Classical guitar lessons for kids in Montreal

Lessons built around the student's age

A seven-year-old and a fourteen-year-old don't learn the same way. With younger children, the lesson moves through short activities: a piece, a small rhythm challenge, a bit of reading, then back to the instrument. With older students, we stay longer on the same passage and talk more about sound, dynamics and interpretation. Either way, the foundation is classical guitar: good posture, a clean sound and reading music.

What age to start

There is no fixed age. What matters is that the child can stay focused for half an hour and that their hands are comfortable on a guitar their size. For a child under seven, write to me before booking: we'll talk it through and decide whether now is the right time.

A guitar the right size

A child should not learn on an adult guitar: the neck is too wide, the arm doesn't reach around the body, and poor posture sets in during the first weeks. Classical guitars come in 1/4, 1/2, 3/4 and 7/8 sizes. As a rough guide, a 1/2 suits ages six to eight, a 3/4 ages eight to eleven, a 7/8 ages eleven to thirteen, but the child's height decides, not their age. Write to me before buying: the advice takes five minutes.

The parent's role

• ✓ Set a fixed time for practice, ideally the same time every day.
• ✓ Sit in on the first lessons, especially with a young child, to understand what is expected for the week.
• ✓ Help with tuning at first, until the child can do it alone.
• ✓ Listen to your child play without correcting: technique is handled in the lesson.
• ✓ Let me know about a hard week, a dip in motivation or a schedule change.

How much practice

Ten to fifteen minutes a day is enough at first, then twenty to thirty minutes as the pieces get longer. Five short days a week beat one long session the night before the lesson. Every lesson ends with a precise practice plan, so the child knows exactly what to do at home.

Exams and competitions

Competitions are never required, but for a motivated child they give a concrete goal and a date to work toward. Mark's students have qualified for the final of the Concours de musique de la Capitale as young as ten, then placed 3rd and 2nd in that final at eleven and twelve. Another won 1st prize in the 11 to 14 category at Classival. Preparation follows the student's pace, and only if the child wants it.