Musicians Institute (MI) is a

private Private or privates may refer to: Music * "In Private", by Dusty Springfield from the 1990 album ''Reputation'' * Private (band), a Denmark-based band * "Private" (Ryōko Hirosue song), from the 1999 album ''Private'', written and also recorded ...

for-profit Business is the practice of making one's living or making money by producing or buying and selling products (such as goods and services). It is also "any activity or enterprise entered into for profit." A business entity is not necessari ...

music school A music school is an educational institution specialized in the study, training, and research of music. Such an institution can also be known as a school of music, music academy, music faculty, college of music, music department (of a larger in ...

Los Angeles, California Los Angeles, often referred to by its initials L.A., is the List of municipalities in California, most populous city in the U.S. state of California, and the commercial, Financial District, Los Angeles, financial, and Culture of Los Angeles, ...

. MI students can earn Certificates and – with transfer of coursework taken at

Los Angeles City College Los Angeles City College (LACC) is a public community college in East Hollywood, California. A part of the Los Angeles Community College District, it is located on Vermont Avenue south of Santa Monica Boulevard on the former campus of the U ...

– Associate of Arts Degrees, as well as Bachelor of Music Degrees in either Performance or Composition. The college was founded in 1977.

History

Founders Howard Roberts and Pat Hicks

Musicians Institute was founded as The Guitar Institute of Technology in 1977 as a one-year vocational school of guitarists and bassists. Its curriculum and pedagogical style was shaped by guitarist

Howard Roberts Howard Mancel Roberts (October 2, 1929 – June 28, 1992) was an American jazz guitarist, educator, and session musician. Early life Roberts was born in Phoenix, Arizona to Damon and Vesta Roberts, and began playing guitar at the age of 8 — a ...

(1929–1992). Pat Hicks ''(né'' Patrick Carroll Hicks; born 1934), a Los Angeles music industry entrepreneur, was the co-founder of Musicians Institute. He is credited for providing the organizational structure and management that rapidly transformed Howard Roberts' educational philosophy into a major music school. Programs added under Roberts and Hicks include: * 1978: Bass Institute of Technology (BIT) * 1980: Percussion Institute of Technology (PIT) * 1987: Vocal Institute of Technology (VIT) * 1991: Keyboard Institute of Technology (KIT) * 1993: Recording Institute of Technology (RIT) * 1994: Bachelor of Music Degree

Early curricular offerings

At the time of its founding, formal education in

rock and roll Rock and roll (often written as rock & roll, rock-n-roll, and rock 'n' roll) is a Genre (music), genre of popular music that evolved in the United States during the late 1940s and early 1950s. It Origins of rock and roll, originated from African ...

at institutions of higher learning was limited mostly to universities and conservatories offering jazz studies, which were few. At the founding of the Musicians Institute, Jazz studies was, and is today, a strong component of the curricular offerings. In early days of the Musicians Institute, the demand for musicians and music industry professionals with comprehensive collegiate credentials in the field of contemporary music was low. Yet, the demand for contemporary music professionals was high. Roberts, when he founded the school, wanted to give aspiring rock and roll musicians a conservatory experience. Nowadays, comprehensive music education in higher education, from bachelors to doctorates, covers rock and roll from several perspectives, including literature, musicology, history, performing arts, technology, business, and law. For musicians working towards degrees in performance, proficiency in rock and roll is standard, particularly for aspiring

session musicians A session musician (also known as studio musician or backing musician) is a musician hired to perform in a recording session or a live performance. The term sideman is also used in the case of live performances, such as accompanying a record ...

. The rise of contemporary musicians holding comprehensive academic credentials over the last 50 years is partly the result of more universities offering programs in the field, which, in turn, has increased the demand for contemporary oriented music educators with academic credentials at universities. Because the Musicians Institute was an

innovator Innovation is the practical implementation of ideas that result in the introduction of new goods or services or improvement in offering goods or services. ISO TC 279 in the standard ISO 56000:2020 defines innovation as "a new or changed entit ...

in rock and roll in higher education – and years ago began offering bachelor of music degrees – its alumni are well-represented as educators of contemporary music at institutions of higher learning. Japanese businessman Hisatake Shibuya (born 1937) bought the school in 1994 and Musicians Institute began developing new programs to keep abreast of the modern music industry. Programs added under Shibuya include: * 2000: Independent Artist Program (IAP) * 2000: Audio Engineering * 2000: Guitar Craft Academy (GCA) * 2002: Music Business Program (MBP) * 2016: DJ Performance and Production (DJP) * 2016: Associate of Science in Music Business (AS.MB) * 2017: MI Online (MIO) * 2018: Artist Producer and Entrepreneur (APE) * 2018: Master in Music Degree (MM) On 25 August 2007, the

Los Angeles City Council The Los Angeles City Council is the Legislature, lawmaking body for the Government of Los Angeles, city government of Los Angeles, California, the second largest city in the United States. It has 15 members who each represent the 15 city council ...

adopted a resolution declaring 25 August 2007, "Musicians Institute Day in the City of Los Angeles" in recognition of its achievements over three decades during its 30th anniversary celebration. The resolution was presented by

Eric Garcetti Eric Michael Garcetti (born February 4, 1971) is an American politician and diplomat who served as the List of ambassadors of the United States to India, United States ambassador to India from 2023 to 2025. He was the 42nd mayor of Los Angeles f ...

