TIPS FOR TODAY
Don’t worry about perfecting each of these transitions. Just pick one you like and throw it in occasionally to add spice to some of your transitions.
Here’s what matters most: you showed up five times. Your hands know more now than they did a week ago. If this is what five days of showing up looks like, imagine five weeks. Five months.
Smoother changes. Quieter self-doubt. Songs that once felt impossible slowly falling under your fingers because the skills you’re getting consistent exposure to keep stacking in the background.
So if today’s pattern never feels “perfect” in one sitting, don’t use that as proof you’re not cut out for this. Use it as proof you’re working on the real stuff.
You’ve already done the hardest part — you kept coming back.
Keep trusting that process. It’s already working. And keep going!
YOUR SAMPLE WEEK OF TONY'S ACOUSTIC CHALLENGE
5-Day "Stop Dabbling, Start Playing Guitar" Challenge
- FRI: Transitions
FREE WHEN YOU JOIN TODAY
30 DAY JUMPSTART
All new members start with our 30-day jumpstart to learn the basics. It comes free with your membership when you join today.
3-Steps to Stop Dabbling and Start Playing
Try the Free 5-Day Challenge
Get a feel for the TAC method and see what 10 minutes a day can do.
Join TAC and Build Your Foundation
Start the 30-Day Jumpstart Challenge (included when you join) to lock in the basics and build a daily habit.
Keep Going with Daily Challenges
After the 30-Day Jumpstart, keep improving—one fun, daily guitar session at a time.
Not going to lie, struggled a bit more with this one – especially around the new chord shape. That said, it still sounded okay (ish) after a few runs through.
Definitely think Tony’s approach works for me.
I don’t want to be a shredder – which is what GMM that I’m using currently seems to aim for.
Think I shall be transferring over to TAC to see if I can keep the progress going
Thanks for an interesting and enjoyable week Tony
I’m an experienced player trying to get the run off at age 71. These specific recipes for there dongs and following the play alongs is helping me play cleanly. And I need to learn some more songs so I am going for it.
I really struggled with the second part, but worked through it using the tab and got there. Thank you for optional ways of learning.
Looks, like a great program. I like the pace and the individual lessons. I’m sitting back a few days thinking. On a limited budget, retired (74 years old), but this is looking good. Wish you had a way to join just the 5 day challenges… but, I’ll see if I can budget this. I think this is one of the best on the internet
As a complete beginner still struggling with day 1 on day 5. although I like the approach.
Might be interested in the 30 day beginner challenge for a one off fee before signing up for the main site.
Tony’s Acoustic Challenge (TAC), created by Tony Polecastro, is an online subscription-based platform designed to help acoustic guitar players of all levels improve their skills through daily, bite-sized lessons.
A great introduction to your TAC Tony. I pretty much agree with everything Kathryn who, clearly, has had a similar experience to me. In addition, however, I’m hoping that your weekly lessons will include the culmination of performing a song rather than the 5 elements that constitute its of songs. It would be a shame to have to go to other sites for this final piece of the jigsaw.
It would also be helpful if you included the answers to Kathryn’s questions on this portal so it’s visible and transparent.
Finally, I am pretty certain that I will join, however, do not want to be rushed in to the timescales given to get 45% off….. on Monday I will be on a 6 week holiday and obviously will not wish to sign up before my return (I know, I’m lucky).
Great site and offering. Well done!
