Welcome to
Guitar Lessons Plymouth
Build confidence playing music you love in a fun, supportive environment — with experienced tutors who adapt to your pace and goals.
Our Guitar Teachers in Plymouth
Browse local guitar teachers to get started, or search again above to find the nearest guitar teacher to you.
My name is Mark and I am a professional guitar teacher based here in Plymouth helping students of all abilities develop their guitar playing ability. I have a depth of experience having been playing & teaching guitar…
Hi budding musicians, I am a teacher of guitar and drums in Tavistock (in the UK) and I love helping my students to find their way on their instruments. I teach at three of my local schools (Tavistock College, Tavistock…
About Guitar Lessons Plymouth
Welcome to Guitar Lessons Plymouth. Whether you're exploring electric guitar lessons, developing fingerstyle skills on acoustic guitar, learning bass guitar fundamentals, or mastering classical repertoire, tutors with many years of teaching experience help you play guitar with confidence at your own speed. Lessons are available in person across the city or online, giving you the flexibility to fit music around your life.
Plymouth guitar teachers offer lessons from home studios, travel to students locally, or teach online depending on the tutor. Many serve surrounding Devon areas too, with flexible scheduling to suit your needs.
In Plymouth, many guitar tutors bring extensive teaching experience and professional playing backgrounds. DBS certification is common among tutors teaching younger learners, ensuring safe and trusted instruction. Free taster sessions let you experience teaching style and studio settings before committing to lessons.
What makes Plymouth guitar teaching effective
Guitar lessons for all abilities in Plymouth
Guitar lessons in Plymouth serve complete beginners through advanced students of all ages and abilities. Many tutors offer one-on-one tuition tailored to your specific goals, whether playing favourite songs, building technique, exploring solo fingerstyle arrangements, or preparing for graded exams. Free taster sessions are commonly available at several music schools and with private tutors, letting you experience teaching style and studio environment before committing. Both group and one-to-one formats exist across the city, with skill development strategies adapted to each learner's pace and musical interests.
Electric and acoustic guitar tuition
Whether you choose acoustic and electric guitar or specialise in one, tutors help you progress at your preferred pace. Electric guitar lessons emphasise rock, blues, metal, and alternative styles through lead technique, improvisation, and rhythmic control. Acoustic guitar covers singer-songwriter traditions, fingerstyle arrangements, pop, folk, and soul styles. A guitar teacher can guide you toward the instrument matching your musical taste and physical comfort, with both complete beginners and advanced players welcome to start your very first lesson with encouragement and structure.
Specialist bass guitar tutor services
Many Plymouth tutors offer bass guitar instruction alongside six-string teaching. A specialist bass guitar tutor helps you develop the unique groove, timing, and rhythmic feel needed for ensemble playing and solo bass lines. Whether learning rock, jazz, funk, soul, or RnB bass, teachers cover genre-specific approaches and build foundation skills rapidly. Some tutors focus exclusively on bass guitar, ideal if you want deep technical development and broader musical context across multiple performance styles and environments.
Online and in-person guitar teaching
Electric guitar lessons, acoustic guitar instruction, and bass tuition are available both online and in local studios or home teaching spaces. Online guitar lessons offer flexibility, no travel time, and access to specialist tutors fitting busy schedules. In-person lessons provide hands-on feedback, immediate technical correction, and direct rapport with your teacher. Many Plymouth tutors offer both formats, so you can choose what works best for your lifestyle. Established teaching methods and careful progression help you achieve faster progress through consistent weekly practice.
A simple learning path for guitar
A good teacher will tailor lessons to your goals — but here’s what progress often looks like.
Establish correct posture, learn fretboard basics, master fundamental chord shapes, and develop consistent strumming. Your teacher guides proper technique from the start to prevent frustration and plateaus.
Progress to barre chords, fuller song arrangements, and rhythmic independence. You'll play recognisable tracks and understand how different techniques serve musical expression.
Choose your path: classical technique, jazz improvisation, rock lead playing, fingerstyle arrangements, or exam preparation. Your teacher adapts teaching to match your evolving musical interests and ambitions.
Getting started: what you need
Keep it simple at first — your teacher can help you choose the right setup.
