The solo artist must provide a complete musical experience for the listener using a single instrument. In this 3-hour event, fingerstyle guitar innovator and recording artist Alex de Grassi shows how he creates this experience in his own compositions and arrangements using dynamics, accents, and articulations. Alex then provides exercises to help workshop participants achieve an orchestrated, three-dimensional sound in their own playing. Each participant has the option of playing for the group and receiving individual coaching and feedback from Alex de Grassi. Steel-string, classical, and electric guitar players, as well as singers who use the guitar to accompany themselves, are all welcome.

These days, anyone with a computer and a microphone can record themselves. Free programs like GarageBand and Audacity allow guitarists to record with minimal investment. Audio-recording expert Graham Pellettieri and Grammy-nominated guitarist Scott Nygaard will show you how to set up a basic home-recording environment and produce simple high-quality recordings. Starting with the basics of recording in GarageBand and including advice on mic placement, studio setup, effects, mixing, and preparing yourself to record, you’ll learn what you need to get started recording yourself at home.

Guest Instructors: Scott Nygaard, a senior editor at Acoustic Guitar magazine, has performed and recorded with Tim O’Brien, Chris Thile, Darol Anger, Jerry Douglas, Laurie Lewis, and many others. Nygaard has released two solo albums, No Hurry and Dreamer’s Waltz< (Rounder). Graham Pellettieri is a musician, recording engineer, and music production specialist who operates Notesmith Music.

The haunting strains of slide guitar have long been an essential part of the blues. Seasoned session guitarist and singer/songwriter Jimmy Dillon teaches classic tunes and original compositions, sharing his deep knowledge of bottleneck guitar in the blues and beyond. You’ll explore open tunings, along with muting and damping techniques, on both electric and acoustic guitars. You may also choose to play prepared solo material so Jimmy can provide individualized coaching and comment. The workshop closes with Jimmy’s down-in-the-bucket performances of tunes from his musical, Ascension of the Blues, on "Stacy," his trusty National Reso-phonic Style O. This is a hands-on workshop, so participants should have basic familiarity with guitar playing, even if they are new to slide.

San Francisco-based guitarist, singer, and songwriter Jimmy Dillon has recorded with John Lee Hooker and Clarence Clemons, and has shared the stage with the likes of Sting, Bob Dylan, and Bruce Springsteen. Jimmy's summer job is Director of Blue Star Music Camp for kids. Learn more at jimmydillon.com and bluestarmusiccamps.com.

Fingerstyle virtuoso Peppino D’Agostino is a global citizen who has absorbed many musical influences. In this workshop, Peppino guides you in both arranging and composing for steel-string guitar by exploring styles, techniques, and rhythms from Latin America, Italy, and elsewhere. Inspired by these beautiful melodies, you learn to support them with intelligent harmonies and powerful grooves, incorporating practical guitar techniques such as string bending, percussion and slide, open tunings, and bent harmonics. Peppino also examines some of his original material closely, providing you with insights on the creative process of composing and arranging.

Born and raised in Italy, Peppino D’Agostino has lived and recorded in the United States since 1985, while continuing to tour and perform frequently in Europe. He won Guitar Player magazine’s 2007 Reader Poll as Best Acoustic Guitarist and Acoustic Guitar magazine’s 2008 Bronze Players’ Choice Award for Best Acoustic Guitar Album of All Time (Every Step of the Way, 2002, Favored Nations Acoustic).

A good arrangement often begins with a concept – perhaps an altered rhythm or reharmonization – or you might simply wish to preserve the original feel of the tune, but adapt it to guitar. Recording artist Alex de Grassi has been arranging and composing for guitar for over 30 years, and in this workshop he will walk through one of his own arrangements and present various methods for bringing a tune to life on guitar.

Bring your guitar, a notebook, and anything you wish to arrange. If you already have an original arrangement – complete or in progress – Alex will listen to you play and offer comments and suggestions. This workshop is geared towards acoustic fingerstyle players, but is open to classical and electric players as well.

Put on your berets and get ready for a fun and intensive afternoon exploring the intricacies and beauty of fingerstyle jazz guitar. This workshop will explore classic jazz standards and show you how to play walking basslines/chord figures, add colorful chord voicings and substitutions, introduce some extended techniques, and offer ideas on creating a simple solo jazz guitar arrangement. While you don’t have to read music, this workshop is designed for intermediate to advanced players who are familiar with basic fingerstyle techniques, but would like to add more harmonic depth and color to their style.

Ed Gerhard is a master fingerstylist renowned for his big, lush sound and talent in writing and arranging for solo guitar. He’s also regarded as a teacher with a special talent for listening to what you're playing right now and helping you make it better. In this workshop, Ed will focus on dynamics, tone, and expression and demonstrate techniques and approaches for taking your playing to the next level. Bring your guitar and come prepared to play a piece or two for comment.