Hi Tony thanks for the break down of the 5 skills needed to play guitar, I have really enjoyed the focus on different skills each day and I think this is what I have been missing, to make playing chords when I learn a song more interesting and not repetitive and ultimately boring. I am 60 years old and have recently picked up the guitar, I bought a new guitar just before the covid lock down period, but I had carpal tunnel syndrome that got worse and I was not able to start playing during the isolation time, and I lost the use of my right hand, it destabilise my epilepsy, so really not fun, because of the pandemic I couldn’t be seen and had to wait just over a year before I got the surgery, they told me there is a higher risk of permanent nerve damage, I thought no way, but a year of physiotherapy and I regained the use of my hand. However I have been struggling with ptsd from my father making sure I could not become a in his words, a drug taking hippy dreaming of making a career in music and never having any talent to do it, so he was determined that I would go to university and get a degree in medicine or law, despite my having been awarded a scholarship to at the time a prestigious school for music, but to stay in the music program have to keep grades up. I was playing classical guitar started at 11 years old and I was so passionate about it, I just loved everything I was taught, even music theory and scales, I was a sponge soaking up everything I was taught. After going to my teacher and told him my fingers really hurt, he asked how long I was practicing and I told him an hour sometimes more, I just lost track of time, so he said no, set an alarm for 20 minutes max and take a break and do your other studies, if you have time come back and do another 10 minutes. But when I told my father I was awarded a full scholarship, he didn’t say well done I’m proud of you, no he had to teach not to disobey him, he had forbidden me to audition, but I didn’t, my teacher had been talking to the head of the school and she was his teacher and wanted to meet me and talk to me and hear me play, even though it wasn’t the audition, she said if you had been at the audition I would have won it. She said excuse me a moment I need to talk the other teachers who were judging, came back 10 minutes later and handed me the certificate. She said they didn’t see anyone that had the spark the thing you can’t teach, passion and expressing your self through the music, she said she has heard so many people playing Air by Bach and Cannon by Pachelbel, but she felt it when I played and she said technically got a lot of work to do, but you have passion and I felt it in your playing, however my father decided to end a career in music before it began and put my hands in metal vices and tightening them until I could feel and hear my hands being crushed, and then dislocated all my fingers, but fortunately my stepmom had slipped some sleeping pills into his hot cocoa and after he was asleep took me to hospital and told the doctor exactly how my hands were in that state, they took x-rays and couldn’t believe that I only had a couple of fractures in my hands. But it was my fingers that were the real concern, some they were able to manipulate and get them back in but 3 fingers on my left hand needed to be operated on to get the joints back in place without damage to the nerves and 2 on my right hand. My stepmom gave my guitar to my girlfriend to keep safe and with a lot of work and physiotherapy and encouragement from mom and my girlfriend I made a full recovery, and my girlfriend encouraged me to try and play again, she was amazing, she inspired me and picking a melody that was in my head for ages suddenly became a song for her. She was battling leukaemia and she was getting weaker, so when we were 16 we had the wedding ceremony we knew was right under the full moon at a magical forest in the North of England and its a nexus where the lay lines of the earth’s energy converged at one point, sadly she lost the fight a few months later and I didn’t touch a guitar again until recently, I still have my classical guitar.
I want to sign up and have a few questions to ask to help me make my final decision. First is, do you, Tony teach all of the daily challenges? Secondly, If I “favorite daily challenges do they stay as a part of my profile for an indefinite period of time? Third, I’m wondering why the monthly guitar routines disappear at the end of the month? What if you still need more practice on something you’re really enjoying learning? If I’m traveling do I just miss the the challenges that have been released whil I’m gone? Thanks! Kathryn
Great questions, Kathryn. 1) Yes, Tony teaches every daily challenge himself. 2) Yes, if you favorite a daily challenge, they stay a part of your profile. 3) We actually have a new feature that lets you easily go back up to 45 days to revisit a challenge you missed or want to work on more! Cheers!
Hi Kathryn, Please go ahead and reach out to our TAC Support Dept. They will be happy to assist you with your questions about TAC. Email: support@tonypolecastro.com
Well I have thoroughly. enjoyed the 5 day challenge! It has given me a lot of hope for continued progress and fun learning things that I’ve waited a long time to learn. I’ve never officially signed up for an online guitar course before. But I have researched a number of different online courses but never found anything that seemed like it would work for me. TAC is different. I’ve been impressed with the entire process. Great job, Tony! I plan on signing up tonight and look forward to the the TAC challenges ahead. Thanks!
I liked the 5-day challenge & the learning process it highlights. Will probably join in the next few days.
I had a great week learning this song. I do agree with another comment below that 10 minutes was not enough time to learn and practice, especially this last lesson with the bass lines coming down from the 5th fret. I’m pretty slow at first to gain knowledge, and will get better, just takes me more time.
Tony,
I am 66 years old. I have a Taylor 910 and played in church bands as a rhythm guitarist for 21 years. i felt I was playing half of my guitar by just playing chords and needed to challenge myself musically. After doing your 5 day challenge I have decided to give you a try.
Thank You, Christopher
I’ve enjoyed this, it’s been really easy to follow but we haven’t learned the song… Also, I am curious about what other songs are in the program as I’m kind of interested in learning some things that are a bit more modern so I’m interested to hear what other songs are included and if we will be able to play them from start to finish before I sign up
So cool!
