Have you ever wondered what it really feels like to learn guitar for beginners and step into the world of music? Is it easy to play the instrument? Can you master your first chords on an acoustic guitar or even jam on an electric guitar within weeks? Will learning the instrument help you focus better, reduce stress, or sharpen your memory? These are the kinds of questions many absolute beginners ask when they’re about to start their private lessons.
Yes, we know the questions wandering in your head.
The truth is, picking up the instrument isn’t just about strumming your favourite songs and wooing the crowd. Science shows that playing guitar can improve mental health, reduce anxiety, and even train your brain to think faster. In fact, a survey conducted by Ultimate Guitar revealed that 85% of guitarists said it's their top stress-relief activity, beating social media, physical activities, socialising, and meditation. Whether you’re learning power chords, reading chord diagrams, or working through your private classes, you’re not only building music skills but also improving your overall well-being.
And the best part? There’s no age limit. Kids, teens, and adults, anyone can learn guitar, whether it’s picking up rhythm guitar basics, exploring acoustic melodies, or experimenting with a new electric guitar. You’ll discover the best way to start is through structured lessons, where you can ask questions, get playing feedback, and progress faster than learning alone. With options ranging from in-person to online, and even free trial lessons, the way we learn has never been more flexible. We’ll talk about this later in this article.
In this article, we’ll explore the surprising benefits of playing guitar, beginner-friendly songs to kick off your learning journey, famous artists to follow for inspiration, and practical tips to strum confidently. Stick with us, and you’ll see that the guitar isn’t only about music – it’s about growth, expression, and discovering your best self.
Ready to hit your first note and begin your guitar journey? Let’s go.
Why Learn Guitar as a Beginner?
So, why should you learn guitar in the first place? The answer is simple: the guitar is one of the most versatile and rewarding instruments you can pick up, whether you want to play acoustic songs, explore the sounds of an electric guitar, or simply enjoy a relaxing new hobby. The best way to start playing doesn’t require years of study – you can simply begin with a few simple chords and quickly progress to songs you already love.
Here are 5 powerful reasons to start your guitar journey today:
- Easy to Start for Absolute Beginners
Unlike instruments like the piano or violin, which often take years of study before you can play full songs, the guitar lets you start with a few simple chord diagrams and songs quickly. - Play Your Favourite Songs
Learning guitar means you can strum along to classics and modern hits. From simple rhythms to power chords, you’ll soon be able to play guitar and bring your favourite music to life. If you continue to practice well, you can be the one who lights up any room with your guitar playing. - Boosts Memory & Cognitive Skills
Practising guitar challenges your mind as you learn songs, remember chord shapes, and follow rhythm patterns. This constant exercise, as you practice, strengthens memory and sharpens overall cognitive performance. - Accessible Learning Options
Learning guitar today is easier than ever. You can choose private guitar lessons, explore online platforms, or take a structured beginner guitar course. With so many options available, finding the best way to learn guitar has never been more accessible. - A Lifelong Skill and Hobby
Whether you stick to acoustic guitar, switch to electric guitar, or explore different genres, you can always transfer the skills that you learned from one type of guitar to another. With endless styles, songs, and techniques to explore, the guitar becomes a lifelong companion – one that evolves with you and ensures you’ll never grow tired.
Learning to play guitar is about progress, not perfection. Every new chord, riff, and melody adds joy to your guitar journey, making it one of the most rewarding skills you can ever pick up.
Guitar Songs for Beginners to Practice
The best way to gain confidence is to actually play guitar by working through easy, well-known songs. As a beginner guitar player, you’ll want chords that are simple, progressions that are memorable, and rhythms that feel natural. You don’t need to worry about practising any difficult songs because we have rounded up just the songs for you!
Here are some guitar songs for beginners you can start with:
- Dreams – Fleetwood Mac – Uses only two chords, F and G chords, perfect for your first acoustic guitar song.
- Fast Car – Tracy Chapman – It uses only basic and simple open chords, such as C, G, and E minor chords with a capo on the second fret, great for practising smooth chord changes.
- Love Me Do – The Beatles – Easy G, C, and D chords, a catchy tune to start playing guitar right away.
- Ring of Fire – Johnny Cash – Same three chords as “Love Me Do,” ideal for practising strumming and rhythm.
- Horse with No Name – America – Only two chords, perfect for absolute beginners on acoustic guitar.
