Cliff Smith Guitar Lessons

I've been having lessons from Cliff for nearly 3 years now, starting as a complete beginner who had never picked up a guitar before. What has been great is that Cliff not only knows how to play (and he certainly does!), but how to teach as well - he is great at explaining things simply and also recommending on everything from practice methods to specific techniques to improvisation. He also has a comprehensive grasp of theory and teaches it as well which helps in understanding why some things work and some things don't and gives a great framework for improvising. He may not be the cheapest teacher on the internet, but if you are serious about wanting to learn, he is certainly one of the best.

I used Cliff for guitar lessons probably over about a year a few years back and followed his newsletter diligently when I moved away and therefore could no longer see him for lessons. Having worked on my guitar skills with numerous people during the years, I always think back to the way that Cliff did it. His patience, good humour and overall ability at translating sometime complex and scary concepts to a newcomer into the instrument has always reminded me of the way that teaching an instrument should look like! If you are thinking of starting off, or dusting off your guitar and grabbing a few lessons, don't hesitate. I highly recommend!

Cliff is a fantastic bloke and a really calm insightful teacher. Both my son and me are extremely happy with him.

I've been having electric lessons with Cliff for 6 months and wow, I went from not knowing where to plug the guitar to now playing Metallica and Jimi Hendrix songs for my friends.He's very knowledgable, patient and a great teacher. Complex music theory concepts became obvious after Cliff explained them to me. He also corrected a lot of bad habits and greatly improved my technique.When I started, I would only play the guitar with headphones. Now, my wife and my friends request songs.If you want to learn guitar, there's nothing better than learning from Cliff.

I've been learning guitar with the help of Cliff for a year now and have found him to be a patient, friendly, inspiring teacher. I've found my guitar playing has greatly improved through his tuition - Cliff is always quick to help correct a bad habit or otherwise improve your playing.

I feel very fortunate to have Cliff as my guitar tutor. He is very knowledgeable regarding the guitar and has helped me improve my guitar playing. I have had previous guitar tutors, and Cliff has pointed out areas of my guitar playing that need focus that prior tutors had not mention. These areas include string muting, timing and how to make my improvising more effective. He has also helped me with songwriting and how to record music using Logic Pro and this has resulted in me recording a debut album that I released on streaming platforms. So I am immensely grateful to Cliff!

First and foremost Cliff takes time to understand what each pupils wants to get out of the guitar, what styles/influences are important to them and what direction they want to develop in.Each lesson I have had at his studio i or via Skype has followed a bespoke lesson plan that he has created in advance thus allowing maximum efficiency of time and value.Cliff is a great teacher and his lessons are thoroughly enjoyable.

Tried to teach myself to play the guitar, but it was a rather clumsy process and I was unable to grasp basic techniques, like how to hold a pick properly!Unlike other guitar teachers, Cliff tailors each lesson according to what one wants to achieve. He quickly and patiently corrected mistakes in my technique, provided me with useful tips and chords to play songs I love. He is responsive to questions between lessons and is great at transcribing songs in advance of a lesson. Cliff is a great musician and because he loves what he does, he inspires you to learn.I highly recommend Cliff as a teacher for adults at all stages of learning the guitar.

Cliff is an excellent teacher, very adaptable to what you want to achieve personally. Lessons are relaxed with great variety and advice on all aspects of Guitar from playing your favourite songs to theory and even buying/maintaining equipment. Cliff really does provide an inspiring environment in which to develop.

Cliff is exactly the sort of guitar tutor I wanted. I started lessons with him as a beginner, through Cliff's encouragement and (very patient) tutoring, he has transformed me into a confident player.Cliff's versatility and music knowledge is incredible, however, he is always open to learning new songs and welcomes suggestions. It's thanks to Cliff that I can now play some of my favourite songs. I love the fact that I can turn up for a lesson and within minutes be playing a song I've loved for years. I can't recommend Cliff highly enough. A talented musician and patient teacher who makes learning the guitar an absolute pleasure.