It’s no surprise that Acoustic Guitar’ editors named Ed Gerhard’s album Luna to their “240 Essential Acoustic Albums” list in the February 2010 20 Anniversary Collector’s Issue. Since his debut recording Night Birds in 1987, Gerhard has been attracting attention and praise from guitarists and listeners alike, and received a 2005 Grammy for his contribution to Henry Mancini: Pink Guitar. The Boston Globe says: “Gerhard does not write instrumentals. He writes songs only a guitar can sing.”

Gerhard conducts an acclaimed annual all-day guitar workshop each spring near his home in New Hampshire; this 3-hour workshop at String Letter Music School offers Bay Area musicians a rare opportunity to experience Gerhard’s inspiring approach to guitar.

Steve covers essential picking techniques, chord shapes, runs and harmonization devices in the context of melodic song arrangements in standard and open tunings. These include country blues and bluesy country from the repertoire of early American roots guitar icons and Steve's own song bag.

The workshop is geared toward the "intermediate" level player. Ambitious beginners with some knowledge of chord shapes and basic playing techniques are welcome.

This is a hands-on workshop program. Bring a guitar and accessories, a notebook/folder and a pencil. Some tab is supplied, but the emphasis is on learning by ear, so Steve suggests you bring your own sound recorder (not video).

You can expect to learn a few new songs/arrangements while fine-tuning your understanding of blues inflected harmony and syncopated rhythmic interpretation.

This workshop is now full. Please fill out the registration form to be added to the waiting list or click here for information and to purchase tickets for Steve James' performance.

Recognized internationally as an outstanding performing and recording artist, a charismatic educator, and a transcriber and editor of both taste and intelligence, David Tanenbaum is one of the most admired classical guitarists of his generation. He is also that rare classical guitarist who happily leaves his “comfort zone” to perform on steel string guitar in orchestral and chamber music settings, and to create a unique collaboration with acclaimed steel string performer Peppino D’Agostino.

In special this lecture/workshop, you can discover how steel string guitarists can experience the timeless beauty of Bach and other classical music. You also explore trending in the opposite direction: How prominent living composers like John Adams and Terry Riley have incorporated steel string guitars into their works. Be prepared to play, listen and discover new musical worlds.

Begin by listening to recordings of prominent steel string guitar writing in two of John Adam's major orchestral pieces, El Nino and Naive and Sentimental Music, and discuss why the composer used steel instead of the much more common classical guitar. Explore that trend further in works by Yu Dun and National Steel pieces by Lou Harrison and Terry Riley.

Next, discuss the process of a steel string player exploring classical music, and do hands-on exercises in rhythm, counterpoint, and ensemble playing. David Tanenbaum also discusses his duo with Peppino D'Agostino and how they merged our musical worlds, and students will be given classical pieces to play commensurate with their level. Sources for further study and collaboration are included.

This workshop is for every open minded guitar player, especially one who wants to expand his or her musical horizons, who has at least some basic fingerstyle proficiency.

Leave this workshop with an appreciation of the classical world, music to play, and sources for further discovery.

Have your guitar at the ready as Mark conducts this lecture/demonstration, followed by a hands-on master class.

Mark covers the arranging concepts from his DVD, "How to Arrange Fingerstyle Guitar Solos," beginning with choice of key, tuning, and style to best supplement an already existing melody, leading to variations and techniques available for developing an interesting 3-4 minute guitar solo.

All fingerstyle players from advanced beginners to advanced players are welcome. The workshop starts with the fundamentals necessary to create an easy - yet rich - arrangement, then develops to more advanced information. Reading music is not necessary, but helpful.

Students leave the workshop with the tools to undertake their own arrangements appropriate to their technical level, and the ability to decipher and understand what they are hearing in others' arrangements. Tablature from the workshop content is available.

Bay Area bluegrass legend Eric Thompson shares the secrets of his approach to flatpicked lead guitar, drawing on licks, breaks, and tunes from Don Reno, Doc Watson and Clarence White, all of whom inspired his own playing. You'll learn about right and left hand technique, position shifts, and cross-picking patterns.

Eric also shows you how to build solos, ways you can embellish the melody and give you some new ideas about improvisation. You'll do a lot of hands-on playing, repeating phrases together, then stringing them together. While aimed for the intermediate to advanced player, beginners learn a lot (even if they feel they aren’t keeping up). An audio recording device is encouraged, but no video please.