- Knockin’ on Heaven’s Door – Bob Dylan – Classic acoustic guitar song with easy chords and a slow rhythm.
- Wonderwall – Oasis – A staple for beginners, using common chords to help read chord diagrams and improve guitar skills.
- Smoke on the Water – Deep Purple – Iconic riff that introduces power chords for electric guitar practice.
- Seven Nation Army – The White Stripes – Instantly recognisable riff, great for electric guitar and rhythm practice.
- Sweet Home Alabama – Lynyrd Skynyrd – Uses D, C, and G chords, perfect for playing with friends once you’re comfortable.
Practising songs you enjoy will keep your guitar lessons from feeling repetitive and boring. Each time you master a new song, you’ll gain confidence, making learning guitar not just about drills but about music you actually love to play. Want more song ideas to wow the crowd? Find out here!
Do you have any song recommendations? Please let us know in the comments!
Now, let’s explore the benefits of playing guitar for both your mind and body. We’ve rounded up several key advantages that you should know before starting your guitar journey. And if you’re already playing, these are great talking points to share with friends – who knows, you might even inspire them to pick up a guitar too! The more the merrier, right?!
Scientific Reasons for Playing Your Guitar
i. The Guitar Creates Real Pleasure
It's perhaps the essence of any musical practice, and the guitar is not exempt from providing genuine pleasure.
According to a neuroscientific study from McGill University in Montreal, Canada, listening to and playing the guitar will release wellness hormones, including the famous dopamine, commonly called the happiness hormone.
Some will readily say that playing the guitar is a sort of musical pleasure. And the facts are there: the more you listen to music, the more you go at it with your guitar, the more you take pleasure in doing it. That's why your brain will secrete this hormone, which is dopamine.
Maybe this explains why guitarists look so cool when they play songs on stage!
ii. Playing the Guitar Helps Relieve Stress
We all have busy days. And, whether it's in our private sphere or in the workplace, there are always moments when we get more tense. We're sure you know what we're talking about.
Between upsetting bosses, bills that fall at the wrong time, traffic jams, bad weather, and an appointment you don't want to face, there are a thousand reasons to get stressed during the day.
Luckily, once you take possession of your Gibson Les Paul guitar or your Telecaster, plug in your guitar to the Marshall guitar amp, tune your guitar, play the first guitar strings, strum a few chords – all these stresses seem to all fade away in no time.
Whether you're taking guitar lessons with a teacher or playing in your room by yourself, the result is the same: you're going to relax by playing your 6-strings (this is also true for classical bass or acoustic bass!). Beyond stress relief, these sessions also bring cognitive, emotional, and physical benefits, making guitar playing a truly rewarding activity.
According to a double study by the University of Loma Linda in California (USA) and the School of Medicine and Applied Biosystems, it has been proven that stress is significantly reduced as soon as one plays an instrument – guitars are amongst these.
The guitar is good for your health and your mood. Believe it or not, the guitar's virtues have been known since its origins, at least instinctively. Blues guitar emerged historically from a time of immense pain for the black community in the United States, and it was felt as both a lament and a community support.
And many of your favourite songs will have been written by musicians in moments of difficulty. In this sense, music - and even those small motions of fingerpicking, or concentrating on moving from one guitar chord to the next - is profoundly therapeutic.
Also, it seems a lot of this is played out directly on the genetic level; the musical vibrations act on our immune system in response to blood pressure, which allows us to fight against viruses. Remember this when you are next ill: get playing your pentatonic or major scale, or those songs by Clapton or Hendrix, and maybe you'll feel a little better.
Some essential small accessories related to guitar, like the pick, the capo, a metronome, just in case and you're ready!
iii. Guitars Remove Pain
If you have chronic pain or suffering, whether physical or psychological, learning to play guitar and listening to music can disconnect your mind and thereby greatly reduce pain.
Concentrating on the intonations, the musical vibrations, and the atmosphere rather than on pain, while listening to music helps your body to relax and your mind to escape.
This is a study by the University of Utah (United States) in connection with the Center for Research on Pai,n which was able to demonstrate these effects of music on our body.
Think about this when you are feeling lazy and don't want to go to your guitar lesson. Think about this when you are struggling with a difficult chord progression. Consider this when you are practising your guitar tabs or your ear training. All of this will help you in the long run - and not just in your ability to play the guitar.
iv. The Guitar Boosts Your Brain's Activity
A recent Scottish study has shown that if you play the guitar - but it works just as well with any musical instrument - you are more able to sharpen your brain functions and activity.
