Customer Reviews

Fender Presents: Getting Started on Acoustic Guitar -- A Guide for Beginners

5 star:		(40)
4 star:		(13)
3 star:		(8)
2 star:		(7)
1 star:		(4)

 

 

This DVD has clear instruction, starts with the basics, gets a beginner launched correctly. No other DVD I've seen has looped backing tracks. The professional drums and bass (not midi imitations) allow you to play with a "band," and they loop, so you can work on a chord progression or solo technique over and over until you get it. I have tried the other DVDs - I unfortunately own them - and I can tell you that this one (and it's electric counterpart) are the most professional, effective, well-presented beginning guitar lessons available on DVD.

This DVD, as well as the electric guitar version, are among the most well-produced and pleasant to watch videos on the subject (A lot of the other instructional videos I have seen are poorly produced and photographed). There is over three hours of material, much more than most videos. Keith Wyatt is an excellent instructor and communicator and I enjoy his presentations. While I agree with a previous reviewer that this video is no substitute for guitar method instruction, it is an excellent tool for getting new players started playing songs, and is much more fun than using typical guitar method books which include a lot of playing scales and the other not very enjoyable exercises. This DVD is well worth the price!

I am a guitar lover, and I play a little bit for fun. Before I bought this DVD, I knew about 25 chords, and I played rhythm guitar by ear. Not only was I looking for something to help me hone my skills, but I needed a beginning instructional DVD for my children. I play an Ibanez PF Acoustic-Electric, and my kids share a 3/4 Fender Acoustic. My 3 oldest children, were 14, 12, and 9 when they started using this DVD. They all play piano, and want to be able to keep up with me on the guitar.

This DVD got them off to a very good start. Keith Wyatt is an excellent teacher. His style is well-paced and clear. He covers a lot of little details without talking too much or overwhelming the student. He makes it look very easy, which can be frustrating, but anyone can apply his techniques with practice. He actually demonstrates most of the lessons on electric guitar, but it's all good. The first menu has a lesson on tuning, and gives the pitches for you to match.

He teaches basic chords and chord patterns in the easier keys. He also covers scales, strumming and rhythms, along with the simple use of power chords. There are practice tracks to play along with, and with the random access of DVD you can skip around to any lessons you like. There are also lessons in picking, fretting, and soloing. And he reviews all of these things in 3 genres - rock, blues, and country.

I have learned a lot new things from this DVD, and my children have a solid foundation of guitar basics and even a little music theory. I've gone about as far as this DVD can take me, and I'll be ready for something new before long. but my kids have only scratched the surface. As their hands grow and their coordination improves, they are getting great instruction and exploring avenues that were unavailable to me as a young guitarist.

I recommend "Getting Started..." to anyone looking to hone their guitar skills and fill in the gaps. I feel like I can play on a whole different level since I started using this DVD and practicing the techniques taught by Keith. Beginners won't need a level two DVD for at least a year if they really take this one seriously. It's a good investment, and while it won't turn you into John Mayer or B.B. King, it will really get you started!

I now own three of Wyatt's dvds.
acoustic, electric and blues
In my opinion they are the best dvd lessons for guitar.
I certainly haven't seen them all, but these are all I
have ever wanted in nonpersonal lessons.
He explains it, he plays it and the camera shows it.
I never have to tell him to "shut up, that's all I need for now".
I don't have to pay for him to show it again.


The only complaint I have is that the bass/drum loopable practice tracks are
exactly the same on the acoustic dvd and the electric dvd and they are
exactly the same within the two dvds: key of A; key of G; key of E.
Now, each style on each dvd has its own short practice track and that is good.
I just think that we were shorted by not having longer practice tracks
in different styles, especially on the different dvds.
One month after I recieved the first two dvds I was playing better that I had
been for thirty years.
When I recieved the acoustic dvd, I thought I might have wasted my money but
I learned much that I had wanted to know. Like traveling bass.
If you have ever experienced someone talking for thity minutes and teaching
for fifteen and charging you for an hour, this is worth it.
For beginners and intermediates.

This DVD is great! I play electric guitar and I use this DVD, it doesn't make much of a differnece really, its still a guitar. Anyways, this DVD covers a lot of stuff and the practice tracks really make it so much more fun to work on what you're learning, especially during the bar chord lessons when it gets so painful to just play the chord and hold it, but with the music it just makes it worth it.
However, one down side of this DVD is the lack of theory, Keith Wyatt tends to just say stuff like "This is C7" or "that's the minor pentatonic scale".... and I'm left with an empty space going "wait, what's with the names? they sound differennt I know but whats the difference between major, minor, 7th, etc.?!" I guess I'll have to look elsewhere for music theory :\....would have been great if it was included. However, I still think this is a really good DVD for beginners, I'm a beginner, i started off with the "LEarning Guitar for Dummies DVD" and moved on to this and I must say I prefer this, its more progressive in its teaching..

My 10 year old grandson and I (54 years young), are learning to play guitar through this wonderful instructional video.
It's clear, concise and any age group will benefit from Keith Wyatt's terrific presentation. We are raw beginner's and I highly recommend this instructional video to anyone who wants to learn in a very easy to understand and orderly manner. You won't regret this purchase. Thank You, Keith!

I bought this title for my daughter after looking at many titles online. I honestly wasn't sure if any of them would be any good but picked this one mainly because it was in DVD format as opposed to VHS.

High quality video, a personable-not-cheesy host, clear instruction and nice DVD extra features make this a good buy!

I first bought Fender's Getting Started on Accoustic Guitar 3 yrs ago. Keith Wyatt's teaching style is unsurpassed - you cannot find a better instructional DVD for guitar. I ended up giving that DVD to my daughter's boyfriend along with my guitar! Recently, I got another guitar and searched for the same DVD by Fender and Keith Wyatt but since I could not remember it's title, cover or Keith Wyatt's name, I was unable to find it. I bought several guitar lesson DVDs at a variety of websites, hoping to find one that I could learn from. None of them compared to the lessons by Keith Wyatt. Disappointed, I searched one more time just trying to find a good, useful, instuctional DVD. At Amazon I selected the Fender DVD without even knowing it was the one I had been looking for all along. The description alone caused me to buy it again and when the DVD arrived, I was pleasantly surprised when I popped it in and found Keith Wyatt there again! Keith teaches everything from how to hold the guitar and even the pick, to tuning to first chords and the lessons build from there. The DVD contains practice tracks that Keither directs the student to work with after each lesson. It's great! You can tune the guitar to the DVD and you can practice chords and techniques to live music. With Keith Wyatt, the student is making and learning music from day one! If you are a beginning accoustic guitar player - look no further. This is the DVD for you. If you are more advanced or playing electric guitar, use Keith Wyatt as the key words in your searches - he has a number of DVD's on the market to help players at all levels.

I have to agree with TDub... I found it odd that this dvd is titled "Getting Started with Acoustic Guitar" When he's using an electric guitar. Albeit I found it useful it didnt give me quite the feel I was looking for because the sound of an electric is different. They should tell you somewhere about this on the cover...

I haven't seen any other guitar instruction DVDs so I can't make any comparisons, but this video is very well done. Keith Wyatt is a clear and restrained teacher. His ego is completely absent. He is there to teach beginners what they need to know to get started playing guitar, and he's structured the lessons so that they flow into one another logically. He speaks to the point and he doesn't confuse the issue with unneeded commentary. The camera stays close so you can always see his fingers. The play along sections (simple chord progressions) are well designed visually and they sound good too.

This is an excellent video for the beginning guitarist. Once you've mastered the techniques taught here you will have learned quite a lot. This video lays a good foundation. It is time (and money) well spent.