Learning to play the guitar has become an increasingly popular pursuit, whether as a pandemic hobby, a way to unwind, or a lifelong ambition. While traditional guitar lessons with expert teachers are always an option, the rise of user-friendly technology has opened up exciting new avenues for beginners. If you’re like many aspiring guitarists in today’s digital age, you might be wondering, “How hard could it be to learn guitar on my own, especially with a dedicated app?” This thought led me to pick up an affordable guitar and dive into the world of guitar learning apps, specifically Yousician, to see if it truly is the Best Learn Guitar App for beginners.
Tuning In to App-Based Guitar Lessons
Initially, I explored free resources like YouTube tutorials. However, I quickly realized that I needed a more structured and simplified approach. That’s when I turned to guitar learning apps and discovered Yousician. With over 10 million downloads and positive reviews, Yousician seemed like a promising platform to begin my musical journey. Available on both Android and iOS, I downloaded the app on my smartphone and started exploring its features.
Upon launching Yousician, I was greeted by a friendly instructor (whose face remains unseen throughout the acoustic guitar sessions!). He guided me through the basics – identifying guitar strings and proper holding techniques. I was immediately impressed by the app’s smooth performance on my phone. However, I could see how using Yousician on a tablet, especially one of the best tablets with a larger screen, would be beneficial, particularly as the musical notes can appear quite small on a phone screen.
What truly captivated me was Yousician’s innovative approach to teaching. The app employs a game-like interface reminiscent of Guitar Hero. Colored blocks descend on the screen, indicating which string and fret to play, and even suggesting which finger to use. This gamified method was a major selling point for me. Now, even when I’m not using the app, I instinctively associate colors with my fingers – pointer finger as yellow, middle finger purple, index blue, and pinky orange!
After a quick tuning session using the built-in tuner and a walkthrough of guitar fundamentals, Yousician introduces its subscription model. While the initial lessons are free, accessing the full content requires a subscription. Yousician offers two main plans: Premium and Premium+. For those wanting to learn popular songs and not just Yousician’s original tracks, the Premium+ subscription is the way to go. It costs around $11 a month and unlocks access to guitar, piano, ukulele, and vocal lessons. Premium subscribers are limited to a single instrument. Premium+ also boasts celebrity-led courses, featuring artists like Metallica and Jason Mraz, though these courses are relatively brief.
The licensed song library within Yousician is surprisingly extensive. It includes current hits from artists like Twenty-One Pilots and Imagine Dragons, alongside classics from the 90s and 2000s (playing “Breakfast at Tiffany’s” is a personal highlight), and even reaches back to glam rock anthems from Bon Jovi and Kiss, as well as timeless tunes by John Denver, The Beach Boys, and The Beatles. Some of my personal favorites to play on Yousician include The Cure’s “Just Like Heaven,” Paramore’s “The Only Exception,” and The Cranberries’ iconic song, “Linger.”
Learning the Ropes with Interactive Lessons
A screenshot from the Yousician app
(Image credit: Future)
Despite having no prior musical background, I was amazed at how quickly I started playing recognizable songs. Yousician lessons are generally structured into two parts: a video tutorial featuring a real instructor demonstrating the technique, followed by an interactive exercise for you to practice. Each part typically takes around 5 to 10 minutes, making lessons easily digestible. The biggest advantage of using an app like Yousician is the ability to slow down sections I found challenging and replay them as needed. Crucially, the app provides immediate visual feedback, indicating whether I was playing the correct notes – notes turn green for correct and red for incorrect. This real-time feedback is invaluable and something I wouldn’t get relying solely on YouTube or guitar books, where I could easily be learning improper techniques without realizing it.
Yousician excels at motivating you to keep practicing. Much like Guitar Hero, the app scores your performance on each song or lesson, awarding you a star rating and placing you on online leaderboards. This element of gamification can be quite addictive, pushing you to strive for higher scores. Furthermore, as you complete lesson sets, your account “levels up,” providing a satisfying sense of progression and accomplishment, even if it sounds a bit nerdy!
Going Beyond the App?
Having progressed to account level 5, I’ve gained a solid grasp of guitar fundamentals and basic music theory. I’ve learned power chords, octaves, hammer-ons, pull-offs, and slides. At this stage, I find myself primarily using the app to learn new songs rather than relying heavily on its structured lessons.
As a casual player who practices for about half an hour to an hour most days, I’m finding the lessons are becoming more technically demanding and progressing at a faster pace. I’ve come to terms with the fact that rock stardom isn’t in my future, and my guitar playing is more for relaxation and enjoyment than a serious pursuit.
While I wholeheartedly recommend Yousician to absolute beginners with no prior guitar experience, I believe its optimal usefulness might have a ceiling. However, that’s perfectly acceptable. It’s a testament to the strong foundation Yousician has provided that now, when I want to learn a new song, my first instinct is to look up the chords online and try playing it myself. Perhaps it’s time for me to expand my horizons and, like Fleetwood Mac, go my own way – armed with the skills I gained from what is arguably a strong contender for the best learn guitar app for beginners.