This would particularly favour the fight against mental degeneration in the medium and long term. Meaning, simply, by getting yourself on to a guitar course, by whacking through those basic chords and fret positions, by practising rock guitar, jazz guitar, or rhythm guitar, you are actually staving off conditions like dementia and Alzheimer's.
So don't take pills to increase your brain activity: take guitar lessons, compile your tabs, work your scales, study them and play ‑ and your brain will thank you. IF you're looking for your children, find online guitar lessons for kids.
Explore different genres to play on guitar and see which style fits you best.
V. Practicing Guitar Trains your Heart
Did you know that rockers have a fascinating cardiovascular system?
Indeed, researchers in the Netherlands have revealed that musicians and people who practice a musical activity, such as playing guitar for at least 100 minutes a day, have a significant drop in blood pressure and heart rate compared to a person who does not play music.
This was reinforced by another study from the Berklee School of Music in Boston, USA, led by the Chair of the Department of Music Therapy, Mrs Suzanne Hanser.
Playing music has a real impact on our health, especially for the elderly. As the heart slows down, stress is decreased, as well as anxiety and depression.
While you're totally absorbed by your guitar playing, as you forget yourself in the music, your blood pressure at the heart drops to completely normal levels, and you feel more relaxed. This is why, after a solid time of guitar practice, you might feel less worried about life.
And if, by chance, you take guitar lessons where you learn to sing at the same time, it will also have a positive effect on your lungs, making them work their oxygen capacity.
Maybe that is why these top guitarists enjoy such longevity – and you can check out some of the famous guitarists of all time to see how passion and practice shaped their careers.
Vi. The Guitar Boosts Self-Confidence
The guitar is an excellent outlet.
Even if singing brings an immediate benefit, playing and creating your own music allows you to express yourself fully, to show others who you are, the emotions you feel, to convey a message, or ideas.
By expressing yourself totally and without any censorship with the guitar, you will release a strong emotional charge, which will increase your confidence.
Singing a song, playing a song, can be easy for some, but creating, composing, and inventing a piece is a personal challenge, and once you have achieved it, you will have gained self-confidence.
You will know that you are capable of inventing something unique.
Developing any old skill can help your confidence. But when you are learning such things as improvisation, complex lead guitar passages, and performance, you'll be showing the world - and yourself - that you can do something really excellent.
As your confidence grows, so does opportunity: discover the many jobs as a guitarist to earn money and turn your passion into a career.
Vii. Playing Guitar Improves Your Creativity and Concentration
The more you play the guitar, the more your brain stores information. Once you have acquired all the basics of the guitar - like the main chords, alternate picking, placing your fingers to perform chords or make your first solo - you'll realise that you'll want to learn again and again. The open chords won't be enough: you'll want to develop the range of advanced guitar techniques!
It's as if you had put your finger in a gear and could no longer undo it.
With the guitar, it's a bit like this: after freeing yourself of the techniques you acquired through lessons, you'll access the creative part of the guitar. It’s because in the end, the guitar is more than an instrument – it’s a lifelong companion that fuels your imagination and sharpens your focus.
According to a very serious study of the very serious University of Cambridge, musicians and guitarists continue to be creative even when they stop playing their instrument.
They have invested so much in their music that their whole environment becomes a pretext for composing or making changes to their music.
It's often during a walk, on a tour, in the evening with friends that you'll hear a sound, a rhythm or that you will feel a certain emotion and want to put it into music.
Viii. Guitars Improve Your Appeal
It is cliché, but nevertheless proven scientifically. The guitar enhances your attractiveness. Ah, the guitar and guitarists!
Psychology researchers have done music-related studies that show that women more easily associate musical ability with intelligence, but also with commitment, the notion of hard work and physical prowess.
Why do people like guitarists?
Here are two or three reasons that will make you want to take private lessons to pull.
- The artist is supposed to be more creative and more imaginative than other men.
- The music and the instrument are addressed directly to people's brains: the American neuroscientist Daniel Levitin explains that music played on the guitar solicits almost all areas of the brain, and the emotions it generates imply structures around the primitive brain, namely the seat of all our emotions. In short, the music comes into contact with our oldest emotions, and it's impossible to control them.