This in-depth workshop will help you leap to the next step on your learning curve. You'll learn effective ways to improve your picking abilities, tone, and rhythm ... expand your knowledge of open tunings and slide guitar techniques ... explore the concept of finger substitutions ... and rediscover the joy of playing guitar.

Students will have opportunities (as individuals and in a group setting) for critique, comment, and direction. Students will be propelled into the next level and challenged to refine their techniques in order to release their hidden musicianship. The ability to have fun and laugh is required.

In each of three hours, you will focus on a select area, allowing you to concentrate on separate components, using printed exercises and pieces:

1. Exploration of the language of fingerpicking patterns and their effective use with multiple chords and attention to rhythmic qualities while using a metronome.

2. Simplification of open tunings, how to create a tune in this new landscape of the finger board, and an introduction to slide guitar technique with a study of damping, rattle, shimmer, glides, accents, adjustable speeds and grace notes.

3. The art of mapping a tune with finger substitution and position shifts for the picking hand using classical, folk, and ragtime pieces as examples.

The workshop is open to players at any level, from beginner through advanced. Requirements include a positive attitude, at least a minimum level of fingerpicking capabilities, some basic chord knowledge, and an open mind. Bring a guitar, notebook, capo, tuner, slide, and pencil.

There’s a world of music on the guitar’s fretboard, and Tim Sparks is a master of bringing that world vividly to life. Drawing on diverse musical cultures and styles, Tim weaves a workshop experience that will open your ears to musical connections and train your hands to work with greater understanding of your instrument.

Tim begins this workshop with a study of simple blues lines voiced in the first position chords of G, E, D, C, and A, progressing to transpositions up the neck. He then moves to a Travis-Delta thumbpicking rendition of “I'll Fly Away.”

Tim then segues to Latin style with a syncopated bass line, teaching tunes like “Blue Bayou” and “Eu So Quero Um Xodo" and ending with “A Few Bowls Terkish,” a Klezmer tune that feature Eastern scales.

This workshop is open to students at all skill levels. The format is totally hands-on, so bring an instrument and expect to leave with a far greater understanding of the fretboard and the skills to learn and play all of the tabs provided.

This is a completely hands on workshop, with participants playing from the beginning.

You'll learn movable four note chords and voice leading concepts along with the right hand techniques that allow the compact propulsive style that exemplifies swing music.

You should have facility with learning new chord shapes, and a level of technique that includes the ability to play barre chords (barre chords won't be used, but the chord shapes that we'll learn are of a similar level of difficulty).

Having taken this workshop, you'll be able to use the materials provided to play rhythm on pretty much any swing tune in any key.

Fingerstyle virtuoso Peppino D’Agostino is a global citizen who has absorbed many musical influences. In this workshop, Peppino guides you in both arranging and composing for steel-string guitar by exploring styles, techniques, and rhythms from Latin America, Italy, and elsewhere. Inspired by these beautiful melodies, you learn to support them with intelligent harmonies and powerful grooves, incorporating practical guitar techniques such as string bending, percussion and slide, open tunings, and bent harmonics. Peppino also examines some of his original material closely, providing you with insights on the creative process of composing and arranging.

Born and raised in Italy, Peppino D’Agostino has lived and recorded in the United States since 1985, while continuing to tour and perform frequently in Europe. He won Guitar Player magazine’s 2007 Reader Poll as Best Acoustic Guitarist and Acoustic Guitar magazine’s 2008 Bronze Players’ Choice Award for Best Acoustic Guitar Album of All Time (Every Step of the Way, 2002, Favored Nations Acoustic).

Quite often when confronted with chord symbols, guitarists revert to the one or two ‘grip shapes’ they know, rather than explore the multitude of beautiful chord voicings available with some understanding of the fretboard and different approaches to voice-leading. This workshop offers several approaches applied to songs in different styles to help you greatly expand upon what you already know, . All materials are prepared in advance and written out using standard notation, chord box diagrams, and guitar tab.

This is a hands-on workshop. No one is put on the spot to perform individually; the class works through all material together and through demonstration by the instructor.

As chord theory is not restricted to any one particular genre, guitarists of all styles can benefit from this workshop. It may be of particular interest to jazz guitarists looking for new approaches to comping, solo fingerstylists looking for new voicings and approaches to arranging and even composition, and to singer-songwriters who wish to augment their chord vocabulary to better express their songs and lyrics. Participants should have a basic understanding of diatonic theory, construction of triads and 7^th chords, and a basic awareness of notes on the fretboard by name.

By attending this workshop, you'll gain a new perspective and understanding of how chords are built, and how they move throughout a song. In addition to learning many new chords, you'll learn simple strategies - based on particular concepts - to continue to further your knowledge of chords and develop your chord palette for years to come.

