Julian Reyes, MM, Berklee
The House of Octave Blog
Sourced statistics pages, plus practical guides and explainers. Our product roundups live under Categories.
Statistics
Every figure links to its primary source. Free to cite, with a CSV download on each page.
Music Education Statistics 2026
83 sourced music education statistics: how many students have music in school, who takes lessons, music teachers, NAEP scores and what research shows.
83 statistics · Updated Nov 2, 2026
Musical Instrument Statistics 2026
85 sourced musical instrument statistics: how many people play guitar and piano, the most popular instruments, how many quit, by state and worldwide.
85 statistics · Updated Nov 2, 2026
Guitars
Classical vs Acoustic Guitar: Every Difference That Actually Matters
Julian Reyes on classical vs acoustic guitar: measured string tension in pounds, 52 mm against 43 mm nut width, truss rods, fan bracing, and crossover guitars.
Updated Sep 6, 2026
Humbucker vs Single Coil: What Actually Changes, and Which One You Want
Berklee-trained guitarist and former gear buyer Julian Reyes explains humbuckers and single coils: how hum cancellation really works, why humbuckers sound darker, output and resistance numbers, P-90s, coil splitting, noiseless pickups, bass configurations, and how to choose.
Updated Aug 23, 2026
Acoustic vs Electric Guitar: Which Should a Beginner Buy?
Berklee-trained guitarist and former gear buyer Julian Reyes compares acoustic and electric guitars for beginners — string tension, action, neck width, real cost, practice volume, genre fit, and a 60-second decision rule that tells you which one to buy.
Updated Aug 16, 2026
35 Easy Guitar Songs for Beginners (in the Order You Should Learn Them)
Berklee-trained teacher Julian Reyes (MM) picks 35 easy guitar songs for beginners, grouped from 2-chord to 4-chord, with the exact chords for each, why every song is easy to play, and the order to learn them so your first song sounds like music, not homework.
Updated Jul 22, 2026
How to Read Guitar Tabs: A Complete Beginner's Guide
Berklee-trained guitarist Julian Reyes (MM) explains how to read guitar tablature from scratch — the six lines, the fret numbers, chords, and every symbol for hammer-ons, pull-offs, slides, bends, vibrato, palm mutes, and dead notes, with a full worked example.
Updated Jul 4, 2026
How to Play Guitar: A Beginner's Guide
Berklee-trained guitarist Julian Reyes (MM) walks absolute beginners through everything to start playing — choosing acoustic vs. electric, holding and tuning the guitar, your first open chords, strumming, smooth chord changes, finger-pain timelines, and a realistic 4-week practice plan.
Updated Jun 28, 2026
Guitar Chords for Beginners: The First 8 Chords to Learn (and How)
Berklee-trained teacher Julian Reyes (MM) explains the first 8 guitar chords every beginner should learn, why they come in that order, how to read a chord diagram, and a 4-week practice plan to switch between them cleanly.
Updated Jun 25, 2026
Amps & Effects
Keyboards & Pianos
Studio & Recording
Accessories & Care
How to Use a Metronome: A Complete Beginner's Guide
Berklee-trained multi-instrumentalist Julian Reyes (MM) explains how to use a metronome: what BPM and time signatures mean on the dial, how compound time like 6/8 actually works, a tempo-ladder method for getting faster, subdivisions, advanced click drills, and the mistakes that keep players stuck.
Updated Sep 20, 2026
How to Clean a Guitar: Fretboard, Body, Strings and Hardware, Step by Step
Berklee-trained multi-instrumentalist Julian Reyes (MM) explains how to clean a guitar safely: the 60-second wipe-down, the deep clean at every string change, how to identify your fretboard wood and body finish first, cleaning steel, coated and nylon strings, electric hardware and pickups, and the products that permanently damage an instrument.
Updated Sep 13, 2026
How to Restring a Guitar: Acoustic, Electric and Classical, Step by Step
Berklee-trained multi-instrumentalist Julian Reyes (MM) walks you through restringing a guitar — bridge pins on an acoustic, through-body and tremolo on an electric, the tie-block knot on a classical — plus how often to change strings, the winding technique that keeps them in tune, and the mistakes that cost beginners a string.
Updated Aug 9, 2026
How to Hold a Guitar Pick (The Right Way, Explained by a Pro)
Berklee-trained guitarist Julian Reyes (MM) shows you exactly how to hold a guitar pick — thumb and finger placement, how much tip to expose, the right angle and grip pressure, why you keep dropping it, and the fixes that make picking feel effortless.
Updated Aug 3, 2026
How to Tune a Guitar: A Complete Beginner's Guide (Standard EADGBE)
Berklee-trained teacher Julian Reyes (MM) shows you how to tune a guitar in standard EADGBE — with a clip-on tuner, a phone app, or by ear using the 5th-fret method — plus how to read the tuner, why your guitar won't stay in tune, and the mistakes every beginner makes.
Updated Jul 19, 2026
Guitar String Notes Explained: The 6 Open Strings (E-A-D-G-B-E)
Berklee-trained teacher Julian Reyes (MM) explains the six guitar string notes E-A-D-G-B-E — the names, numbers, pitches, and frequencies, how to remember them, why the guitar is tuned this way, and how the notes map to the fretboard and piano.
Updated Jul 12, 2026