How long does it take to learn acoustic guitar (Competently…)?
I teach and it usually takes about 6 months to become competent in the absolute basics, but I can get someone playing along to a simple song on a CD in about 3 or 4 weeks. The main problem is time. When I was a kid, playing guitar was all I wanted to do so I devoted hours every day to it. These days, kids have so much more going on. Extra pressure at school, clubs, scouts, playstations, social lives! It’s the same for adults too. It’s a wonder they get any good at anything. I remember that old saying, “jack of all trades, master of none.” There’s another one, “a man cannot be a slave to 2 masters.” If you really want to do it properly you need to play every day. Even if it’s only for 10 minutes because that constant repetition over days, weeks, and months is the winning formula. The more time you spend everyday, the better and quicker it will be. At any rate, learning any instrument is a life-time process. I’ve been playing over 20 years and I’m still finding new things. Every musician
