Help & FAQs

JCGL is a guitar learning site built by John Clarke — guitarist, composer, and instructor. It offers structured video courses, interactive notation lessons with a built-in music player, and practice tools to help you build real skills at your own pace.

The Notation Library is the main collection of interactive notation on the site — repertoire pieces, sight-reading exercises, and technique studies. Many pieces are public domain and free to access without an account. All use the built-in notation player with real guitar synthesis.

Start with the Notation Library to explore pieces and exercises you can play right away. For structured learning with video, head to Video Courses — each course is divided into modules with lessons you can work through at your own pace.

Every course groups lessons into modules (think chapters). Within a module the lessons are ordered — work through them top to bottom for the intended progression. You can also jump around freely; there's no lock-step requirement.

No. Most of the site is open — you can browse the Notation Library, play public domain pieces, and watch preview lessons without signing up. An account is only needed for specific features: accessing paid courses or printing notation. Practice lists require a Full Access membership.

Every video course, all notation lessons, print/PDF export, practice list tools, and ensemble sync features. Free accounts can watch preview lessons in each course.

Create a free account, then log in and visit the upgrade page to choose a plan and subscribe. Monthly and annual options are available.

Yes. Cancel through your account settings before your next billing date and you won't be charged again. Your access continues until the end of the period you already paid for.

Credit and debit cards via Stripe, or PayPal. Both options are shown on the upgrade page.

Create a free account, then enter it on the upgrade page before completing checkout. The discount will be applied automatically.

Practice lists are custom collections you build from any lesson or notation piece — across video courses and the Notation Library. Use them to track a repertoire, organise a practice routine, or gather pieces you want to work on. Practice lists require a Full Access membership.

Go to My Lists, type a name in the field at the top, and click Create. You can make as many lists as you like.

On any lesson or notation page, click the + List button in the control bar. A dropdown shows your existing lists — click one to add the lesson instantly. To add to a new list at the same time, choose New list… from the bottom of the dropdown, enter a name, and click Create & Add.

Open a list from My Lists and click any lesson to open it. Your active list appears in the lesson navigator so you can move through it piece by piece using the prev/next arrows.

Yes. On the My Lists page, click Delete next to the list you want to remove. This deletes the list and its contents — the lessons themselves are unaffected.

The notation player displays guitar tablature and standard notation directly in the browser — no software to install. It plays back the music in sync with a scrolling cursor, lets you slow down the tempo, loop any section, adjust the mix, and more.

Use the tempo controls (♩ − / +) in the control bar to reduce the BPM in 5-step increments. The notation cursor and audio stay in sync at any speed.

Click and drag across the bars you want to repeat — a badge appears showing the active range. Click × on the badge to clear the loop. Looping works best on desktop browsers; touch drag may not be supported on all devices.

Click the printer icon () in the control bar to open your browser's print dialog. Choose Save as PDF as the destination to keep a copy. This works in Chrome, Edge, Safari, and Firefox — no extra software needed. Printing is available to Full Access members.

All lessons play back using high-quality guitar synthesis directly in the browser — recorded by John Clarke using a custom soundfont, so it sounds like a real guitar rather than generic MIDI. Some lessons also include a backing track; when one is available a Backing Track button appears in the control bar to toggle it on.

It opens the Control Bar Guide — a full reference for every button and feature in the notation player.

Try a hard reload (Ctrl+Shift+R on Windows/Linux, Cmd+Shift+R on Mac). If it still doesn't load, check that your browser is up to date — the player requires a modern browser (Chrome 90+, Firefox 88+, Safari 14+, Edge 90+). Disabling browser extensions one by one can also help identify a conflict.

Make sure your device isn't muted and the volume in the control bar is turned up. Some browsers block audio until you interact with the page — clicking the play button after the page loads usually resolves this. On mobile, check your device's silent/ring switch.

Try a hard reload (Ctrl+Shift+R / Cmd+Shift+R) first. If the video still won't start, check your internet connection and make sure your browser is up to date. Trying a different browser can help confirm whether the issue is browser-specific.

Check your membership status in account settings. If you recently subscribed and the page still shows Free, try logging out and back in, or do a hard reload. If the problem persists, contact us.

In your browser's print dialog, set the page size to A4 or Letter and margins to None or Minimum. Landscape orientation often works better for wide notation. Chrome and Edge generally produce the most reliable PDFs.

Use the contact form and include your browser name and version, the device you're on (phone, tablet, laptop), and a screenshot if possible. The more detail you give, the faster the fix.