- Choose your instrument based on what excites you: acoustic feels warm and portable, electric offers tone flexibility and suits amplified styles.
- Start minimal: one tuner, a handful of picks, and your guitar. Other accessories follow naturally as you discover what you need.
- Practice three or four times weekly for 20–30 minutes, rather than one long session. Short, focused practice builds faster progress and confidence.
Styles & goals your teacher can support
Choose a direction — lessons can be tailored around what you actually want to play.
Chord-based songwriting, contemporary strumming patterns, production-aware arrangement, and translating streaming influences into your own playing.
Pentatonic scales, bending technique, expression through dynamics, and improvisation over classic and modern blues progressions.
Right-hand independence, arpeggios, music theory depth, and performing classical repertoire and modern fingerstyle compositions.
Groove pocket, walking bass lines, band dynamics, and building rhythmic foundation for rock, jazz, funk, and collaborative projects.
Structured progression toward ABRSM or Rockschool grades, technical mastery, sight-reading, and formal music theory development.
Browse guitar lessons by location
Explore guitar teachers by city and region.
Other lessons in Plymouth
Trust & safety
Parents and students should always feel confident asking about safeguarding, insurance, and lesson policies.
FAQs about guitar lessons in Plymouth
Absolutely — all our tutors specialise in teaching complete beginners. You'll start with the basics of guitar, learn simple chords, and play recognisable songs within your very first lesson. Many students find early progress incredibly rewarding.
Both work beautifully. Acoustic guitar feels authentic and travels easily. Electric guitar offers endless tone variation and often appeals to rock, metal, and blues players. Some learners progress to bass guitar for ensemble or solo playing. Your teacher can help you choose based on the music you want to play and what excites you most.
Anything from pop, rock, blues, jazz, indie, and soul to classical guitar pieces and solo fingerstyle arrangements. Teachers tailor repertoire to your interests, whether that means learning favourite songs, exploring jazz improv, playing bass guitar parts, or building classical technique. Guitar playing adapts to your musical taste in its own right.
Plymouth and the wider Devon area have a proud rock heritage. The region is most famously linked to Muse, one of the UK’s most successful modern rock bands, who built their early following in the South West. Plymouth itself has long supported live rock music through venues such as Plymouth Pavilions and shows put on by SW1 Productions, helping local bands gain experience on stage. For aspiring guitarists, this local music culture is part of what makes learning rewarding — many students are inspired by British rock and alternative bands, and a local guitar teacher can help you develop the techniques behind powerful riffs, tight rhythm playing, and expressive lead work.
No problem. Your teacher can advise on affordable acoustic and electric guitar options, or discuss renting while you explore. This removes the barrier to starting and lets you invest confidently once you're ready.
Yes — many Plymouth teachers offer bass guitar tuition alongside standard guitar. A specialist bass guitar tutor can help you develop the unique technique and groove needed for bass, whether you're learning solo bass lines or playing in an ensemble. Some tutors focus solely on bass guitar instruction.
Weekly lessons accelerate your skill development and help you build consistent technique and confidence. If weekly feels challenging initially, fortnightly lessons are a good starting point, though most students progress faster with weekly practice and teaching.
Exams are entirely optional. Some students enjoy the structure and achievement of graded qualifications like Rockschool or ABRSM guitar exams. Others prefer learning purely for enjoyment and own satisfaction without formal assessment. Your teacher supports whichever path matches your goals.
Look for an experienced teacher whose playing style and teaching approach excite you. Check whether they specialise in your chosen genre — rock, classical, fingerstyle, or other styles. Message a few tutors to discuss your goals, ask about their experience, and ensure their lesson structure and availability work for you.
Plymouth has several established music retailers. Sound Unlimited, Music Direct Limited (with a dedicated Plymouth location), and Wantshop all stock acoustic and electric guitars.
Yes — many experienced teachers have professional gigging band experience and can coach band arrangement, ensemble playing, and stage confidence. If performing is your goal, your tutor can build skills and knowledge to support that ambition.
Yes — tutors teach children, teenagers, adults, and older learners. Each age group benefits from tailored lesson pacing and repertoire. Skill development strategies remain consistent across ages; teachers simply adapt teaching style and song choice to match individual abilities and interests.