Learning this bass run was fun. I am a bit confused, however, arriving at this point after five days: I can’t play “Friend of the Devil” yet. I think we have learned the chord structure (1, 4, 5 song in the key of G), and we have learned the bass run to connect some chords. But would a normal TAC challenge actually teach us the song? Would we get tabs for the song, with lyrics, so that we could sing and play it through? I think that I just learned a bunch of pieces of the song (which was fun, btw).
Hi Tony. Thank you of providing access to this series of videos. Whilst I have enjoyed working through them and believe that your method would improve my playing substantially, I find that 10 minutes a day for each lesson is nowhere near long enough for me. To be comfortable, I would need a week on each lesson so, taking into account my holiday time, I would only get through about 10 songs a year – not a good return for the cost. So, sorry, but I cannot take your offer forward.
So here is where I stumbled. I didn’t get it easily, so it wasn’t as fun as previous days. I wanted to stop. So I did.
Now should I try to go back to it later? Or say that was my comfort zone and move on and try next week? (Yes, I think I’ll sign up)
Tony, what a brilliant idea to let us experience a real life example of your actual teaching process. Cudos to you or the member of your staff that came up with this idea!!! Learning guitar has jumped to the top of my bucket list. I’m really impressed.
Hi Tony!
Alright, you win. No check that. I win. I’m in! For 2 years I have been following your site. I registered for your intro videos and then thought I didn’t have the time to commit to learning how to play. I always wanted to. Bought my first guitar when I was 16. A beautiful Japanese Hohner with a three piece back. It has followed me around for another 52 years. It has aged well. I love guitars and have accumulated an inventory. After kind of retiring I thought I should learn how to play. So I became a utube learner. I know all kinds of chords,one string riffs, the pentatonic scales forwards backwards and upside down. And brother,I can spiderwalk with the best of them. I can’t play a single song all the way through. Nothing I do sounds like music. My wife walks by and asks for me to play a song for her. I say maybe later. Now is later. So challenge excepted!
Thanks
Ernie
I Have been practicing guitar for 8 years. The reason I started was my grandson wanted to learn and I thought it would be great to do it together. After about 5 months he decided it was to hard and started playing fortnight. So after about a year of learning my open chords a simple strumming i joined Guitar tricks. Couldn’t stand there program. Songs they made up and to much repetition. Quit after 8 months. Over the years I have paid for other programs with the same results.
Your program looks great. Playing the hole song. Rhythm licks and solo.
But I struggled with your lessons they didn’t make sense to me and made me feel like I have way more to learn that I thought.
When I finished the 5th lesson I couldn’t come close to playing along. So I opened up the tab and in less than 5 minutes I understood it and could play it.
So now I struggle. It looks like exactly what I need to learn but I don’t feel like I learned anything. Maybe it’s because I don’t know or like the song and was dreaded work not fun.
If anyone has input on this i would like to hear it.
I still want to join but having second thoughts!
Thanks
Want you to know that I have enjoyed this challenge immensely. The Dead are my favorite band so this has a special meaning. I admit that I’m still working on the previous lessons but I’m picking up my guitar and having fun practicing. I would love to continue with you but unfortunately I don’t have the financial means as I’m out of work. When conditions improve I would love to joinTAC. I love learning to play this way. In the past week I have learned more than I ever have all the while whilst having fun learning. Thank you so much for offering this challenge as it has made me interested in learning guitar again after being frustrated for so many years. Thank you Tony
Your 5 day lesson plan was very well put together. I enjoyed the challenge of each lesson. I have decided to enroll in your one year subscription as I have been in a plateau for the past year. Excited to see were the new skills take my guitar playing.
Thanks,
Harry
Loved, loved the first line of today’s lesson! Got confused when you got to the second line but I’m gonna get it. Not sure if you wanted us to name names but I started Justin Sandercoe’s course several years ago. I had a life altering event and that was the end of that. I picked it back up again 1 year and 9 months ago. I purchased two other courses and I love them both but I feel stuck. I like the fact that they were just a one time charge – no subscription. However, I really like the fact that your course has something to focus on every week. Think I’ll give it a try. 🙂
I really like your site, however, I have one question- do you give a discount to Veterans?