David Hamburger, author of the acclaimed Acoustic Guitar Method and a seasoned roots music teacher, performer, and recording artist, comes to San Anselmo with a deep bag of guitar techniques and tricks to share in this 3-hour workshop. Bring at least an elementary hands-on knowledge of the guitar and simple "cowboy chords," and David will have you slipping and sliding through classic blues licks and tunes using the authentic fingerstyle techniques, phrases, and musical ideas of American roots music masters.

David will draw from his published books, such as The Fingerstyle Acoustic Guitar Method and Acoustic Guitar Slide Basics, as well as unpublished ideas and examples, to help you deepen your understanding of blues repertoire and styles.

This is a great opportunity both for players and guitar teachers who want to experience the masterful teaching approach that led David to author his important guitar instructional books and DVDs.

Want to broaden your sense of what’s possible on a stringed instrument? Want to step “outside the box” of your customary approaches to making music?

Bassist Michael Manring has been innovating musically and technically during a rich and varied performing career. This workshop is a unique opportunity to understand Michael’s approach to creativity and learn how you can expand your own creative horizons in the process.

For this workshop, your technical skill level is less important than your interest in exploring musical concepts. Michael will demonstrate his ideas and invite others to work on the concepts, too.

If you are a bassist yourself, you’re probably already familiar with Michael’s unique approach to the instrument and will relish this chance to work with him in a small group setting. But you need not be a bass player to benefit from this workshop; guitarists and other instrumentalists who play with bassists will learn a great deal about creative exchange and communication.

Michael will have reference materials on hand, including exercises, diagrams, charts, and tables than can help in the process of looking for new sounds.

You’ll come away with a broader sense of musical possibilities and be inspired to search for greater creativity in your own music.

Using examples from bluegrass, jazz, folk, and pop music, we cover the basics of good picking-hand technique, with an emphasis on picking-hand posture. Techniques covered include alternate picking, rest stroke, efficient picking, sweep picking, and strumming.

Scott discusses flatpicking technique with musical examples in a few styles. Participants have the opportunity to try out the examples in class and get advice and criticism on their own technique.

Participants in this workshop should be interested in acquiring a good basic flatpick technique that will allow them to eventually play and explore any music they want. You should be comfortable with basic first-position chords and first-position major scales (C, G, D) and have attempted to play some melodies up the neck.

You will leave the workshop with a grounding in good flatpick technique and an idea of what you need to work on to improve your own technique.

Jeff teaches voice-and-guitar arrangements of two Grateful Dead songs, starting with the basic chords and rhythm patterns and adding in embellishments and lead breaks inspired by the Dead’s live and studio performances. Students receive complete printed transcriptions of the songs covered.

The workshop is based on the material in Jeff's Homespun DVD, Learn Seven Grateful Dead Classics for Acoustic Guitar. Jeff teaches the basics of dropped-D tuning as an introduction to his arrangement of “New Speedway Boogie,” plus one other arrangement. The song list may be adjusted according to participants’ interest.

The workshop is specially designed for intermediate pick players (though fingerstyle players are also welcome) and anyone who accompanies singing. Participants should know basic chord positions and rhythm patterns, and be able to read tab and chord diagrams.

Expect to go home knowing how to play two classic Grateful Dead songs, as well as many accompaniment ideas you can use in other arrangements or in your own songs.

This will be a hands-on workshop with class participation. Doug demonstrates concepts and techniques and participants have ample opportunities to try them and explore applications as a group.

You'll learn how to find your way around the neck in DADGAD tuning, using not only chords and scale patterns, but also the logic behind them. Topics include leveraging your standard tuning knowledge in DADGAD, exploring DADGAD's unique characteristics and potential, moveable and open-string chords, harp-like scale patterns, using intervals (3rds, 6ths, and 10ths), and more. You'll look at musical examples and tunes that use these techniques. Tablature will be provided.

The workshop is meant for intermediate fingerstyle guitarists who would like to learn about DADGAD or expand their understanding. Basic comfort with fingerpicking technique is assumed. Ability to read tablature would be helpful, and understanding of basic chord shapes in standard tuning is also useful.

You'll leave with some new tools to explore DADGAD on your own and apply the tuning to your own arrangements and compositions.

Taught by two-time Grammy-winner Laurence Juber, this workshop is the perfect introduction to arranging pop songs for fingerstyle guitar. Juber brings his experience as a lead guitarist (Paul McCartney’s Wings), world-wide performer, and recording artist to the class.

Students taking this class observe Juber as he plays examples of repertoire, and follow his demonstrations of basic picking patterns, chord shapes and sequences, melody, bass and rudimentary counterpoint. Juber brings his considerable expertise to answer questions and express his views on arranging and composing.

