YouTube Guitar Teachers

Thanks to the information age we currently live in, we now have a larger than ever window to the changing world around us.  What does that mean for us musicians, specifically guitarists?  That means that we have an endless supply of guitar stuff right at our fingertips.  Learning new chords and scales are often a Google search away.  Unfortunately all this information can at times be too much, and if we are not careful it can spread us too thin.

That being said, YouTube has been a great and growing source of visual information over the past couple of years.  There are quite a few people more than willing to share their knowledge there.  Some have even been able to make a living off of it.  Along with in-person guitar lessons, books, and playing with others, I can attest that some of these people have helped improve my playing with their insightful videos and entertaining personalities.  Allow me to share four of my findings.  Some of you may have run into some of these guitarists’ videos at one point or another, but if there’s anyone new for you, check them out!

Marty Schwartz

Quite possibly the most popular YouTube guitar teacher, Marty Schwartz is a really great teacher with a fantastic personality to boot.  His lessons are straight to the point without complicated jargon, which makes him especially great for beginners.  Most of his lessons cover blues playing and popular rock songs.  In addition, much of these lessons are done as voted by the community on his Facebook page.

Great for:  Beginners, blues and rock guitarists, those looking to learn to play popular songs

https://www.youtube.com/user/martyzsongs

Rob Chapman

Hailing from across the pond, Rob Chapman is well on his way to creating an empire thanks to his growing success on YouTube.  His time is currently focused on his band Dorje, gear review in collaboration with United Kingdom retailer Andertons, and promoting his very own line of guitars: Chapman Guitars.  But this all started thanks to his entertaining (and humorous) instructional videos on Youtube.  Chappers mostly taught shreddy licks and covered topics like how to buy a guitar.  His YouTube lessons are now few and far between, but there are still some backlog on his channel as well as those he sells on his website.

Great for: Shredders, gear heads, those looking for entertainment.

https://www.youtube.com/user/RobChappers

Andrew Wasson

Those who are looking into taking the more theoretical approach to guitar playing should look no further than Andrew Wasson.  Rather than just teach you a few licks and call it a day, Andrew breaks down concepts, scales, techniques, etc. and explains their musical components without over-complicating things.  There’s always something new to learn with his videos, and he updates quite frequently.  Oh, and he includes free PDF lessons along with most of his videos!

Great for: Beginners to advanced, music theorists, those looking to learn various styles of guitar playing

https://www.youtube.com/user/creativeguitarstudio

David Wallimann

Last but certainly not least, we have David Wallimann.  What makes David stand out from the rest is his teaching and style revolves around jazz fusion, which in and of itself is an abstract genre of music.  Even though it’s a difficult genre to grasp, his lessons are clear and concise.  David Wallimann is also featured on the artist page of the Guitar Pro 6 site and just recently got endorsed by Chapman Guitars (bridging some connections on this list!).

Great for: Advanced, fusion players, those open to different styles of music

https://www.youtube.com/user/Wallimann