Acoustic Guitar | lessons, music to play, and how-tos for all guitarists

Fred Sokolow playing a blues riff on an acoustic guitar

Video Lesson: Exploring Blues Turnarounds

Remembering Tony Rice: Béla Fleck, Richard Hoover, David Grisman, Chris Eldridge, and Bryn Davies Reflect on Rice’s Life and Legacy

closeup photo of a guitar tech measuring the action on an acoustic guitar

Ask the Expert: Why Is My Guitar Buzzing?

fingerstyle acoustic guitar player seated photo by brendan hollis

Exploring Fingerstyle Guitar Techniques in Celtic Music with the Traditional Welsh Song ‘Men of Harlech’

This acoustic guitar lesson explores some common techniques and ornaments associated with Welsh music & how they can be used to great effect in your playing.

Fingerstyle Guitarist Hayden Pedigo Performs “Tints of Morning” | Acoustic Guitar Sessions in Place

Sarah McQuaid’s ‘The St. Buryan Sessions‘ Is a Beautiful Reimagination of Her Finest Songs

photo of guitar student seated on a rug taken from above

The Best Websites and Apps for Learning Guitar

Meet the Compact, All-Solid Taylor AD22e

NEW GEAR

Breedlove Pursuit Exotic S Concert Edgeburst CE side view

Review: Breedlove Pursuit Exotic S Concert Edgeburst CE Features Sustainable Tonewoods

The Breedlove Pursuit Exotic S Concert Edgeburst CE, constructed with responsibly-sourced woods, is an attractive and well-made guitar at a reasonable price.

Guitar Review: Epiphone Inspired by Gibson Hummingbird

The street price on Epiphone’s "Inspired By Gibson" Hummingbird acoustic guitar? Just $799—and you get much of the vibe of its costlier Gibson counterparts.

MORE GEAR

Why Isn’t My Acoustic Guitar Intonating Well, and What Can I Do About It?

Here are some things to check if you notice something is outside of the reasonable range of intonation on your guitar and it’s off enough to bother the ear.

How I Learned to Make Guitars: Eight Modern Luthiers on the Origins of Their Craft

What does it take to go from loving acoustic guitars to actually building them? To answer this, we asked a handful of luthiers to tell us their origin stories.

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FROM THE LATEST ISSUE

Guitar Review: Epiphone Inspired by Gibson Hummingbird

The street price on Epiphone’s "Inspired By Gibson" Hummingbird acoustic guitar? Just $799—and you get much of the vibe of its costlier Gibson counterparts.

Happy Traum picking a Santa Cruz Guitar Company Happy Traum Signature Model HT/13 at his home in Woodstock, NY

Play Happy Traum’s Fingerstyle Arrangement of “Worried Blues” on Acoustic Guitar

4 Ways to Improve Your Fingerstyle Guitar Improvisation

Yasmin Williams Crafts Otherworldly Acoustic Soundscapes on ‘Urban Driftwood’

Chris Eldridge (left) and Julian Lage by Devin Pedde

Learn to Play the Traditional Flatpicking Duet ‘Old Grimes’ on Acoustic Guitar

Jazz guitarist Eddie Lang for chord melody guitar lesson

Learn Chord-Melody Techniques from Jazz Guitarist Eddie Lang

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ACOUSTIC AMPLIFICATION

Guitar Amps and PA Systems for the Acoustic Guitarist

This roundup of acoustic guitar amplifiers includes on seven amps and PA systems that are specifically tailored to the needs of acoustic guitar players.

Budget Amplifiers and Pedals for the Acoustic Guitarist

By Adam Perlmutter In recent posts we’ve looked at both large- and small-bodied affordable guitars—from PRS’ neat new parlor to Epiphone... Read More...

get heard guide to acoustic guitar pickups and amplification

Get Heard: A Guide to Acoustic Guitar Pickups and Amplification

Here we cover the 3 main elements of an acoustic guitar amplification system: pickups, preamps/DIs, and amplifiers/PA systems.

Guitar Guru: Should I Put a Pickup on My High-End Instrument?

By Dana Bourgeois Q: Onstage, miking an acoustic guitar can be problematic. Today, we have a wide variety of pickup options, and in the ... Read More...

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HERE'S HOW

The Digital Troubadour, Part 1: How to Record at Home on Any Budget

From the August 2017 issue of Acoustic Guitar | BY NATHAN BELL Thirty years ago, I recorded my first full-length LP, cutting it in a ... Read More...

The Digital Troubadour, Part 2: How to record yourself to sound like yourself

Everything You’ve Always Wanted to Know About DIY Guitar Kits

10 Ways Using a Flash Recorder Can Help Music Students & Teachers

A Guitarist’s Guide to the Benefits of Single-Miking

How to Set Up Your Home Studio—Home Recording, Part 1/3

GET STARTED ON GUITAR

Want to Learn Guitar? It’s All in a Day’s Work, Says Marlene Hutchinson…

Think it’ll take you months to learn to play the guitar? Maybe even a year? Think again. Because we at Acoustic Guitar know someone... Read More...

Painting of man playing a guitar by master of the annunciation to the shepherds

Am I Too Old to Learn Guitar?

Syracuse’s Guitar League has Created an Impressive Model for Both Teaching and Learning

This Is Classical Guitar's Bradford Werner plays guitar with capo at third fret

Digital Conservatories: Online Learning Resources for Classical Guitarists

A Week at Puget Sound Guitar Workshop Offers a Chance to Woodshed & Canoe with a Guy Named Dave

FEATURED LESSON

Sean McGowan holding acoustic guitar in his home studio

Try These Fun Guitar Exercises to Build Coordination Between Your Fretting and Picking Hands

This acoustic guitar lesson takes a deep dive into building independence among the fingers of both the fretting and picking hands.

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CHORD BY CHORD

What is Chord by Chord? Introducing Acoustic Guitar’s How-To Video Series

Welcome to Acoustic Guitar’s Chord by Chord, a series of 62 brief lessons designed to build your fretboard familiarity, chord flu... Read More...

Learn 7 Ways to Play C Major | Chord by Chord

8 ways to play g major on guitar chord by chord

Learn 8 Ways to Play G Major | Chord by Chord

Learn to Play D Major Chords Up and Down the Neck | Chord by Chord

Kate Koenig teaching the C-G chord progression on guitar

How to Play a C-G Progression | Chord by Chord

Kate Koenig teaching the G-D chord progression

How to Play a G-D Progression | Chord by Chord

Video lessons week by week, Chord by Chord. Sign up free!

SESSIONS

Fingerstyle Guitarist Hayden Pedigo Performs “Tints of Morning” | Acoustic Guitar Sessions in Place

“I think it’s fun to play things that feel corny,” Hayden Pedigo says of composing “Tints of Morning,” a song off of his new record, Lettin... Read More...