Guitar: Learn to Play (Adults)

Read the course descriptions below or choose your class now. ​

Summer Strumming - Intro to Guitar

Discover the joy of studying music in a welcoming and pressure-free environment. Group work on study pieces and individualized instruction are combined in this foundational level course, which will familiarize you with your instrument and its components, teach you how to tune and perform basic maintenance, and teach you how to read tablature and chord charts.

Pre-requisite: The ability to read music is not required.

Learn to Play - Introduction

Discover (or re-discover!) the joy of studying music in a welcoming and pressure-free environment. Group work on study pieces and individualized instruction are combined in this foundational level course, which will familiarize you with your instrument and its components, teach you how to tune and perform basic maintenance, and teach you how to read tablature and chord charts.

Pre-requisite: The ability to read music is not required. Please bring First Steps for Guitar by William Beauvais to the first class. Students will be required to bring a guitar.

Learn to Play - Guitar Club (Pop & Folk)

Students will continue to build their repertoire of chords and learn different voicings on the fretboard to complement those chords. In this course, students are exposed to the art of improvisation starting with simple "fills" using the pentatonic scale. Students are also exposed to more sophisticated approaches to accompaniment, including chord ornamentation and fingerpicking techniques. The class works through songs together and discusses different approaches. Technical concerns are addressed on a one-on-one, as-needed basis.

Prerequisite: Learn To Play Guitar - Introduction, or permission of instructor. Students must have an understanding of how to play basic chords in the key of G and have a basic knowledge of the instrument and beginner technique. Students must bring their own guitar.

Intro to Jazz & Blues

Develop your rhythm and lead guitar playing skills while enhancing your musicianship and improving your musical confidence. This course provides beginner and intermediate guitar players alike with a window into the exciting world of improvisation. A typical class functions like a jam session, allowing each participant to play chords, melodies, and solo over blues and jazz tunes. Special emphasis will be placed on the 12-bar blues and common jazz standards.
 
Pre-requisites: Basic knowledge of first-position chords and scales. Students must bring their own acoustic or electric guitar. Amplifiers will be provided.