This hands-on, multi-level workshop is open to all fingerstyle players from advanced beginner on. A wide range of fundamental concepts, some musical information and general guitaristic ‘tune-ups’ will be addressed. A knowledge of music theory is helpful, but not essential. Bring your guitar to this workshop, and leave with a better understanding of arranging solos, a keener sense of performance values, and the inspiration to further explore fingerstyle guitar methods.

See Laurence Juber in action:

Stolen Glances

While My Guitar Gently Weeps

Paper Moon

Highway 17

Meet the Guest Artist: David Bennett Cohen has been a professional musician for more than 50 years. Best known for his innovative keyboard playing as an original, founding member of the '60's rock band, Country Joe & The Fish, he is an equally accomplished guitar player who has been involved in numerous music scenes throughout his varied career.

Over the years, he has played and/or recorded with The Blues Project, Mick Taylor, Elvin Bishop, Hubert Sumlin, Jimi Hendrix, Johnny Winter, Buddy Miles, Huey Lewis, Michael Bloomfield, Johnnie Johnson, Jimmy Vivino, and others. David has recorded several audio and video instructional series for both piano and Hammond Organ on the Homespun label.

Workshop Topics: David Bennett Cohen presents an introduction to blues, boogie-woogie and New Orleans style piano. He begins with the basics of blues form and blues piano, familiarizing students with such hallmark rhythms as the shuffle, straight time, slow blues, New Orleans rhumba, Bo Diddly, tuba rhythm, and boogie-woogie. Moving on to conventions such as the blues scale, bass lines, intros and turnarounds, and endings, David concludes with improvisation and several classic tunes, including Pine Top’s Boogie, Georgia on my Mind, and Nobody Knows You When You’re Down and Out. The workshop ends with a discussion of playing in a blues band.

Workshop Format: This workshop begins with a presentation and demonstration, followed by a hands-on master class. A limited number of keyboards are available; students are encouraged to bring their own.

Who Should Attend: All students are welcome. David breaks down material into readily understandable pieces, so even beginners will gain a great deal from attending. Advanced beginners to more advanced players will be able to put more material to immediate use.

What You’ll Go Home With: Students go home with an understanding of blues piano and how it can fit into a band setting or solo, along with a few “tricks” from David Cohen’s blues bag and advice on how to expand one’s improvisation techniques.

Meet the Guest Artist: Guitarist Josh Workman leads his own groups and currently performs Western Swing with the West Coast Ramblers. His studio and tour credits include Lynda Carter, Debbie Harry, the Jazz Passengers, Larry Vuckovich, Jon Hendricks, Indigo Swing, Hot Club of San Francisco, and others.

Workshop Topics: While based in bebop, the tools used in this workshop can help participants develop strong phrasing in any musical style. Moving at a reasonable pace, Josh reviews essential areas for long-term musical development, including scales, intervals, arpeggios, and four-note chords. He then discusses simple melodic and rhythmic devices that add color and motion to a solo. Students discuss how particular phrases in the solo are created and Josh offers variations.

Workshop Format: Josh gives a brief description of how the material applies to soloing, and then takes the group through a daily practice regimen. The workshop leads up to the group playing through a simple but colorful written jazz solo using the workshop materials.

Who Should Attend: All students are welcome. Advanced beginners to intermediate guitarists with a basic understanding of major scales and chords in several keys will be able to put the material to immediate use.

What You’ll Go Home With: Students go home with a simple vocabulary that can be used to build solos and add ornamentation to melodies, plus a better understanding of how their regular practice habits directly influence how they improvise. All of the exercises used in the workshop are distributed in standard notation and tablature.

Meet the Guest Artist: A legend of the Bay Area rock, folk, and bluegrass scene, Banana (Lowell Levinger) began his career in bluegrass in Boston in the early 60s, performing as Banana and the Bunch, Old Time Music with Appeal. He later formed The Youngbloods with Joe Bauer, Jesse Colin Young, and Jerry Corbitt, moving from New York to West Marin in 1967. As a record producer, he introduced Butch Waller’s High Country in the early 1970's on Warner Brothers Records, bringing California Bluegrass to a nationwide audience.

Workshop Topics: Banana starts with the basic frailing pattern, working up to drop thumb technique, then teaches three basic Scruggs licks to make a song, and concludes with basic fingerboard positions for the main chord inversions up the neck and their use.

Workshop Format: This workshop is a lecture/demonstration. Students should bring their banjos and be ready to learn.

Who Should Attend: This workshop is for beginning and intermediate banjo players who want to expand their musical horizons.

What You’ll Go Home With: Students go home with a basic understanding of how to practice the material given in order to develop smooth and rhythmic playing, along with a better understanding of music theory and how it applies to the banjo neck.

