San Diego Guitar Lessons

 

Pitch loves teaching guitar because it is the most versatile and portable instrument out there, which gives us insight as to why it has become the most popular instrument to play in the whole world! From learning how to play guitar to accompany yourself all the way to become a rock star guitarist, Pitch can help you achieve your guitar playing goals.

For those who are completely new to guitar and looking for some online help . I have put together a section dedicated guitar resources, filled with buying guides, lessons, etc. to aide you on your journey.  After looking over the page if you still have questions feel free to email me and I will be glad to help you.

Pitch also offers San Diego Piano Lessons, San Diego Voice Lessons.

San Diego Music Lessons

Pitch has been playing guitar since he was 10 years old.  Don’t assume you are too young or too old, never be discouraged from learning music. Contact Pitch to set up a first session.  If for some reason you and Pitch are not a good fit, Pitch will gladly refer you to a list of top notch instructors he knows from all over San Diego and, for that matter, all over the country.

Lesson scheduling and length can be arranged on a student-by-student basis and cost depends on location.  

To set up a first music lesson and for more information, please email pitchmichael@gmail.com

Click here for general info about Pitch Michael ‘The Teacher’

San Diego Guitar Repair

Don Veda of SD Guitar Repair

Pricing

Full setup on instrument  – $40
(Includes all the following)
  • Intonation
  • Truss rod adjustment
  • Fret polish
  • Fret polish
  • Guitar Cleaning
  • Bridge Action
  • Pickup height adjusment
  • Restring (you provide strings of choice)

Other Services Offered  
(contact for pricing)

  • Pickup Installation
  • Tuner Replacement/Repair
  • Instrument Cleaning & Restrings
  • Fretdress/Refrets
  • Nut & Saddle Work
  • Electronic Repair
  • Installing after market hardware.
  • Repainting/Touch ups

Recommended San Diego Guitar Tech

It’s great to officially have a guitar tech that I can recommend to all my San Diego students and local guitarists.  He is more than just a guitar tech as he is a professional touring guitarist and knows what we as musicians are wanting and needing.  As I am endorsing him please let me know how your experience is at SD Guitar Repair and if, in the unlikely case, there are any negative experiences I will personally help in remedying your situation.

About SD Guitar Repair
San Diego Guitar Repair is owned and operated by Don Vedda, a professional touring guitarist as well as instrument luthier and guitar/bass setup professional. Don works on guitars and basses both electric and acoustic at his workshop in Escondido, California and offers the most affordable rates in San Diego with the fastest turnaround time in town.
For those looking for a professional setup or repair for their guitar or bass guitar, Pitch recommends Don Vedda, owner of SD Guitar Repair. 

Offering Free Consultations!

-Let him know Pitch sent you-

donvedda@donvedda.com

(760) 822-7443

Website

 

Guitar Buying Guide (updated 2021)

Guitar Basic Info

Types of Guitars:

The most common types of guitars are classical guitars, steel-string acoustic guitars, and electric guitars.

Classical Guitars

By the name alone one can assume classical guitars are used in ‘classical music’, though they are also heard in many other genres as well.  These guitars have a wider neck than their acoustic guitar relative and use nylon strings instead of metal.  Classical guitars are also referred to as Nylon String Guitar or Spanish Guitar. Though classical guitars are mainly heard in classical and spanish music some pop artists such as Jason Mraz have incorporated classical guitars in much of their music.

Steel String Guitars

These types of guitars are the most commonly played acoustic guitar, they can be heard densely in country music, and acoustic rock music.  They are known for there metallic sound which is heard in a lot of popular music today.

 

Click Here to see a comprehensive list of other types of guitars

Electric Guitars

Want to rock?  This is the guitar for you!  Similar to the steel string acoustic guitars,  electric guitar also use all metal strings, but because they not hollow they do not project sound far and sound best when plugged into a guitar amp.

Buying Guide

What Guitar to buy for a beginner?

If you are new to playing guitar I would recommend purchasing an acoustic guitar and specifically a classical guitar instead of the steel string guitar because the strings are much easier on the fingers due to the fact that the strings are made of nylon instead of metal.

