One question that comes up frequently is: What kind of guitar should my child learn on?
The answer isn’t as one size fits all as most people would tell you. Many people will tell you that in addition to taking guitar lessons for children, your child should start with an acoustic guitar. This isn’t necessarily true; the type of guitar your child should start can depend on several different factors.
What type of music does your child want to play?
How old is your child?
Do they get frustrated easily?
What type of music does you child want to play?
If your child is young (7-8 years old) It is perfectly normal for neither them nor you to really know this answer. In most cases your child just wants to play guitar, have fun and doesn’t have any particular style, artist or band in mind. The longer they play, the more they will figure out what they want to play. For now it is all about fun and making music that they like. In this case, there is no reason to start them out on an acoustic guitar. An electric guitar will do just fine.
If your child does know what they want to play and they want to play, country, bluegrass, folk or classical music, an acoustic guitar is exactly what they will need.
If your child wants to play rock, pop or blues, then an electric guitar will be better suited for them.
How Old Is Your Child?
If your child is really young (7-9 years old) I’d recommend an electric guitar. If you do get them an acoustic guitar find an acoustic guitar with nylon strings. Both will be much easier on your child’s fingertips as they develop callouses. There will be some soreness in the beginning regardless of the type of guitar but this will help to minimize it some.
You could also look into getting your child a smaller sized guitar (3/4 scale) depending on your child’s size. Smaller children (especially if they have small hands) will have a very hard time on a full size guitar, they will have to reach too far to play it and that will cause frustration. The smaller guitars are much easier for them to play, they sound great and look just as cool as the full size guitar do.
Does Your Child Get Frustrated Easily?
For most kids the answer is yes and when learning to play guitar if the guitar is too hard to play, they will get frustrated very quickly. Again, either an electric guitar or at least an acoustic with nylon strings will help keep the frustration down.
There are other factors that go into decided which guitar is right for your child and if you have any questions, feel free to call me at 603-336-3480. I would be happy to talk to you and help you out.