- The artist has a transgressive side: myth of the bad boy or not, the artist is synonymous with freedom, the man who frees himself from society's rules to make his own way.
What if the instrument were the remedy for old age?
In conclusion, it can be said that the guitar is the best medicine against boredom and depression.
It relieves guitarists and brings many physical and mental benefits.
So enjoy your neurons by strumming your Gibson strings like the best guitarists!
Quickly take your dose of serotonin, endorphin or oxytocin. While it brings many benefits, remember there are also myths around the guitar – and we’ve debunked them for you.
Online Resources to Kickstart Your Guitar Journey
When you start guitar as a beginner, it’s natural for everyone to look for quick, accessible and free resources to pick up the basics. Platforms like YouTube offer countless free tutorials on everything from simple chords to practising your first song on an acoustic or an electric guitar. These videos are a great way to supplement your structured lessons, giving you demonstrations of techniques such as reading chord diagrams, strumming patterns, or even power chords. Essentially, they let you explore what excites you about learning at your own pace.
Here are some of the best YouTube channels for absolute beginners:
JustinGuitar – A go-to channel for learning guitar, covering everything from how to start guitar, master chords, and play your first songs.
Marty Music – Perfect if you want to learn popular songs quickly while understanding how to combine rhythm guitar with power chords.
Andy Guitar – Specialises in beginner guitar lessons and step-by-step tutorials that make learning to play less intimidating.
GuitarLessons365 – Great for players who want to move from beginner guitar to more advanced techniques, with clear demonstrations on chords, scales, and playing guitar.
Jon Maclennon – Ideal for absolute beginners who want professional tips and exercises for both acoustic and electric guitar. Jon breaks down techniques like reading chord diagrams, power chords, and even simple songs, making it easy to start playing with confidence.
Phillip McKnight – If you need assistance on guitar repair, maintenance and gear reviews, this is your go-to channel.
These channels are the best way to stay motivated, pick up new songs, and learn at your own pace. But remember: while YouTube tutorials can help you learn, they don’t replace structured lessons with a teacher who can give you direct feedback and let you ask questions in real time.
If you paid close attention, most of these channels are either inviting you to subscribe or join for detailed step-by-step lessons. The truth is, you can’t get everything you need for free in one place. These YouTubers are also tutors providing their services, knowledge and techniques in exchange for a fee.
But don’t feel discouraged. Think of YouTube as your free trial into the world of learning guitar – a fun and flexible starting point. Combine it with proper lessons, and you’ll make faster progress on your journey. If you’re curious about how this instrument has shaped music itself, you can also explore how the guitar evolved over time to become what it is today.
Start Your Guitar Journey with Superprof
As we mentioned earlier, there are endless free videos online, but nothing replaces a structured lesson guided by an experienced teacher. You don’t have to worry too much to find a tutor for you, and no, it doesn’t need to break your bank.
This is where Superprof makes a difference in your guitar journey.
- Personalised Lessons – Every student learns differently. With Superprof, you get guitar lessons designed just for you!
- Pool of tutors – We have 22,842 verified tutors in Singapore alone, giving you plenty of options to find your ideal fit. Check their profiles, past students’ reviews, experiences, and backgrounds.
- Flexible Options – You can choose to learn online or in person, at a time that fits your schedule. If you’ve found your tutor across the world, no problem! With online lessons, you can learn anytime, anywhere.
- For All Levels – Whether you’re an absolute beginner or someone looking to master power chords, improvisation, or advanced songs, you’ll find the right tutor.
- Interactive Learning – Superprof teachers encourage you to ask questions, provide instant feedback, and guide you through chords or techniques. Real-time support makes learning easier and more effective.
- Affordable fee – Our classes start from only S$35. You can definitely find a tutor that fits your budget! Some tutors even offer a free trial, so you can test the lesson before committing.
The best way to learn the instrument is with guidance that matches your style and pace. Instead of guessing alone and struggling to make progress, find a tutor to help you with Superprof and see how quickly you can go from strumming your first chord to confidently playing guitar.
All you need to do is go to our website and register for an account for free. Browse through the tutor profiles and send them a message if you have any questions – better ask now than never. Even better, grab the FREE class, if available, to see if they’re the right fit for you.
Embark on your musical adventure with Superprof – who knows, you could be the next legend!
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