Guitar Lessons in Windsor
Windsor Piano School has taught music in Windsor, Slough and across Berkshire for more than 18 years, and our guitar department covers acoustic, electric and classical guitar across classical, jazz, Bossa Nova, blues and contemporary styles. Guitar is the instrument most often learned badly from the internet: plenty of chords, no technique, and a ceiling that arrives within a year. We teach it as a school subject, with a written progression pathway, termly reviews and ABRSM exams hosted in our own building. Lessons are weekly in term time, for children and adults, and start with a twenty-minute taster for £18.
Acoustic, electric and classical guitar, taught as a school subject.
Guitar lessons at Windsor Piano School, with a written progression pathway and ABRSM exams held on site.
A guitar education, not just a guitar lesson.
The problem families often face
Self-taught guitarists tend to arrive at the same place: they can strum a handful of songs, they cannot read, they have no reliable picking hand, and they have a left-hand habit that quietly caps everything they try next.
Video tutorials never say “your wrist is doing something that will hurt you in three years.”
How Windsor Piano School solves it
- Posture, hand shape and both-hand coordination come first, and repertoire grows out of that rather than instead of it.
- Every guitarist follows a documented pathway with named milestones, so progress is measurable.
- Teachers set short, specific weekly practice targets.
- Progress is reviewed each term, and students perform for each other regularly.
- Exam preparation is folded into normal lessons rather than crammed.
From first chords to confident musicianship.
Foundation
Sitting position, left-hand shape, fretting cleanly, open chords and changes, plectrum and fingerstyle basics, rhythm reading and tablature alongside standard notation.
Control
Barre chords, scales and position playing, alternate and finger picking, string damping, power chords, basic improvisation and reliable timing with a metronome.
Expression
Tone and dynamics, vibrato, bends and slides, voice leading, arrangement, comping and stylistic fluency across the genres you want to play.
Performance
Playing whole pieces without stopping, playing with a band or backing track, ensemble listening, sight-reading and stage confidence.
Guitar lessons shaped around the student
Guitar for beginners
Most children can start from around age 5, but every child is different — the £18 taster session is the best way to find out. Younger beginners start on a scaled nylon-string instrument, which is kinder to small fingers and makes the first term far more likely to succeed.
Electric guitar
Rock, pop, blues and funk, covering technique, tone, effects and playing in time with a rhythm section.
Classical guitar
Fingerstyle technique, sight-reading and graded repertoire, with proper right-hand nail and tone work.
Jazz and Bossa Nova
Chord voicings, comping patterns, harmonic function and improvisation, taught by a specialist in Brazilian and jazz styles.
Guitar for adults
Beginners and returners. Adults usually prefer longer lessons and progress quickly when technique is explained rather than only demonstrated.
Theory, songwriting and musicianship
Harmony, aural skills and arranging taught alongside playing, with ABRSM grades available for students who want a benchmark.
Exams, performance and where it leads
We are an official ABRSM Private Visit Centre, so Grades 1 to 8 and Diplomas are examined on site three times per academic year, exclusively for our students, in a room the student already knows.
Exam preparation, including theory and aural, is part of ordinary lessons rather than a separate scramble.
A school-wide track record
Our students hold places at Eton, Westminster and St Paul’s. School-wide, our best-known result belongs to Harvey Lin, a Windsor Piano School student who reached the BBC Young Musician finals in the Keyboard category in both 2016 and 2020, later earning an Aspen Fellowship and places at Eton and Harvard. That is our piano department rather than our guitar department, but it reflects the standard the whole school teaches to.
Meet your guitar teacher
Paulo Estevao Andrade
Paulo is a musician, educator and researcher with a Master’s degree in Psychology and Neuroscience of Music from Goldsmiths, University of London, and over thirty years of experience as an arranger, composer and performer, including work alongside some of Brazil’s finest musicians. He teaches both acoustic and electric guitar across classical, jazz, Bossa Nova and blues, and his research background shows in how he sequences learning: fundamentals first, then everything else gets easier.
Full biographies for the whole teaching staff are on Meet Our Team.
Clear pricing for structured guitar tuition
30 minute lesson
£31Younger beginners and focused weekly development.
45 minute lesson
£43Steady progress across technique, repertoire, reading and theory.
60 minute lesson
£61Advanced students, exam preparation and adults.
Lesson fees are the same rate for every instrument. A £50 registration fee applies, fully refundable when lessons end. Lessons follow the published Term Dates, and full details are on Fees 2026/27.
Guitar lessons in Windsor — FAQs
What age can a child start guitar?
Most children can start from around age 5, but every child is different — the £18 taster session is the best way to find out. Younger beginners use a correctly sized nylon-string guitar, which is far kinder to small fingers.
Acoustic or electric first?
Either. Electric is often easier on the fingers and more motivating for pop and rock; classical and acoustic build stronger fingerstyle technique. We will advise at the taster.
Do we need a guitar for the first lesson?
No. Come to the taster and we will size one and recommend what to buy or hire.
Do you teach reading, or just tab?
Both. Tab is useful shorthand; standard notation is what opens up ensembles, exams and everything written before 1950.
Are exams compulsory?
No, but they are available on site three times per academic year for those who want a benchmark.
What happens at the £18 taster session?
Twenty minutes with a guitar teacher: some playing, a discussion of the styles you want, and an honest recommendation on lesson length. There is no commitment either way. Slough families can reach us in around fifteen minutes by car, or on the direct train into Windsor town centre.
Start guitar lessons in Windsor
Book a twenty-minute taster for £18 and get the technique right from the first week. Guitar students travel in from Windsor, Slough and the villages between, including Eton and Old Windsor.