I’ve never been particularly musical. I’ve had three forays into learning to play an instrument. The first was with my dad. He’s a fantastic piano player so I grew up with music in the house and he endured hours on end trying to teach me the basics. It never did catch on, unfortunately. Around the same time, I also played the violin at school but as anyone will tell you, the violin is one of the worst-sounding instruments when you’re learning the basics. Suffice it to say, I didn’t stick with it for long and my siblings were probably glad.
My final foray was when I was a bit older, this time at university. My friend owned a guitar and I thought, with all the free time I had between lectures this would be the ideal time to learn. Lessons with my friend began well but motivation subsided almost as quickly as it had emerged. Are you noticing a pattern?
Now, 20 years on from that experience, I began wondering if now was the time to give it another go. I own a guitar and it’s a shame to see it just sitting around. But with evolving technologies, I knew there had to be a better way to learn. After scouring the App Store, I finally came across Yousician and it’s now become my very own personal tutor.
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This is part of a regular series of articles exploring the apps that we couldn’t live without. Read them all here.
I downloaded the Yousician app to my iPhone and was faced with the same opening that seems to be part of every app created in the past few years: a set of questions designed to tailor my user experience. They weren’t difficult to answer, with Yousician wanting to find out more about what I was hoping to learn and my motivations for doing so.
One of the primary questions related to which instrument(s) I was hoping to learn. I answered ‘guitar’ but there were also options for bass, ukulele, singing, and piano. It’s worth noting that if you choose piano, you’ll be prompted to download a separate Yousician app that is dedicated to learning that instrument.
It wasn’t long before I was up and running and watching a basic video about how to hold the guitar alongside explanations for what different parts of the instrument are called. The simple tutorial helped orient me and provided a helpful foundation for a full set of basic lessons, which I proceeded to work my way around.
The lessons are well put together with great-quality visuals and sound. On-screen graphics also helped to guide me through each lesson. I also loved how easy it was to scrub through videos so I could re-learn items that I missed or needed to hear again. Because lessons are created by bona fide music teachers who know what they’re talking about, you can rest assured that you’re getting a great education. If you’re not sure, then you can always take advantage of the 7-day free trial.
Alongside the lessons, Yousicians provides you with instant feedback by listening to and analyzing your playing. This takes the basic video lesson functionality that could be accessed on something like YouTube to a whole new level of personal tutoring. Without it, I think Yousician would struggle to attract people to the platform long-term.
Along with lessons produced by qualified music instructors, Yousician has also partnered with world-famous artists to provide exclusive courses. The most famous among them might be Metallica musicians James Hetfield and Kirk Hammett. The courses deliver tips, stories, and exclusive performances that enable students to play along to “Enter Sandman” and “Master of Puppets.”
The app includes a huge range of popular songs to play along to, although if you want access to the complete library, then you’ll need a Premium+ plan. The library includes a wide range of genres, including pop, metal, and everything in between. Yousician has also partnered with famous artists to deliver the latest music. One example is the Billie Collection, which gives students access to Billie Eilish’s greatest hits.
One of the best things about Yousician is that it works on almost every device, including phones, laptops, or tablets. This provides users with a significant level of flexibility so they can jump on whatever device is convenient. Phones are ideal for learning when out and about, whereas a laptop at home provides a larger screen experience.
Yousician offers a 7-day free trial but beyond that, users must pay for a plan. There are two main options, including Premium and Premium+. The basic package costs $119.99 / £59.99 and you can have the more feature-rich option for $139.99 / £89.99. The main difference between the two is that Premium+ provides access to an unlimited library of songs. There is also a Family plan, which gives users access to four premium accounts.
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paulo.n.hatton@gmail.com (Paul Hatton)
