Need help choosing the right classical guitar book for yourself or somebody else?

Most educational books will cater for any need, and to help you choose the right one we have listed a few tips and recommendations which we hope will help you find the book for you!

Many books will come with a recommended age and level, usually graded from 1- 8, which usually translates to Beginner (grade 1) to Advanced (grade 8).

Book descriptions should almost always state the arrangement (eg. Guitar or GTR), the type of media (Tabulature or TAB, Chord Chart or CHRD, Sheet Music) and the skill level (eg. Grades or skillset)


If you are an absolute beginner, with no previous musical knowledge, there are plenty of books with step-by-step guides, chord charts and tabulatures (which diagram the fingering and fret of each chord or musical sequence) and will help you learn at your own pace. Examples of such books are 'Guitars for Dummies' by Mark Phillips (£19.99), 'First Book for Guitar' by Frederick Noad (£11.95), 'A Modern Approach to Classical Guitar' by Charles Duncan (£6.95), and, 'Absolute Beginners Classical Guitar' by Gerald Goodwin (£9.95).

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We would recommend buying a book with an accompanying CD, which will audio any examples and exercises and act as an imperative reference for learning and practising.


As soon as you have built up a general understanding of the classical guitar acquired by a beginner's guide, there are myriad books, which will help you build repertoire into your playing.  This is especially important for practising technique and of course, learning songs!  Again, we would recommend purchasing a repertoire book with an accompanying CD to help you with the phrasing and tonal variations within the song, which would otherwise be redundant in plain text or tab.

A good example of such a book, for young learners or beginners, is 'A New Tune A Day for Classical Guitar' by Michael McCartney (£14.95), which includes instructions for an effective technique, sheet music, a CD with backing tracks and audio examples, as well as an accompanying demonstration DVD which introduces basic techniques and notation.

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For an adult learner, or tutors with younger students, we would highly recommend 'Solo Guitar Playing' by Frederick Noad (£19.95). This is a comprehensive text explaining the fundamentals of classic guitar technique, along with performance exercises and pieces for beginners. It dates from the 'teach-yourself' era, with abundant explanations and photos of hand positions.  Some of the solo pieces are difficult for grass-roots beginners, but a teacher can supplement with other material suited to individual students. Anyone with previous musical knowledge will find this the bible for learning classical guitar!

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We hope this helps get you started on your journey to learning classical guitar...remember to practise hard, both on text and posture!


Please visit our eBay shop at:

Westmount Music

to find a selection of classical musical instruments and accessories such as eduacational books.  Please feel free to email us for any further advise on books or any other queries.  We can be emailed via our eBay shop.


Please also check out our other guides on: techniques on re-stringing, Fretboard Flashcards, choosing the right classical guitar and Classical Guitar rests/ ergoplay.


Happy learning and have fun!


Westmount Music