FAQ: General Questions About Starting Lessons

"What do I need to do to get started with lessons?"

You will need a guitar. I have an online store with a few recommendations if you'd like to buy online. If you already have one, make sure it has 6 strings on it.

If you’d like to try out the lessons first before buying, I have an extra guitar at the school.

"Who teaches at the School of Feedback Guitar"

Well, it's just me, Dave Wirth. My site, www.diehipsterdie.com is where you can hear albums that I've created and buy a copy or ten. You may also sign up for my newsletter which has information on performances that I do, specifically to your city and state.

"Should I bring an amp or just my guitar?"

It's up to you. Amps are heavy. I have an amp that you can use. Of course, if you like the sound of your amp, then feel free to bring it. *Note* Bringing a Marshall Stack to your lesson is very cool, but unfortunately a Marshall Stack was made for the Frank Erwin center and not guitar lessons. If you want to turn up the volume, make sure to schedule your lesson for after 7:00pm.

"Do you recommend hour or half hour lessons to start out?"

You are the best judge. Half hour lessons are good to get a super concentrated dose of one idea or concept at a time. This is best if you are the type of person who wants to make something your own outside of the lesson. Hour lessons also will give you the opportunity to really jump into something and understand it better before you leave. It’s good for people who really want to learn it, and fast. If you are the OCD type then hour lessons are recommended.

"What if I don't have a guitar yet?"

I have an extra guitar at the school for new folks to try out. At least for the first lesson you can find out for sure if you really like playing guitar without having to go on faith and just buy one. When you are ready to buy one, I have an online store with a few recommendations. As far as rentals go, Rock and Roll Rentals on Oltorf and South Lamar has some pretty fantastic deals on renting guitars.

"How do I cancel a lesson that I have booked?"

Do you remember the email that you received when you booked your lesson online? You must go back to that email and cancel there. You must do this 24 hours in advance, or I will charge you a $30 fee.

For cancellations on the day of your lesson as well as "No-Call-No-Shows," I will charge you a $30 fee. However, if you had a complete emergency, then no fee and I hope you are okay. On your honor.

Please don't no-call-no-show to your lesson. No-Call-No-Shows are completely disrespectful of my time and are damaging to the professional relationship we are going to be developing and maintaining.

"What days/hours is the SoFG Open?"

I do all the booking for my lessons online at BookFresh.com. Click here to go to to my BookFresh profile page to see my hours.

"Where is the SoFG located?"

FAQ: General Questions about Lessons

"What 'level' of students do you teach?"

1. I teach all levels, from beginner to advanced.
2. I teach people who have never picked up a guitar before.
3. I teach people who want to be more creative and chase their musical dreams, regardless of level.

To read more about the types of courses and individual lessons I teach, please click here.

"Do you have any expectations of students?"

I want my clients to have fun and feel competent in their ability. This cannot happen without work outside of the lessons. Therefore, I require for each client I work with to schedule five minutes per day to practice. I do not believe it is neccesary to practice any more than that, but I do believe it neccesary to achieve any goal in guitar. There is no magic wand, and no guitar student cannot acheive what they want without practice. Sorry!

"Do you expect students to practice?"

Once again, yes. I very strongly believe that five minutes of practice when starting guitar is just the correct amount of practice if you are starting from scratch. If you would like to read up on the reasons why, check out my blog.

I also understand that there are people out there who do not want to practice at all. While I appreciate their honesty, it's going to be an uphill battle for them and I will not allow it as a teacher. I will be very upfront and honest about the situation to anyone, and I will communicate that it is neccesary and required to find the time. If a client is unable find five minutes to pick up a guitar, then my suggestion will be not to take lessons from me. It will be a waste of time for both of us, and it will not yield the satisfaction both of us are searching for eventually.

"What's your favorite kind of lesson to do?"

When people ask interesting questions, it forces me to think of creative responses. I love it when people come into their lesson and tell me what they want to learn.

"My hands hurt when I play guitar. Can you help me with this?"

Nobody's hands should hurt when they play guitar. It is possible that the way you are playing guitar isn't best for your hand. Every person's hand is different, and each requires individualized attention. I have helped a large number of students with chronic hand problems to play guitar with ease.

"How do I know that you are going to be the right teacher for me?"

If you have a good gut feeling, then chances are great that you will highly enjoy the lessons with me. I love to make people laugh in lessons, and I love to make them feel at ease. Not only that, but I fully recognize what it takes to help people and to be a human being.

"Do you teach children?"

Currently, I teach one student who is 10 years old. He has been taking guitar lessons for two years. This student has an outstanding ability to concentrate, and is very musically curious. If you believe that your child is exactly like this, then please give me a call at (512) 299-4247.

Parents take note: I require that you be in the room at while I teach your child. They behave better that way.

"Do you offer gift certificates?"

The short answer is no. My apologies!

