Guitar Syllabus

Required Textbooks and Materials:

  • Guitar

  • 3 Ring Binder

  • Additional Materials: tuner, metronome (a phone app is fine), music stand (for home practice), access to streaming services or YouTube


Course Description: Private lessons will cover all aspects of guitar performance. Students will study guitar techniques used in jazz, classical, and contemporary styles, develop musical literacy, harmonic knowledge, melodic interpretation, improvisation skills and repertoire. 


Course Outcomes: Students will demonstrate

  • Knowledge of guitar technique: correct sitting position, arm, hand and finger placement, performance skills, tone production in a variety of styles. 

  • Knowledge of guitar equipment and tone production.

  • Knowledge of performances by exceptional guitarists in a variety of styles.

  • Music literacy: sight-reading single line melodies, rhythmic interpretation.

  • Knowledge of blues, jazz, and standard song repertoire.

  • Improvisation theory applications and performance skills on blues, jazz, and standard song structure.

  • Knowledge of harmonic structures and their function in chordal accompaniment (comping), and walking bass line construction

  • Knowledge and performance of standard guitar repertoire.

Course Format

  • Class will be taught as a private lesson, with demonstration provided by the instructor. Students should attend all classes with their instrument, cable, tuner, and required books. 

  • Practice assigned material regularly. Playing a musical instrument requires consistent practice to progress; students should plan their schedule to allow for a minimum of 1 hour daily practice time. 

  • Students will be assessed with periodic performance evaluations.

Performance and Evaluation

  • Every 5 lessons, so the 5th, 10th, 15th, etc, students will prepare and perform chosen repertoire.

  • Students will receive a subjective assessment on their performance.

  • Through this experience, students will develop skills that prepare them for performance outside of lessons.

Guitar Players and select performances

Recommended for headphone listening! 

Straight-Ahead Jazz Guitarists

  • Wes Montgomery: Smokin’ At The Half Note

  • Charlie Christian: The Genius of The Electric Guitar

  • Pat Martino: Live At Yoshis 

  • Jim Hall: Live!, Alone Together

  • Jimmy Raney: Pennies From Heaven, Early Stan

  • Grant Green: Green Street

  • Django Reinhart: Djangologie

  • Emily Remler: Firefly

  • Barney Kessel: Kessel Plays Standards

  • George Van Eps: Mellow Guitar

  • Ed Bickert: At The Garden Party

  • George Benson: Giblet Gravy

  • Joe Pass: Virtuoso

Post-Bop and Contemporary Jazz Guitarists

  • Pat Metheny: Bright Size Life, Travels 

  • John Scofield: Bar Talk

  • Bill Frisell: Bill Frisell, Ron Carter, Paul Motion (this is the album name)

  • Ted Greene: Solo Guitar

  • Kurt Rosenwinkel: East Coast Love Affair, The Next Step, The Remedy (Live At the Village Vanguard)

  • Adam Rogers: Sight, Wide Angles (with Michael Brecker)

  • Mary Halvorson: Code Girl

  • Julian Lage: Arclight

  • Ben Monder: Excavation 

  • Lage Lund: Terrible Animals 

  • Peter Bernstein: Signs Live!

  • Nels Cline: Silencer

Rock Guitarists

  • Jimi Hendrix: Are You Experienced, Axis: Bold as Love, Electric Ladyland

  • Jimmy Page: (With Led Zeppelin) Houses of the Holy, Led Zeppelin IV

  • Tom Verlaine: (With Television) Marquee Moon

  • Eddie Van Halen: Van Halen

  • Steve Vai: Passion & Warfare 

  • Jonny Greenwood: (With Radiohead) Ok Computer

  • Kevin Shields: (With My Bloody Valentine) Loveless

  • Joe Reinhart: (With Algernon Cadwallader) Some Kind of Cadwallader 

  • Eve Alpert and Kasra Kurt: (With Palm) Rock Island

Jazz-Fusion Guitarists

  • Allan Holdsworth: Secrets, The Sixteen Men of Tain, Metal Fatigue

  • Wayne Krantz: Two Drink Minimum

  • Al Di Meola: (With Return to Forever) Romantic Warrior

  • Mike Stern: Upside Downside

  • John McClaughlin: (With the Mahavishnu Orchestra) Birds of Fire

  • Greg Howe: Extraction 

  • Guthrie Govan: Erotic Cakes 

  • Tosin Abasi: Animals As Leaders 








Contemporary Pop/Funk/R&B Session Guitarists

  • Nile Rodgers: Le Freak, Get Lucky

  • Isiah Sharkey: (With D’Angelo) Voodoo, (With John Mayer) Still Feel Like Your Man

  • Jay Graydon: (With Steely Dan) Peg

  • Steve Cropper: Green Onions

  • Cory Wong: Vulfpeck

  • Blake Mills: Notes With Attachments

  • Erick Walls: Touring guitarist for Usher, John Legend, Michael Jackson, Beyonce, etc

  • Steve Lacy: Gemini Rights