Steve James covers essential picking techniques, chord shapes, runs, and harmonization devices in the context of melodic song arrangements in standard and open tunings. These include country blues and bluesy country from the repertoire of early American roots guitar icons and Steve's own song bag.

The workshop is geared toward the "intermediate" level player. Ambitious beginners with some knowledge of chord shapes and basic playing techniques are welcome.

This is a hands-on workshop program. Bring a guitar and accessories, a notebook/folder and a pencil. Some tab is supplied, but the emphasis is on learning by ear, so Steve suggests you bring your own sound recorder (not video).

You can expect to learn a few new songs/arrangements while fine-tuning your understanding of blues inflected harmony and syncopated rhythmic interpretation.

Meet the Guest Artist: Adam Traum is a busy Bay Area guitarist and music teacher. He is the featured artist on four guitar instructional videos from Homespun, and has produced instructional videos for both Homespun and Acoustic Guitar, working with such noted performers as Paul Mehling, Mike Marshall, Andrew DuBrock, James Nash, Muriel Anderson, and Scott Nygaard.

Workshop Topics: Adam Traum teaches the techniques and concepts from his Homespun DVD series, “Learn Blues Guitar With a Flatpick.” He presents both right and left hand techniques, including palm muting, picking techniques, and useful scales and licks, covering several archetypal blues feels in the course of presenting material from the blues repertoire.

Workshop Format: This workshop begins with a presentation and demonstration, followed by a hands-on master class. Students have their guitars in their laps and spend lots of time playing.

Who Should Attend: All students are welcome. Advanced beginners to more advanced players will be able to put the material to immediate use. The workshop starts with the fundamentals necessary to create blues arrangements that are both easy and musically rich, and then moves on to more advanced topics. Music-reading skills are not necessary, but helpful.

What You'll Go Home With: Students go home with the tools to craft their own blues arrangements and the ability to decipher and understand what they are hearing in arrangements by others, along with printed guitar tablature for materials covered in the workshop.

Meet the Guest Artist: Jon Mitguard has been playing and performing on pedal steel since 1978. Originally from Colorado, he has played with many bands throughout the West, and way out West in Hawaii. He is interested in and plays various musical styles. His approach to Dobro is strongly influenced by his pedal steel background, though the instruments are quite different animals. The standard G tuning in its simplicity offers special challenges which ultimately give it the distinctive sound.

Currently Jon shares the fronting of the band Barbwyre which farms the alt Americana fields and challenges the norm, in instrumentation and application of the steel guitar. Also an original member of the Stadler Gibbons band which grows from country and bluegrass roots, he adds that sweet pedal steel and dobro to lubricate the heart wrenching lyrics.

Workshop Format: This is a lecture/demonstration, followed by hands-on playing and coaching. Students will have their guitars in their laps. Playing is encouraged.

Workshop Topics: The workshop starts with the fundamentals of tuning and intonation, bar control, picking patterns (rolls), chord theory, hammer-on and pull-off techniques, rhythm playing, and basic chord theory. Chords beyond root position, minor voicings, and altered chords are also taught. Jon uses simple tunes like Fire Ball Mail or Cherokee Shuffle to put concepts into practice.

Who Should Attend: This workshop is for advanced beginners to intermediate players. Students should be able to tune the instrument and Jon helps students sweeten the tuning. Students will have their instrument, finger and thumb picks and a steel (bar). Metal heavy gauge finger picks are recommended.

What You’ll Go Home With: Students will leave with an understanding of tempered tuning concepts, picking patterns, Dobro chord theory, rhythm techniques, and more freedom on the fret board.

Meet the Guest Artist: Dix Bruce has produced over 50 instructional books and DVDs, as well as several audio CDs in a variety of musical styles.

Workshop Topics: Basic Swing guitar chords, the Gypsy Swing chord comp or rhythm, and some great “must-know” Swing and Jazz standards including a jazz blues, a tango, a composition by Django Reinhardt, and more. Study a variety of moveable, closed position chords useful in many styles of swing and jazz and work on getting that swing feel into our rhythm.

Workshop Format: Learn a few chords at a time and then use them to play songs slowly. Chord diagrams, progressions, melodies, and tablature are provided.

Who Should Attend: Anyone with an interest in swing and jazz guitar. All levels are welcome. Students with a knowledge of major, minor, and seventh chords and the ability to read chord diagrams will benefit most.

What You’ll Go Home With: A solid grounding in Swing and Jazz rhythm on the guitar and a variety of chords, comps, and songs, enabling participants to play Swing and Jazz songs with others at jam sessions and in performance.

