If you are ready to start taking your guitar skills SERIOUSLY then stop wasting time and money on teachers who don't fully understand the instrument or subject matter themselves. My name is Russ and I have been playing guitar professionally for 20 years and teaching music and producing records for over 15. I have a Platinum #1 Billboard charting record under my belt, worked with artists such as Mac Miller, Sean Kingston, Red Velvet, Lifehouse and more; and have composed music to 100s of your favorite TV shows! Feel free to browse my official website for a full list of credits. Want to learn to shred guitar? Produce beats? Write your own songs? Dive into theory? Record yourself? This page is the one stop shop. Feel free to reach out with any requests or questions!

Parking Lots and Poetry, Francesca's award winning album was received in 2010 to rave reviews. “Francesca’s songs have great musicality and the lyrical quality of a real poet. We come across countless artists and Francesca’s music genuinely cuts through.” -Joe Cuello, Vice President of Creative Music Integration for MTV The first instrument Francesca seriously studied was the guitar, starting at age 4. It is her first language.

Learn the subtleties of what makes country guitar playing its own unique style, and learn how to break away from the typical "rock template" to set your country style apart from the rest... and make it your own!

Fingerpicking, Flat Picking, Bluegrass, Nashville Tricks, Rhythm. I Teach All Ages, at All Levels: Songwriting, Music Theory, Composition Lessons, Arranging for Horns and Voice and Strings, Soloing, Improvisation, Classical Technique, Blues, Folk, and much much more! I have been a pro musician all my adult life, teaching thousands of students over a span of more than three decades! I am a published contributor to the #1 best-selling Jazz Theory book "Jazzology" (published by Hal Leonard - the world's largest music publisher), in addition to having almost 20 books published on the subject of theory and technique! I also have many many professional recordings to my credit that you can listen to online anytime! I am the author of the the following book (available on Amazon): "Scales & Modes for the Guitar Fretboard" by Schell Barkley with Jeff B. - 2012 The only Guitar Scale Fingering Book you’ll ever need! Full-color. I use the Zoom app for live interactive lessons from the comfort of your home. You certainly have many options available regarding choosing an instructor, but I have to assume that you would like to hire the most qualified teacher to guide you on the journey through the wonderful world of music. Everyone moves further, much faster, and is more likely to stay engaged by learning from a master teacher with decades of real-world professional experience to share. I will give you what you need to know, in order to take you where you want to go!

I have been teaching guitar professionally for 16 years, and have extensive experience playing and teaching practically every style of guitar, including fingerstyle, classical, folk, jazz, rock, blues, pop, country, and metal. Let my experience and patience guide you on your way to mastering the guitar!

I teach you to be a musician, not just an instrumentalist. There is a huge difference. I give you material to learn while doing my best to make it fun as well. I teach you the basics and build on that foundation. You can learn the material as fast or as slow as you want. However, it is not a canned approach because every student is unique and your learning styles reflect that. My goal is your success, truly!

I have been teaching for 18 years and have taught hundreds of satisfied students. When you sign up for country guitar lessons, you will begin by learning the basics of the instrument including proper holding and playing position, tone production, rhythm, first position notes,basic chords and notation. Once you get the basics down, you will learn how to play your favorite songs regardless of style. All of this can happen within the first 4-6 months of playing.

All styles - strumming, fingerpicking Improvisation soloing Proper technique Repertoire Music analysis