Group music lessons provide better social experiences
There is something to be said about being part of a group. You can gain a sense of belonging when you do a group activity with others. That can be fun and rewarding. You may also be motivated by your peers in the class.
Private lessons are not able to offer that sort of social experience, because they are one-on-one. So if you just want to learn quicker and have a fun experience with others, want to meet some new people or try something new, then group classes might be your best bet. Just be aware that these classes are not great at helping you develop your skills on your instrument. We have many students that came from other programs with bad habits, only to have to relearn a lot of things later on. If you want to learn to play, take private lessons.
Group music lessons teach some skills that private lessons can’t
What if you have already developed the ability to play an instrument to some degree? In that case, you may be interested in learning how to advance your skills by playing in a band or learning to improvise. Private lessons can help you prepare to be in a band or improvise, but you’ll have to actually play with others to really develop those skills.
If you can already play an instrument, then we highly recommend taking group classes to learn performance skills like playing in a group or improvising. Just be sure that you have already developed your technique with private lessons enough so that you can concentrate on playing with others, instead of worrying about how to play your instrument. You will be much more comfortable this way.