My primary way of working with people is in a one-on-one lesson. It could be potentially very bad if the person you bought the lessons for didn't like the lessons with me. Even though I do try my best to work with everyone, and 99% of the people I work with are happy with my work, sometimes it just doesn't work out.

One thing you can do is schedule and then pay for an introductory lesson for your friend. If your friend enjoys the lessons, then you can pay for a couple of lessons for them. It's cheaper and there is less risk that way anyways.

FAQ: Genres Taught at the SoFG

"Do you teach people who have never played before?"

The people who come in and learn guitar from scratch are probably my favorite lessons to teach. I love teaching people to play guitar from scratch! To read more about those types of lessons, Click Here.

"I want to learn to play by ear. Can we do this?"

Yes! I've developed a fun way to teach students to play by ear.

"I want to learn how to play rock guitar, and compose my own music. Can we do this?"

Yes. My curriculum helps any person who wants to learn to play guitar from scratch, or progress from their current ability.

"Do You Teach Classical Guitar?"

Yes. However, there are two caveats: One is you must have fingernails on your plucking hand that you already use for playing guitar. Two is that you must play and perform your favorite piece on your first lesson. For more information on taking classical guitar lessons with me, Click Here.

"Can you teach me how to play lead guitar?"

I can help with technical and musical issues only as they pertain to the student's individual interests. Developing a lead guitar style is a fun but challenging process. Though I can help you and encourage you through the process, my stance is to stand out of the way and offer suggestions and drills in the lessons only. I will not ask you to work outside of the lessons. That way, your lead guitar work will naturally blossom from your own effort. You'll have done it on your own.

"Do you teach Classic Rock?"

Although I appreciate classic rock, I am not very into it honestly. I think there are plenty of teachers around town who can help you better than I can.

"Do you teach Blues Guitar or Country? Or, what about Finger-style Blues Guitar?"

Again, although I appreciate the blues, country, and the guitarists who play them, I am not very into teaching these styles.

"Do you teach songwriting?"

Yes, but: I refuse to share any thoughts about a song after it is completed. I only step in and lend a hand when a person is stuck in the middle of writing a song. To read more about how I approach creativity in music and guitar lessons, Click Here.

"Do you teach Jazz Guitar, Shred Guitar, or Metal?"

If my student has a fanatical appreciation for the genre as well as the mysteries of guitar, then I will work with them only if they can hear opinions outside of their own. Why pay for lessons and not hear an outside opinion?

"Do you teach music theory?"

Yes, but I only teach what the student asks for. I don't impose music theory on students. If Stevie Ray Vaughn learned to play guitar and not know a lick of music theory, I won't tell you that you must learn it either.

Do you teach music appreciation?

No. That comes naturally.

"I want to learn to play a bunch of songs. Can we do this?"

Many teachers take this route when they are teaching someone how to play guitar. My approach is different:

1. Teach you how to play by ear.
2. Work with you as you figure out the songs you want to play.
3. Solidify your techniques for playing by ear, so that you never have to depend upon a teacher to learn new songs, ever again.

"Do you teach recording techniques?"

No. Austin Community College has a fantastic program called Commercial Music Management that offers a wide variety of recording classes.

"Should I buy an electric guitar or an acoustic guitar first?"

Often, new clients of mine ask if they should buy an acoustic first because it is "harder to play." There is a view that if they can learn on an acoustic they can easily pick up electric. The acoustic is a bit harder to play because of the gauge of the strings and the width of the neck, but this argument doesn't take into account personal preferences as to what they would like to play more. I recommend buying a guitar that you gravitate to, be it an electric or an acoustic. Many students start off with one type of guitar, and then buy the other because they want to see what it's like.

"What kind of guitar should I buy?"

I do have one recommendation that I give over and over again, and that is the Epiphone Hummingbird acoustic guitar:

Epiphone Hummingbird.

This guitar is fantastic for those people who are sold on learning guitar, don't want something cheap, but don't want to spend a lot of dough. It will last.

I also have a couple of other recommendations at my online store. Other than my direct recommendation, this is a question I cannot answer very well. It depends upon your view:

1. Try some guitars out at a local music store. My favorite store is Strait Music Company, mostly because they are a better business bureau registered store. It also helps to set a price range, and then go to the store. Once again, Strait Music Company is awesome like that.

2. Garage Sales. Hit em up. It is jokingly said that every musician in Austin plays in ten bands. A similar principle applies for guitars: Chances are that a lot of Austinites have a dusty unused guitar sitting in the corner of their living room.

3. Craigslist

"My guitar has a broken string. Can you fix it?"

If it is an electric guitar, yes. Just bring it into your lesson and it will get fixed. If it's an acoustic, you will need to buy acoustic guitar strings (spend no more than $10 per pack).

"My guitar is broken in general. Can you fix it?"

Beyond any minor repairs, I can't fix it.