Yamaha C40II - Classical Guitar ($149.99)

This is a great starter Classical Guitar and yamaha is  reliable brand. If you are looking for a guitar for a smaller kid yamaha makes a similar classical in 3/4 size!

BUY NOW

Yamah FD01S - Steel String Guitar (149.99)

This is a good price for a steel string acoustic guitar with solid spruce top, which will only sound better with age.  If you are wanting/needing a guitar with a pickup, for a little over $300 you can buy the Yamaha FSX800C or Yamaha FGX800C.

BUY NOW

Squier Strat by Fender - Electric Guitar ($209)

This is a good beginner electric guitar and if you follow the link bellow it gives you multiple options in colors. From sunburst (imaged above) to black, surf green to red, and more!

BUY NOW

Online Resources

Guitar Tuners

First thing you need to learn before learning to play guitar is how to tune your guitar to the correct notes.  Here are a few Guitar tuners I have used.

Guitar Tuna (Free)

Free Tuner App for both the Android, Apple and Window markets

Guitar-Tuner.org (Free)

This site teaches you how to…

Tune your acoustic, electric, bass guitar or ukulele
with Microphone or by Ear

 

Snark SN5X Clip-On Tuner ($11.95)

If you are wanting a physical tuner for guitar than I would recommend checking out the Snarky tuners. They can just attach to the headstock of your guitar and are ready to tune!

BUY NOW

Learning to Play

Ultimate Guitar (Online FREE / App Purchase)

With a 800k+ catalogue of chord charts and tabs this site is the best resource for learning new songs plus it’s free to use.  The app is a great resource as well though it is not free like the online version.

Hal Leonard Guitar Method Book 1 ($6.99)

I use this book in conjunction with other resources for many of my beginning students.  It’s inexpensive and easy to understand.  For $4 more you can purchase this book with a CD and get access to the online resources through the Hall Leonard website.

Stop Practicing So Long!

Practice Duration & Frequency

Many of my new students (and parents) ask me how long and

how often they should practice.  After being asked this so many times I’ve learned to stop giving out a time frame or even a number of days per week that they should practice music because, honestly, everyone has different schedules and goals.  I’m not going to quote a number that they will never be able to achieve because of lifestyle.

“it is better to practice 5-10 minutes everyday during the week than 2 hours one day of the week”

With that said, there is one rule I think is important when setting up your music practice routine.  It is much better to practice consistently during the week in smaller time frames than only once a week for a long time.  For example, it is better to practice 5-10 minutes everyday during the week than 2 hours one day of the week.  Why? because getting to your instrument regularly for a few minutes everyday creates a habit for the long term where as playing your instrument for hours just one day will burn you out and will not nurture steady growth in your skill level or long term habits in practicing.

How To Practice

When starting your practice routine it’s not imperative that you divide your practice time into a specific ratio.   Practice what you want or have time for and create a habit out of it.  Again, the most important part is to get to your instrument regularly.

“start out the practice with instrument exercises… then lesson material

… and lastly songs

With my students I usually have 3 different material archetypes going on each week: Exercises, Lesson material, and Song/Piece. If you are using more than one of these as well I recommend to start out the practice with instrument exercises (scales, vocal warmup, etc), then Lesson material (theory, technique, etc), and lastly songs/pieces (rock/pop, classical, etc).  

Where To Practice

The best place to practice your instrument is somewhere you can focus on your music and not easily get distracted.  Also, as a curtesy, try to make sure you aren’t distracting others when possible.  If you are in an environment that is stimulating and distracting but want to practice I would recommend playing warmup type exercises (i.e. scales, licks, etc.).  For example, many of my guitar students will practice their scales while they watch tv.  This not only makes the practicing of scales less ‘boring’ but also can help pull the players eyes and mind off the their hands to solidify the scales into muscle memory.  After you play enough you will come to a point where you won’t really think about notes and chords being played because your hand muscles know how to play them.  When I’m playing guitar I can be playing and singing while at the same time thinking about something completely different, like what I am going to eat after, haha!

 

Contact

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