PLEASE VISIT THE NEW WEBSITE FOR DAVE ISAACS' GUITAR STUDIO: www.NashvilleGuitarGuru.com

Located on Nashville's Music Row at 1010 16th Ave S, convenient to downtown and I-40.
I share this space with Susan Tucker's Song Connection and Kim Copeland Productions. Watch for more collaborative work between us....Susan's newsletter is a fantastic resource for songwriters, email songconnection@aol.com to subscribe. Kim is an excellent producer who works with songwriters and artists from across the country.

I am also currently booking workshops outside of Nashville for 2010, please contact me at dave@daveisaacs.com for more information.

Dave in Acoustic Guitar Magazine.

about Dave


Over the past twenty years Dave Isaacs has earned himself a reputation as a master musician, a talented composer and songwriter, and an inventive and engaging teacher. He has released six independent CDs and performed in venues large and small from dive bars to concert halls across the eastern and central US.

He holds degrees in guitar performance from New York's Manhattan School of Music (M.Mus. 1993) and the City University of New York (B. Mus. magna cum laude, 1991). He has studied with and performed for some of the most prominent artists in the classical guitar world, including Segovia protege Oscar Ghiglia, composer/virtuoso Benjamin Verdery, and international concert artist and founder of the guitar program at the Juilliard School, Sharon Isbin. When repetitive strain injury derailed his plans for a career as a classical recitalist, Dave's lifelong love of roots music - the blues, folk, country, jazz, and rock & roll - led back to songwriting, improvisation, and the electric guitar.

Over the course of his six releases as an independent artist Dave has explored modern country-rock, literate singer-songwriter folk, ambient jazz, improvisational blues-rock, and Southern soul. The depth of this musical diversity combined with rigorous formal schooling and over twenty years of teaching private students offer him a rare and exceptionally wide perspective as an educator. In addition, his experience in overcoming repetitive strain injuries led to a comprehensive knowledge of the biomechanics of guitar playing and the development of the concept of "effortless guitar".

Dave currently maintains a private teaching studio on Nashville's Music Row and teaches piano, mandolin, and voice in addition to guitar. He teaches music theory and critical listening classes at the Art Institute of Tennessee - Nashville, commercial studio guitar at Tennessee State University, and is a member of the workshop faculty of the Nashville Songwriters Association (NSAI). 

"Dave Isaacs brings a deep understanding of music theory, technique, and bio-mechanics to his guitar instruction. Having spent years studying the physical aspects guitar playing,  he knows the best ways to avoid the pitfalls of repetitive strain injury more than anyone I've encountered, and his ideas are informed by real-world demands."
-Andy Ellis, music journalist and former senior editor at Guitar Player Magazine

"Dave is one of the best guitar teachers around, and we are always happy to include him at our Thursday Night Workshops at the Nashville Songwriters Association International (NSAI). He is able to create lessons for any level of player, from beginner to master level....even songwriters who have been playing for years are able to break bad habits and become more effective songwriters and performers."
-Debi Cochran, National Workshops Director, Nashville Songwriters Association International

"Dave Isaacs is the best guitar teacher in Nashville".
-Doak Turner, networking guru and editor of the Nashville Muse

Private Sessions
instrumental technique
chord vocabulary and harmony for songwriters
rhythm and groove
stage/movement coaching
practical theory and the Nashville Number System
repertoire development
effortless musicianship: Alexander Technique for singers and players

Clinics & workshops

Effortless Musicianship: the Tao of Guitar
Like a great athlete, a great instrumentalist makes what they do look effortless. Athletes learn to use their bodies efficiently and maximize their ability to perform, and we can do the same in our approach the guitar. Utilizing the natural design of the body and principles of simple physics - simple machines, leverage, and force - can eliminate technical blocks, maximize dynamic range and tone, and make your technique more efficient and fluid.

Harmonic Astronomy: how and why chords work together
You don't need to know music theory in depth to learn more about how chords fit together. It's easy to go beyond the basics when you understand the simple underlying concepts that theory is meant to explain. We'll also look at how to use the Nashville Number System to help train your ear and expand your chordal vocabulary.

Great Lead Guitar: more than flying fingers!
A great guitarist is more than a hot-shot gunslinger. Playing great lead guitar in a band means that you know how to step into the spotlight, make a bold statement, and seamlessly melt back into the group. That means that besides chops and attitude you need great ears, great tone, and the musical smarts to know when to wail and when to lay back. This is a hands-on workshop in which everyone will get to play while learning to play well together.

The Drummer In Your Right Hand: an acoustic rhythm workshop
An acoustic guitarist needs to be a great accompanist, and that means understanding how to drive a groove. And since the acoustic guitar is really a percussion instrument that can play notes and chords, approaching the guitar the way a drummer approaches a drum set can really bring your rhythm playing to life. If you're a songwriter, creating great grooves can be a source of inspiration in your writing. If you're a player, being a great accompanist will make you in great demand as a side player.

Calendar

now booking 2009 workshops. Email for more information.

featured articles

Visit Dave's blog to access archived articles and most recent musical musings: Life is hard, music is easy. 

Are You Still Recovering From Childhood Music Lessons? (reproduced from the Nashville Muse)
Capos Are Not Cheating! (reproduced from Susan Tucker's Songwriters E-Tip)
On Songwriters And Strumming (reproduced from the Nashville Muse )
Are You In The Groove? (reproduced from Susan Tucker's Songwriters E-Tip)
How Much Musical Knowledge Is Enough? (reproduced from Susan Tucker's Songwriters E-Tip)

links

Interactive online guitar resource.

National advocacy and educational organization for all songwriters working in all genres.

One-stop source for resources, networking, and events in Nashville. Click to visit.

Email songconnection@aol.com to subscribe to this excellent songwriting newsletter, or click the logo.



 

Tennessee State University, Nashville, TN: adjunct instructor in commercial guitar, since 2009
Art Institute Of Tennessee - Nashville, Nashville, TN: audio department faculty since 2008
Dave Isaacs Guitar Studio/Nashville Guitar Guru.com: owner/proproprietor since 2008
Nashville Songwriters Association International (NSAI): workshop & Songposium faculty since 2006
John Robert Powers, Nashville, TN: vocal faculty 2006-2007
World Music Nashville, Nashville TN, instrumental faculty 2005-2007
National Guitar Workshop, faculty 2003-2004
New York State School Music Association (NYSSMA): faculty judge, 1994-2000
private studio, Albertson, NY, 1987-2005

education:
Master of Music, Manhattan School Of Music, NYC, 1993
Bachelor of Music, magna cum laude, Queens College/CUNY, 1991

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