Guitar with Jeff B.

I’m a composer and guitarist, with 20 years of experience playing and performing on classical and electric guitars. I’ve given solo and chamber performances across the United States, with recent Seattle performances including Astor Piazzola’s complete "Histoire du Tango", the world premiere of Brian Cobb’s "Campfire Songs," and the Seattle premiere of James Bonney’s electric guitar concerto "darkLIGHTness." In 2010, I received a Bachelor of Arts degree in classical guitar performance and composition from Stanford University, where I performed solo recitals of Bach, Mozart, Turina, and Henze, collaborated with the Stanford New Ensemble on contemporary chamber pieces, and played lead guitar in the heavy metal band Full Metal Apocalypse. I recently received a Doctorate in music composition from the University of Washington in Seattle, where I’ve taught music theory, composition, and musicianship at the college level for seven years, and where I continue to perform with the UW Modern Ensemble, Inverted Space Ensemble, and Seattle Modern Orchestra. A major priority of my guitar teaching is to have students making expressive, compelling music every time they touch the instrument. And as I believe that a good guitarist is, first and foremost, a strong musician, I fold a number of diverse activities into weekly lessons, developing skills in music theory, fretboard knowledge, ear training, sight reading, composition, and improvisation, all of which reinforce the acquisition of strong technique. I teach a wide array of styles—including classical, folk, rock, flamenco, and heavy metal—and I look forward to helping you realize your musical goals!