The "Magic Instrument" That Teaches You to Play Guitar

For some, learning guitar means taking lessons for months, only to learn a perfect rendition of Oasis's "Wonderwall." Highsnobiety recently shared an Indiegogo campaign for a new product that claims to eliminate the middle man and speed up the process. The Magic Instrument Guitar, which features buttons where strings should be, teaches songs to students with a mobile app.

Users select a song from MI's database (available for 99 cents each or by monthly subscription). As the lyrics appear on the screen, the app also shows the corresponding buttons, located on the fret board, that should be pressed while strumming the strings. In the demo video above, a group of first-time users are shown playing "House of the Rising Sun," just by following along.

The MI Guitar has a built-in speaker as well as a headphone jack for private listening. There are knobs for volume and tone controls, and others that allow the user to change the type of guitar sound and add digital effects.

It is unclear whether or not what users learn from the app and MI Guitar can be translated to a real guitar, but that hasn't stopped the instrument from picking up a few fans. The Indiegogo campaign for the product has already surpassed its $50,000 goal and according to the founders, it's been endorsed by Community actress Yvette Nicole Brown and lead guitarist of the band Muse, Matthew Bellamy.

[h/t Highsnobiety]

Images via Indiegogo