The acoustic guitar is the most popular instrument for beginner musicians. It is easy to carry around, you can practice on it any time, and it has a very pleasant sound. The acoustic guitar also is something of an unknown quantity for the person just beginning to learn to play, so in this article I would like to come to grips with issues such as the best acoustic guitar to buy for the beginner, what to expect when you take lessons and whether or not you will need to learn to read music. If you are just beginning as a guitar player, and you need some direction, pay attention to what comes next.

First you will need a guitar. An acoustic guitar for a beginner is sometimes hard to find. The best guitar is not too expensive but easy to play. With the number of el cheapo acoustic guitars being churned out nowadays you will probably need somebody you trust to help you choose your first guitar. If you do not know anybody to help you pick a guitar, then it would be best to start your search based on brand names. There are some acoustic guitars in the medium price range that are highly recommended by seasoned guitar players:

The Ibanez AC30NT is a nicely-made guitar with an exceptionally pleasing tone.

If you go to your local guitar dealer you might be able to hook up with a Fender beginner's package containing the low priced but serviceable Fender DG-8S.

Another cheap beginner's guitar with a good brand name is the Epiphone DR-100.

Takamine is another brand to consider with some quite reasonable guitars in their range. If you are constrained by your budget the Takamine G-340 is a good choice.

For a good looking, great sounding guitar, look no further than the Seagull S6 but it is a little more pricey than the others.

If you find yourself looking round for a secondhand guitar, look for the brand names I have mentioned.

Your first acoustic guitar lessons will probably be taken up with the basics of stringing and tuning your guitar. You might need to learn a little guitar music theory to help you understand what you are doing when you start to play scales and chords.

When you are all set up with your acoustic guitar and you have found a teacher or online lessons, you will be looking around for songs that you, as a beginner, might hope to play. Just base your search on the kind of songs you enjoy. You should find simple versions of your favorite songs that will make use of basic chords that you will still be using as you develop into a guitarist. The easiest songs will be using open chords which will only use two or three of your left hand fingers. You will be strumming or plucking all six strings, but some of the strings will be "open", that is, not fingered.

If you are wondering whether to learn to read music or just learn tabs you will find that guitar tabs are the easiest way to go. A few minutes of reading will give you the basic idea behind tablature, and an online search will clear up any rough spots in your comprehension.

You will find that starting out as a beginner acoustic guitar player will not be as difficult as you first imagined, but getting the right guitar and the right lessons will make the road much smoother.