The Gift That Keeps On Giving
They say that once you've learned to ride a bike, you'll never forget how to. The same applies to the guitar. Once you've got the hang of this thing and your hands remain attached to your arms, you'll always be able to make music with it. Don't get me wrong, there will be forever more to learn, but that's true of every guitarist, no matter how advanced they are. There's no such thing as 'completing' the guitar. As such, even if someone can already play, there will always be something more to learn from someone that's further along in their guitar-playing exploration.
So, giving the gift of guitar lessons is really the gift of a lifelong skill; the start of a unique journey, or a guide to new places to explore.
It Nurtures Creativity
One of the most fulfilling experiences we can have is to express ourselves creatively. Guitar lessons will often focus on learning other people's music, but this should always be seen as a way of learning the techniques, ideas and theory needed to create our own. Every musician started by learning music that already existed (I only know of one exception, check out The Shaggs and their story for a truly unique experience), so by giving the gift of guitar lessons, we are giving that person the ability to create and express in a way that they otherwise could not. And that, in my experience, is one path to a little more joy in life. Not a bad gift to receive!
Help Along The Way
The guitar is not an intuitive instrument to deal with. It's not immediately obvious where the notes are or how to get them to sound good. Chord shapes appear complex and fiddly; even just avoiding playing the wrong notes can be a challenge. Contrast this with the piano, with its clear, logical layout and the relative ease with which we can play a note cleanly.
Because of this, many people who come into possession of a guitar hit a wall early on and give up out of frustration. This is particularly true if they try to teach themselves. There are a lot of resources online for beginners, much of which is good stuff, but there's no replacement for the interaction to be had with a tutor. Having someone to ask questions of, and someone who can give you feedback in the moment, will massively speed up the process of getting to grips with the instrument, by preventing you from going down blind alleys, learning bad habits, and by giving you solutions to problems you didn't know existed.
Having a tutor to help through that steep learning curve will eventually give the student the ability and tools to continue their growth and exploration of the instrument, and music in general, on their own.
We all need that initial boost, so why not give the gift of music to an aspiring guitarist in your life and buy an eVoucher this Christmas by clicking the link below?