained and focus specifically on that style, or do you want to apply classical concepts in other areas of music?
Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ)
Q: Are classical guitars easier to play?
A: In some ways they are easier, primarily because of the softer nylon strings that are used. They’re lighter and easier to pick than steel strings. However, since the neck is often wider, this aspect can be more difficult for people with small hands or shorter fingers.
Q: Do I need to grow my right hand nails out?
A: You’ll notice that a lot of classical players grow the nails out on their right hand for picking, though this is certainly not a requirement. It’s a matter of preference and playing style.
Wrapping it all up
Classical music is one of the hardest styles to play on the guitar, though certainly one of the most rewarding and intellectually exciting.
For those looking to get into this discipline, pursuing some level of formal education — even if it’s online — will go a long way towards helping you understand the foundational aspects of the playing style. Think about which course (or courses) look fun and engaging to you, and take the time to browse through the content.
We can recommend what we think is going to be most optimal, but it’s hard to tell on a person-to-person basis.
You’ll have to figure out what works best in your situation.
Even thinking about which teacher you prefer listening to is a valid way to contextualize our recommendations.
Questions?
After all that, if you still have questions, leave them in the comments section on this page.
It’s a lot easier for me to answer and help out that way than email.
Stories and experiences taking (or even teaching) classical guitar courses online or otherwise, are welcome there too.
