Fender Presents: Getting Started on Acoustic Guitar -- A Guide for Beginners

This review is for "Fender Presents: Getting Started on Acoustic Guitar -- A Guide for Beginners." I also bought the Fender "Getting Started on Electric Guitar" DVD. Do not bother buying both DVD courses; they are essentially the same. In fact, one half of the content is exactly the same. This course is excellent. Obviously a great deal of thought went into the production of this DVD at-home guitar course. If you just got your guitar and do not even know how to tune it, this DVD is a great place to start. In fact, it will probably be best for you to start with this DVD (for about three months) before you start taking guitar lessons from a live instructor. This course probably works best with teenagers and adults. Children will probably need help from a parent (it should not matter whether or not the parent plays guitar). This course will teach you how to tune your guitar and how to play basic open-string chords. With this knowledge, you will be able to play rhythm guitar for simple songs fairly quickly. Song chords may be found in numerous places online, as well as in guitar fake books sold here on Amazon. Being able to quickly have fun playing one's guitar helps motive one to continue learning how to play. The Fender course also teaches barre chords, notes on the sixth and fifth strings (to enable you to locate the root notes and placement of barre chords), three-string power chords (for easy rock 'n' roll), and the A minor pentatonic scale (so you can play simple leads). In short, the Fender course is an excellent resource for the new guitar player. It will not teach you how to read music, and it will not teach you any music theory, but it will teach you everything most new guitar players need to learn to play chord progressions. For example, with this course alone (and songs you get from the internet), you will be able to play rhythm guitar while you sing. "Learn and Master Guitar" by Steve Krenz is (by far) a better and more comprehensive course. If you are serious about learning guitar (it is a 20 DVD course, so you better be serious), then try that course in addition to the Fender course. That course is equivalent to two years of guitar instruction (there is even a home-school version.). Another great DVD set for the new guitar player is the Rock House "Learn Electric Guitar" course. A good book on music theory is Hal Leonard's "Music Theory for Guitarists" (by Tom Kolb). If you wish to learn how to sight-read music, a good course is the Berklee "A Modern Method for Guitar - Volume 1: Book/DVD-ROM Pack." Most are available here on Amazon.

I first bought Fender's Getting Started on Accoustic Guitar 3 yrs ago. Keith Wyatt's teaching style is unsurpassed - you cannot find a better instructional DVD for guitar. I ended up giving that DVD to my daughter's boyfriend along with my guitar! Recently, I got another guitar and searched for the same DVD by Fender and Keith Wyatt but since I could not remember it's title, cover or Keith Wyatt's name, I was unable to find it. I bought several guitar lesson DVDs at a variety of websites, hoping to find one that I could learn from. None of them compared to the lessons by Keith Wyatt. Disappointed, I searched one more time just trying to find a good, useful, instuctional DVD. At Amazon I selected the Fender DVD without even knowing it was the one I had been looking for all along. The description alone caused me to buy it again and when the DVD arrived, I was pleasantly surprised when I popped it in and found Keith Wyatt there again! Keith teaches everything from how to hold the guitar and even the pick, to tuning to first chords and the lessons build from there. The DVD contains practice tracks that Keither directs the student to work with after each lesson. It's great! You can tune the guitar to the DVD and you can practice chords and techniques to live music. With Keith Wyatt, the student is making and learning music from day one! If you are a beginning accoustic guitar player - look no further. This is the DVD for you. If you are more advanced or playing electric guitar, use Keith Wyatt as the key words in your searches - he has a number of DVD's on the market to help players at all levels.

So, you've just bought your first guitar and now need to figure what books or lessons you'll take? And there's 100 of choices...And you think all the free stuff on YouTube might be enough... I bought this DVD and a book recommended by the local music store where I had my guitar set-up. Hands down, this DVD is way better than any book and better than any of the "free" lessons you can find on YouTube. The lessons start with simple things like how to hold the guitar and tune it. From there, you'll learn some simple chords and strumming techniques. There's looped backing tracks you can play along with, so from the very first lesson you're actually "playing" guitar. It's a real feeling of accomplishment. A drawback is that the DVD doesn't come with any chord charts - it would have been nice to have a printed set of beginners chords to refer to as you play along (this is where the book I bought does have value). Definitely recommended for the beginner.

