In today’s guitar lesson, I’m going tell you about 5 aspects of my daily practice that have helped me to become a better classical guitarist.
In June I completed my Master of Music degree and hit the ground running with…
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“We booked Craig for an opening art reception. Craig was simply perfect for the venue and the theme. His music set the tone for the exhibit. We were all blown away by his musicianship and talent. He was also extremely professional, going above and beyond what was expected. Throughout the process he kept in touch by phone and email and responded quickly to any requests that we had. Thank you so much. We look forward to working with you again!” - Mara Fletcher, Founder of The Art Social
“We had the opportunity to host Craig at La Bouche wine bar for our 2nd anniversary in September. We were looking for live music that would fit our event. As soon as we decided to go forward with him, he offers to adjust his repertoire and offers to play a couple of French classics. Craig is a really talented and open-minded musician. And a nice person. Highly appreciated.” - Alexis Tréton, La Bouche Wine Bar
“Thank you again for your wonderful musical addition to last night’s event at the Governor’s mansion. Your performance was exactly what we wanted – elegant and understated. The combination of the beautiful environment and sophisticated music enhanced the positive vibe felt by all.” - Julianne Salman, NMHU Alumni Association
“In addition to being an incredible performer and overall musician, Craig was very skilled at transcribing my ukulele etude piece into notation and tab. He is a talent on many levels and can help any musician further their goals and dreams.” - Sami Serrag, Songwriter. Denver, CO.
Rock, Metal, Jazz
I have been an active performer in the Portland, Chicago, and Denver rock and metal scenes. My guitar work has been featured in concert and on recordings for The Gentry (Portland, OR), The Dead Superheroes Orchestra (Chicago, IL), Thy Shade (Denver, CO). I am the songwriter, vocalist, guitarist for Corpse Paint (Chicago/Denver) for which I also performed bass guitar and acted as assistant producer alongside Mike Tholen for the 2018 release "Nothing Here in the Dark." I have also had the pleasure to perform guitar for several musical theater productions including Spring Awakening at Loyola University in 2015, and to work as music director/composer/guitarist for the Signal Ensemble Theater production of "Devil's Day Off" by John Steinhagen (the "acoustic invention" below is an excerpt from that project).
Below are some samples of original and cover material in rock, metal, and jazz genres.
Blog
3 Octave Moveable Shapes
This whole thing sounds intimidating, and I should say it’s not a simple thing to execute, but the concept, once divulged, will come across as exceedingly simple. Today we’re going to talk about a 3-octave pentatonic scale using a couple…
Read moreDo Guitarists Really Need to Read Music?
In today's guitar lesson, we'll talk about why you should learn to read standard music notation to help you be the best guitarist you can be.
The old joke goes “How do you get the lead guitarist to stop playing…
Read moreOnline Guitar Lessons: instruments, tone, and guitar setup
In today's guitar lesson, I want to talk about the the importance of a quality instrument and setup.
I’m mostly writing this to wax poetic about the new guitar I received by Elias Bonet Monne from Galerie des Luthiers…
Read more5 Crucial Skills to Improve in 2023: Guitar Mastery and Beyond
As each new year begins, many of us set lofty resolutions, only to find them unattainable within the year's scope. While ambitious goals can be transformative, it's also wise to balance them with practical daily practice commitments. In this article…
Read moreSpecial Announcement: Pursuing a Master's Degree
I'm happy to announce I'll be continuing my music education at University of Denver's Lamont School of Music. I was awarded a scholarship to attend, and will begin my classical guitar studies there in September.
this news was featured on…
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Some ways to manage all of this extra time
In today’s online guitar lessons, we’ll look at the best ways to stay motivated, practice, and improve your technique during these strange times we live in.
I had a talk with some friends the other day in which I asked…
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Five simple ways to improve your pentatonic scales
In today’s guitar lesson I’m going to cover five simple ways to improve your pentatonic scales and make your soloing more interesting. This is a lesson that I’ve been doing with many of my students getting into rock and blues…
Read moreOn the use of downstrokes vs. other picking techniques
I made something of a breakthrough in my playing recently thanks to Dave Mustaine. Megadeth has always been my favorite metal band and a few years ago I saw them play at the Aragon Ballroom in Chicago. When they played…
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2020 updates
I’ve neglected to update this page in a while, but I just wanted to give you some news about everything that I’m up to lately.
My bands Thy Shade and The Union are both actively gigging in the Southwest having…
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