If I had a dime for every time a student said, “Ouch! That hurts!” when they try to play a chord. I’d be a rich man! The reason beginner’s finger tips hurt is because they don’t have any calluses. It would be exactly the same for any of us who have a desk job and never do any manual labor—if we went out and grabbed a shovel and worked all day digging ditch. Not only would our back hurt, our hands would be raw, especially if we didn’t wear gloves. Calluses are the body’s way of protecting itself.

When you play guitar, you are constantly pressing your finger tips down on the strings. Your body’s natural reaction is to “toughen up” those tips by “thickening” the skin in that area – ala “calluses.”

It’s a very natural thing, and most of us probably don’t think about it. We just accept it as the way things are—right? Well, recently a young student posed the question, “How can I learn to play the guitar without forming calluses?” This student was concerned because they also played piano and violin and they didn’t want to “lose the sensitivity” in their fingers—which they believed was essential to being able to play piano and violin well. Here’s how I responded to their question.

The short answer to your question is, "It’s probably impossible to play the guitar and not develop any calluses.” BUT... I do have a couple thoughts for you on this subject that you might find helpful.

THOUGHT ONE: LOOK INTO A NYLON STRUNG GUITAR.
I'm a rock player--so calluses are my best friend. However, I suspect that classical players may have a different experience. Since they use nylon strings as opposed to steel strings there is a chance that they do not develop calluses quite like we rockers do. I'm not certain of this; it's just an educated guess. If you know any guitarists who play nylon strung guitars, ask them about this.

THOUGHT TWO: DON’T LET CALUSES SCARE YOU.
I want to encourage you regarding your concern that "getting calluses would be bad for those instruments (piano and violin), where the sensitivity in the fingertips is vital." Again, I'm not an expert--but I been a musician for a long time and I’ve seen many musicians who play both guitar and piano very well and they do not seem to be bothered at all by calluses. And sense violin is a stringed instrument--in some ways similar to guitar--I don't believe this would be as big an issue as you fear. I have pretty substantial calluses on my fretting hand--and I still enjoy great "sensitivity" on the fret board.

To summarize, do some research and see if playing a nylon strung guitar will be less apt to produce calluses on your fretting hand. And second, don't be overly concerned about losing your sensitivity. Thousands of musicians play multiple instruments (piano and guitar is a very common combo) and they have no problems.

Dive in and practice all three of your chosen instruments and I bet you'll discover that time spent practicing all three instruments will easily overcome any minor issues calluses on your finger tips may present.

Hope that helps!

You need calluses and you WILL get calluses if you play a few times a week. If you're playing right, it's inevitable.

Anen brother...

That's like asking if I can work out all the time without getting stronger.

Calluses are part of your instrument in this kind of music.

I really thought this thread was going to be about something else.

"Can I Learn To Play Guitar Without Developing Clauses."

Chicks dig caluses.

Calluses are the sign of someone actually applying themselves to learning guitar

MetLHed4GZus wrote:

Calluses are the sign of someone actually applying themselves to learning guitar

No, not really. One can dick around on a guitar for years, develop calluses, yet still never truly apply himself.