Maybe some folks recieved a different version than I but it was already STRIKE1 when the instructor is proving playing ACOUSTICALLY on an ELECTRIC(!!!) guitar. The moment I saw that I was disappointed. Musically speaking there is little difference in the basics be that on Acoustic or Electric, but there are defintely differences. And having the instructor teach me on an electric left a sour taste in my mouth. Once I got over that though, it was a decent DVD and most assuredly better than some of the other ones out there. Wyatt does a good job at breaking the lessons down and the background beats alone make it worth checking out, but beyond that, I was most assuredly looking for other forms of instruction. Of course part of that is attributed to the fact that I'm a Lefty but that in no way influenced my view of the lessons. Again, Wyatt is a good teacher and has some good offerings but if you are marketing for Acoustic, at the very least USE AN ACOUSTIC GUITAR!!! In summary, it is worth the price tag (I think I paid $15ish for it) and adding to your collection as a beginner guitarist. But ask me how many times I have used it since getting over the basics...but that's not what this DVD is for, hence the title 'Getting Started...'

This DVD is fantastic! It's worth the price just for the looped backing tracks for practice. I like how I can practice major, minor, power or seventh chords over the backing tracks. It makes practicing chord transitions fun---like actually playing something---instead of a grind. The teacher is first-rate. Yes, as previously noted, he's playing an electric guitar. IT MAKES NO DIFFERENCE TO THE LESSON. He injects just enough music theory quickly and concisely while showing the viewer where to put his/her fingers. Though I already knew most of the chords, I learned some preferable finger positioning for faster transitions. I've only done half of the lessons so far, but it has already been worth my money. Some background might be helpful in your decision to purchase this DVD: I'm a beginning player, and I've only had my guitar for a month. I have a musical background, so I feel like I'm picking it up pretty quickly. I know about 50 chords and can play quite a few songs . . . rhythm, for the most part! I feel like this DVD would have helped me from day one, but I couldn't have breezed through the first several lessons as an absolute beginner. I hope this review helps you decide if this DVD is right for you. Happy practicing!

This is a great DVD if you are just getting started or know a little about playing the guitar. Keith Wyatt makes this fun and easy to understand. I got my first guitar twenty-eight years ago, but I only learned a few chords and eventually put it down to play the drums. Now I'm back to the guitar trying to learn how to really play, and this DVD has helped quite a bit. I've read some complaints in these reviews that he is playing an electric guitar instead of an acoustic. It states right at the beginning that what he's teaching applies to the acoustic guitar as well. Also there is a whole section devoted to the acoustic guitar. Not much to complain about if you ask me.

I purchased my first guitar about 8 months ago and have been trying to learn with the help of books, websites, and alot of YouTube. I have been using this Fender DVD for about two months now and absolutely love it. There are some great instructors on line but I think Keith Wyatt is the best. Each time I go to a new lesson I am amazed by the excellent organization, the wealth of information and various kinds of support. It just keeps getting better as one progresses, from backing and practice tracks to video fret boards and tab charts. I strongly recommend this DVD for beginners and relative newbies. I try to practice everyday and this one DVD is so rich I will not exhaust its resources for many more months. You truly cannot go wrong. Fender was so wise to pick Keith Wyatt for this role; like any great teacher he knows how to put himself in the place of the student.

I'll keep this short and sweet. I had ZERO experience playing the guitar. I knew how to play a couple of other instruments (all the saxophones and a little keyboard) but never really had any experience with a stringed instrument. This DVD had me playing a few chords the first time I watched it. I picked up a few more each time I watched it. It was easy to follow and the instruction seemed pretty good. Overall, a pretty solid DVD teaching tool.

Perfect for a beginner

Brilliant , covers everything . A must for any beginner , it helped me so much . Easy to use and a real confidence booster. Tales you from best way to sit for you , tuning , being patient and lots of positive praise on your progress and confidence . I would not be without it . Worth every penny for total beginners . This and a guitar for a present is money well spent .😁👌

Gr8 thnx

I've had this DVD for about two weeks and have come on leaps and bounds from initially buying a book that I got stuck on with lot's of theory to this that you can actually watch and pause/rewind etc. I feel that I have really developed. This DVD has helped me understand the parts of the book I got stuck on. The practice tracks are excellent in helping you with chord changes and to developed a sense of rhythm. Guitar Go here I come!

Well, I last had a guitar when I was 12, now at almost 49 I purchased a Fender acoustic guitar (people my age normally buy Harley Davidsons!!) and got a taster dvd with the pack. I decided to buy the full dvd version and can really rate it as it has taught me things I never really understood out of a book in my younger days. I think it gives a fairly, although basic, good understanding of the guitar and would certainly encourage any beginner to buy it. Keith Wyatt has a good approach with the subject. My only gripe? An extra pair of hands to rewind/pause when watching so I can still keep both hands on my guitar!!!