The expressive potentials of solo fingerstyle guitar captivate many musicians and Peppino D'Agostino is an acknowledged master of this form, both as an arranger and as a composer. In each of six workshops, Peppino teaches one of his favorite compositions. Students are invited to register for as few as one or as many as six of these two-hour events, which take place on Monday evenings in February, March, and April 2012.

To hear and see Peppino perform each of these six pieces, please visit his Youtube channel.

Set List:

• A Glimpse of Times Past

Multi-instrumentalist Suzy Thompson has spent more than 30 years studying, performing, and teaching American roots music, and her passion is Cajun fiddle and accordion. In this workshop, Suzy shares her first-hand knowledge of both the master musicians and the music of this unique American culture.

We’ll listen a bit to source material – recordings of– and then get right down to playing fiddle!

Suzy’s workshop begins with listening to recordings of great Cajun fiddlers like Dewey Balfa, hearing different takes on the same songs. Then Suzy teaches the songs – a waltz and a two-step, possibly more, depending on the pace of the group. The workshop covers both lead fiddle and the seconding which is an essential component of Cajun fiddling, plus ornamentation and groove – the little tricks that make Cajun fiddling sound the way it does.

All the material is taught by ear, so bring a recording device if you have one (no video recorders please). You should know how to hold the fiddle and bow and be able to at least scratch out a few tunes. Along with a deeper appreciation for the intricacies and magic of Cajun music, you’ll come away knowing how to play a few Cajun pieces, and have a good road map for exploring the world of Cajun fiddle music on your own.

The expressive potentials of solo fingerstyle guitar captivate many musicians and Peppino D'Agostino is an acknowledged master of this form, both as an arranger and as a composer. In each of six workshops, Peppino teaches one of his favorite compositions. Students are invited to register for as few as one or as many as six of these two-hour events, which take place on Monday evenings in February, March, and April 2012.

To hear and see Peppino perform each of these six pieces, please visit his Youtube channel.

Set List:

• Kelsey's Dance

Workshop Format We’ll do a lot of playing in class, repeating lines and phrases together, as we learn new ideas and cool tunes.

Material, Concepts, Techniques, Repertoire In this class we'll learn flatpicking lead guitar parts for fiddle tunes, bluegrass instrumentals, as well as breaks to songs. Part of our inspiration will come from the styles of Maybelle Carter, Don Reno, Doc Watson, and Clarence White. We'll discuss improvisation, from several angles: "playing with the melody" (introducing new twists without losing the melody) , substitution of "hooks", blues lines, and other ideas. We'll also touch on right hand pick technique and left hand fingering tricks.

Who should attend? Students should be able to play rhythm and have some experience playing leads.

What will participants leave with? I’m hoping they’ll enter a new “comfort zone” in finding the melodies and improvising on them.

The expressive potentials of solo fingerstyle guitar captivate many musicians and Peppino D'Agostino is an acknowledged master of this form, both as an arranger and as a composer. In each of six workshops, Peppino teaches one of his favorite compositions. Students are invited to register for as few as one or as many as six of these two-hour events, which take place on Monday evenings in February, March, and April 2012.

To hear and see Peppino perform each of these six pieces, please visit his Youtube channel.

Set List:

• Desert Flower

Want to broaden your sense of what’s possible on a stringed instrument? Want to step “outside the box” of your customary approaches to making music?

Bassist Michael Manring has been innovating musically and technically during a rich and varied performing career. This workshop is a unique opportunity to understand Michael’s approach to creativity and learn how you can expand your own creative horizons in the process.

For this workshop, your technical skill level is less important than your interest in exploring musical concepts. Michael will demonstrate his ideas and invite others to work on the concepts, too.

If you are a bassist yourself, you’re probably already familiar with Michael’s unique approach to the instrument and will relish this chance to work with him in a small group setting. But you need not be a bass player to benefit from this workshop; guitarists and other instrumentalists who play with bassists will learn a great deal about creative exchange and communication.

Michael will have reference materials on hand, including exercises, diagrams, charts, and tables than can help in the process of looking for new sounds.

You’ll come away with a broader sense of musical possibilities and be inspired to search for greater creativity in your own music.

If you've ever been curious about playing your guitar with electronics, this is the workshop for you. Travis Andrews and Andrew Meyerson will begin this hands-on workshop with a demo of Quasimason, a piece by Max Stroffregen. Then, using Quasimason as the example, Travis will guide you through playing as an ensemble and exploring loops. Each participant will receive a part and you'll work both in small groups and all together to play the piece.

Both electric and steel-string players are welcome (You'll even get a chance to demo Travis' rig, if desired!) Participants must be able to read music.

