Acoustic
Open chords, strumming patterns and fingerpicking, then a capo to play in any key. The quickest route to singing along with friends.
45 minutesfrom $36
Learn the songs you keep on repeat
Acoustic, electric and bass lessons for complete beginners and players picking a guitar back up after years away. Every lesson is built around songs you choose and pitched at your age and level, in a room full of amps or online.
Week onea first song, start to finish
2 teachersguitar and bass
From age 8with parents welcome in
Acoustic, electric or bass
Jonah teaches acoustic and electric, and Priya teaches bass and electric. Bring your own instrument or borrow one of ours for the first few weeks; changing your mind later is normal, and the songs come with you.
Electric
Riffs, power chords, palm muting and your first solos, with time spent on tone, volume and how to set up an amp at home.
45 minutesfrom $36
Bass
Root notes, groove and locking in with a drummer. Taught by Priya, who has played bass in function bands for twelve years.
45 minutesfrom $36
Songs first, theory when it helps
At the first lesson you name three songs you would love to play. Jonah or Priya writes each one out as a version you can manage now, then makes it harder as your hands catch up, so you are always playing real music rather than exercises.
Theory turns up when a song needs it: why a chord sounds sad, how a riff fits a scale, what the numbers in a tab mean. Pupils who want to read notation learn it too, and nobody is made to.
- Chord charts and tab written for your level
- Backing tracks to practise along with at home
- A phone recording of each new song at the end of the lesson
Your first eight weeks
A typical start for a complete beginner. Returning players skip ahead to wherever their hands remember.
Weeks 1 and 2
Tune up, hold the pick, learn two chords and play a simple song all the way through.
Weeks 3 and 4
Change chords in time with a beat, add a strumming pattern and a third or fourth chord.
Weeks 5 and 6
Your first riff or bass line, plus a short daily routine that keeps fingertips toughening up.
Weeks 7 and 8
Play a whole song from your list with the backing track, and record it to hear how far you have come.
Prices, taster to block of six
Start with a short taster, then pay lesson by lesson or save with a block. Online lessons cost a little less because there is no room to heat.
Taster
once$20
- Meet your teacher and try a guitar
- Leave with one chord and one plan
- Borrowed instrument if needed
Single lesson
each$40
- Same weekly slot if you want it
- Chord charts and tab included
- Children aged 8 to 11 take 30 minutes for $28
Block of six
six lessons$216
- Works out at $36 a lesson
- Your slot held every week
- A full song recorded by the sixth lesson
Online lesson
each$36
- A camera pointed at your fretting hand
- Backing tracks sent before the lesson
- Good for players who move away
Payment goes straight to the teacher. Move a lesson with at least a day's notice and it is rebooked; a lesson missed without notice counts as taught.
The amp room
Younger players, and the parents' chair
Children start from about eight, on a smaller guitar or a short scale bass, with 30 minute lessons matched to their age, hand size and attention span. Both teachers hold the background checks that the law sets for anyone teaching children where they work, and renew them as those rules require; what is required differs between countries.
Parents of pupils under 16 can stay and watch any lesson, and there is a chair by the door for exactly that. The teaching room door has a glass panel, and messages about lessons go to a parent rather than to the child.
- Smaller guitars and short scale basses to borrow
- A chair by the door for parents
- Glass panel in the teaching room door
- Lesson messages sent to parents
Styles heard through the door
Most pupils mix several. Bring the playlist and we find the guitar part.
- Campfire strumming
- Blues in E
- Indie riffs
- Classic rock
- Funk rhythm
- Fingerstyle folk
- Pop with a capo
- Worship sets
- Metal palm muting
- Jazz chords
- Reggae offbeat
- Bass grooves
Once a term the room becomes a student open mic. Playing is optional, cheering is expected.
Players, old and new (example reviews)
Picked up a guitar again at forty six after twenty years in a loft. The first lessons were built around three songs from university days, and the calluses came back within a month.
Our son wanted bass, not guitar, which surprised everyone. Priya had him playing along with a full song by week two, and the chair by the door means we can see how it is going.
Six weeks in and the strumming finally sits on the beat. Practice never feels like homework, because every exercise comes from a song already on the playlist.
Before you plug in
Acoustic or electric to start with?
Whichever one plays the music you love. Electric strings are lighter and easier on new fingertips, while an acoustic needs no amp and goes anywhere. The taster lets you try both.
Do fingertips really hurt at first?
For a week or two, a little. Short daily practice builds calluses faster than one long session, and the teachers keep early songs to chords that are kind to new hands.
Can lessons use tab instead of sheet music?
Yes. Most pupils learn from chord charts and tab, which are written out for each song. Notation is taught to anyone who wants it, never forced on anyone who does not.
What size guitar suits a child?
Most eight to ten year olds manage a three quarter size guitar, and many eleven year olds move to full size. Bring the child to a taster and the teacher will check their reach before you buy anything.
What if a chosen song is too hard right now?
It gets simplified, not dropped. The teacher writes a version that keeps the sound of the song with fewer or easier chords, then adds the tricky parts back as your playing grows.
Is there a chance to play in front of people?
Once a term, at the student open mic in the rehearsal building. Pupils play alone, in pairs or with a teacher on bass, and anyone who would rather listen is just as welcome.
Book a taster or a lesson
Pick the guitar, the kind of lesson and a time that suits you. Jonah or Priya confirms the slot within one working day, or comes back with the closest open hour in the amp room.
- Every lesson pitched at the player's age and current level
- A parent can stay in the room for any pupil under 16
- Payment made to your teacher directly
Find the amp room
The building door is buzzed open for lessons, so ring the Six Strings bell and someone comes down.
Call or email
A sound treated teaching room on the first floor of a shared rehearsal building, five minutes on foot from the train station
Lesson hours
| Monday to Thursday | 14:00 to 21:30 |
| Friday | 14:00 to 19:00 |
| Saturday | 10:00 to 17:00 |
| Sunday | Closed |
Parking and kit
Street parking is easiest after 18:00, and the station is a short walk. Leave the amp at home: the room has amps, leads, tuners and spare strings for every lesson.