Should I start on acoustic or electric guitar?

Start on whichever one you actually want to play. Acoustic builds finger strength faster, electric is easier on the hands and better if your goal is rock or blues. Skills transfer either direction.

What size guitar does my child need?

Kids around age seven usually fit a 3/4-size instrument, and most students move to full size by eleven or twelve. Bring the guitar to a lesson and we will tell you honestly whether it fits.

Do you teach tablature or standard notation?

Both. Tab gets you playing sooner, notation and theory keep you from getting stuck. Most students read tab from week one and pick up notation gradually.

Can I bring in a specific song I want to learn?

Please do. Teachers arrange songs to your current level, so you get a version that sounds right and still stretches you a little.

How long before I can play a full song?

Most beginners play a recognizable two or three chord song within three to four weeks of consistent practice. Clean barre chords take a few months longer.

Do you offer bass and ukulele too?

Yes. Several of our guitar instructors teach bass and ukulele, and switching or adding an instrument mid-year is common.

Acoustic, electric, and classical

Guitar Lessons in Ormond Beach & Daytona Beach

Learn the songs you already listen to. Private guitar lessons for beginners picking up a first acoustic and for players who want to finally understand the fretboard.

Enroll now Call (386) 256-5847

A student practicing guitar during a lesson at Elite Academy

What you'll learn

Guitar rewards students who can play something real early, so we get a song under your fingers in the first month and build the theory around it. Acoustic, electric, and classical students share the same fundamentals and then split off toward the sound they want.

Beginner

First chords, first song

Fretting hand pressure and clean, buzz-free notes
Open chords, E minor through the full cowboy-chord set
Downstroke and eighth-note strumming with a steady count
Reading chord charts and simple tablature
One complete song played end to end within the first weeks

Intermediate

Owning the fretboard

Barre chords and movable shapes up the neck
The CAGED system and how it maps to the notes you already know
Fingerpicking patterns, travis picking, and hybrid picking
Pentatonic and blues scales, then first improvised solos
Palm muting, dynamics, and playing in time with a drummer

Advanced

Voice on the instrument

Modes, arpeggio shapes, and soloing over changing keys
Jazz voicings, chord melody, and classical right-hand technique
Tone shaping, pedals, and amp settings for electric players
Writing original riffs and full arrangements
Rehearsal and stage skills, including our rock band program

Who guitar lessons are for

Most students start around age seven, when hands are big enough for a 3/4-size acoustic. There is no upper limit, and a good share of our guitar studio is adults with a guitar that has been in a closet since college.

We also work with self-taught players who can already strum a few songs but hit a ceiling. Those students usually spend a few months rebuilding technique and then move faster than they ever did alone.

Ages 7 through adult, acoustic, electric, or classical
Absolute beginners who have never held a guitar
Self-taught players who want theory behind the shapes
Songwriters who need better accompaniment tools
Players preparing to join a band or worship team

Your instructors

Justin Knox is the teacher parents mention by name, patient with first-timers and equally comfortable with gigging players. Damian Bonazzoli moves students from first chords into writing original music. Scott Queen brings decades of stage work across guitar, bass, banjo, and theory.

Damian Bonazzoli

Guitar · Composition

Guides students from first chords to writing original music of their own.

Justin Knox

Guitar · Bass · Ukulele · Piano

Patient, encouraging, and equally at home with first-timers and gigging musicians.

Scott Queen

Guitar · Bass · Banjo · Ukulele · Piano · Saxophone · Composition · Theory

Decades of stage experience translated into approachable lessons for every level.

Meet the full teaching team

Lesson format and tuition

Guitar lessons are private and weekly. Bring your own instrument so you practice on the same guitar you learn on, and we will help with setup, string gauge, and picks. Students who want ensemble time can add our rock band session.

30 minutes

Best for younger beginners and anyone building a first practice habit. Enough time for warm-ups, one concept, and a piece.

45 minutes

Our most popular length. Room for technique, theory, repertoire, and a few minutes to work through whatever came up during the week.

60 minutes

For advancing students, audition and recital prep, and adults who want to go deep in a single sitting.

Lessons are weekly, one-on-one, and scheduled at the same time each week. For current tuition rates and open times, call (386) 256-5847 or send us an enrollment request.

Our studio is on South Nova Road in Ormond Beach, a short drive up from the Daytona Beach mainland and the beachside. Guitar students coming from further south can compare programs on our music lessons in Daytona Beach page, which lists instruments, ages, and what the drive actually looks like from each neighborhood.

Frequently asked questions

Pick up the guitar this week

Send us your preferred times and whether you play acoustic or electric, and we will match you with the right instructor.

Enroll now