Guitarist Travis Andrews and percussionist Andrew Meyerson are The Living Earth Show, a San Francisco-based chamber ensemble. The Living Earth Show (formerly Ballsagna) performs commissioned compositions for guitar and percussion, with or without electronics, and has commissioned works by such composers as Alden Jenks, Samuel Adams, Alexis Alrich, Dan Becker, Max Stoffregen, Damon Waitkus, Luciano Chessa, Jon Russell, and Brendon Randall-Myers.

The Living Earth Show’s music draws from its members’ diverse musical backgrounds performing rock, Celtic, jazz, and Polynesian music. The members of the Living Earth Show, with bassist Jason Braatz, also comprise the avant-metal trio Freighter.

The expressive potentials of solo fingerstyle guitar captivate many musicians and Peppino D'Agostino is an acknowledged master of this form, both as an arranger and as a composer. In each of six workshops, Peppino teaches one of his favorite compositions. Students are invited to register for as few as one or as many as six of these two-hour events, which take place on Monday evenings in February, March, and April 2012.

To hear and see Peppino perform each of these six pieces, please visit his Youtube channel.

Set List:

• Bella Donna

The expressive potentials of solo fingerstyle guitar captivate many musicians and Peppino D'Agostino is an acknowledged master of this form, both as an arranger and as a composer. In each of six workshops, Peppino teaches one of his favorite compositions. Students are invited to register for as few as one or as many as six of these two-hour events, which take place on Monday evenings in February, March, and April 2012.

To hear and see Peppino perform each of these six pieces, please visit his Youtube channel.

Set List:

• Nine White Kites

The expressive potentials of solo fingerstyle guitar captivate many musicians and Peppino D'Agostino is an acknowledged master of this form, both as an arranger and as a composer. In each of six workshops, Peppino teaches one of his favorite compositions. Students are invited to register for as few as one or as many as six of these two-hour events, which take place on Monday evenings in February, March, and April 2012.

To hear and see Peppino perform each of these six pieces, please visit his Youtube channel.

Set List:

• Fiuda Bagadia

This workshop will be hands-on from the start, beginning with the basics of the style. You’ll learn three-string triad shapes and then work on playing a melody on top of them, progressing to a more complex song by the end of the workshop. At the end of these three hours, you’ll have the basic vocabulary needed to build chord melody solos in jazz, swing, and many other styles of music under your belt.

What format will this workshop take?

This workshop will combine lecture/demonstration and hands on participation playing a few select examples from the de Grassi method, so participants are asked to bring their guitar. Questions will also be encouraged.

What will be covered?

Alex will present a few of the key fingerstyle techniques and idioms from his new book,  the Alex de Grassi Fingerstyle Guitar Method.  Workshop participants will look at tone production, articulations, and the polyphonic potential of fingerstyle guitar.  

Who should attend?

In this workshop, the emphasis will be on a method for how to move forward from whatever level you are at presently. Fingerstyle players from advanced beginners through advanced can benefit, but those advanced beginner participants should be aware that some examples may require intermediate to advanced skills.    

What will participants leave with?

Students will walk away from this workshop with a good awareness of the essential techniques and idioms commonly used in fingerstyle guitar. You will also have become familiar with Alex de Grassi's in depth method for developing those skills.

In this workshop, participants will learn how to expand their fingerstyle playing with alternate tunings and “extended” techniques. The foundation of the class will be about showing the common territory between various tunings (including Drop-D, DADGAD, D-Minor, G-Minor, Gsus4 [“Orkney”], etc.) as well as how they relate to standard tuning.

Teja will demonstrate these concepts with specific exercises and several of his original compositions (which will be supplied in TAB and notation). Several of these examples also include non-traditional guitar techniques, such as two-handed tapping, behind-the-nut string bending, and percussive passages, which will also be discussed.

This workshop is ideal for intermediate fingerstyle players, but it will also be inspiring for beginners, and give new ideas to players of all styles who feel like they’re “stuck in a rut” with their own playing.

Students will come out of this workshop with a greater understanding of why alternate tunings may be used. Those who have been resistant to try alternate tunings may find that some arrangements are actually easier to play this way than in standard tuning.

Mike Stadler will teach you the fundamentals of playing guitar in the old time clawhammer banjo style played by artists such as Steve Baughman, Jody Stecher, Alec stone Sweet, and Eric Schoenberg in this Guest Artist Workshop.

After a brief demonstration, Mike will have you tune your guitars to D-G-D-g-c-d and you'll play a shuffle using the back of the fingernails on your plucking hand. You'll cover old time music, but Mike will also touch on using the clawhammer technique in blues, funk, and rock.

This workshop is open to fingerstyle players of all levels. You'll leave this workshop with some clawhammer fundamentals under your belt and ideas for applying the technique to your own arrangements.