, seconded by

Tom LaBonge Thomas J. LaBonge (October 6, 1953 – January 7, 2021) was an American politician. A member of the Democratic Party, he served on the Los Angeles City Council from 2001 to 2015, representing the city's 4th district. Education A graduate of ...

, and passed by a vote of twelve to zero out of fifteen, three being absent.

Former institutional and division names

Active names * MI College of Contemporary Music™ (service mark & trade mark) * MI Connects™ (service mark) – online talent resource for students and alumni * MI Musicians Institute™ * Guitar Craft Academy™ – for the design, construction, and maintenance of guitars and basses Trademark names of Campus Hollywood * Tricycle Entertainment™ (service mark – abandoned in 2004) Former names * Guitar Institute of Technology (service mark – became inactive 22 June 1990) * Vocal Institute of Technology (service mark – became inactive 19 May 1989) * Bass Institute of Technology * Percussion Institute of Technology * Keyboard Institute of Technology * Recording Institute of Technology (trademark – became inactive 5 December 2005) * Film Institute of Technology (trademark – became inactive 5 December 2005) * Encore Program * World Institute of Percussion (launched in 1987) Trademark notes

Academics

The Musicians Institute offers instrumental performance programs for

bass Bass or Basses may refer to: Fish * Bass (fish), various saltwater and freshwater species Wood * Bass or basswood, the wood of the tilia americana tree Music * Bass (sound), describing low-frequency sound or one of several instruments in th ...

drums The drum is a member of the percussion instrument, percussion group of musical instruments. In the Hornbostel–Sachs classification system, it is a membranophones, membranophone. Drums consist of at least one Acoustic membrane, membrane, c ...

guitar The guitar is a stringed musical instrument that is usually fretted (with Fretless guitar, some exceptions) and typically has six or Twelve-string guitar, twelve strings. It is usually held flat against the player's body and played by strumming ...

keyboard Keyboard may refer to: Text input * Keyboard, part of a typewriter * Computer keyboard ** Keyboard layout, the software control of computer keyboards and their mapping ** Keyboard technology, computer keyboard hardware and firmware Music * Mus ...

technology, and vocals. Music industry programs include

audio engineering Audio most commonly refers to sound, as it is transmitted in signal form. It may also refer to: Sound *Audio signal, an electrical representation of sound * Audio frequency, a frequency in the audio spectrum *Digital audio, representation of soun ...

, Independent Artist Program, the Guitar Craft Academy and Music Business. The school offers

Associate of Arts An associate degree or associate's degree is an undergraduate degree awarded after a course of post-secondary study lasting two to three years. It is a level of academic qualification above a high school diploma and below a bachelor's degree ...

Associate of Science Associate may refer to: Academics * Associate degree, a two-year educational degree in the United States, and some areas of Canada * Associate professor, an academic rank at a college or university * Technical associate or Senmonshi, a Japa ...

, and

Bachelor of Music A Bachelor of Music (BMus; sometimes conferred as Bachelor of Musical Arts) is an academic degree awarded by a college, university, or conservatory upon completion of a program of study in music. The degree may be awarded for performance, music ed ...

degrees in addition to certificates. The

Institute of International Education The Institute of International Education (IIE) is an American 501(c) non-profit organization that focuses on international student exchange and aid, foreign affairs, and international peace and security. IIE creates programs of study and training ...

, in its assessment of "Top 40 Specialized Institutions, 2009/10," from its publication, ''International Students: Leading Institutions by Institutional Type,'' ranked Musicians Institute 13 in the

United States The United States of America (USA), also known as the United States (U.S.) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It is a federal republic of 50 U.S. state, states and a federal capital district, Washington, D.C. The 48 ...

out of 40. Musicians Institute and its programs are registered by the state of California by the

Bureau for Private Postsecondary Education The California Bureau for Private Postsecondary Education (BPPE) is a unit of the California Department of Consumer Affairs charged with regulation of private postsecondary educational institutions operating in the state of California. The BPPE i ...

. It has been an accredited institutional member of the

National Association of Schools of Music The National Association of Schools of Music (NASM) is an association of post-secondary music schools in the United States and the principal U.S. accreditor for higher education in music. It was founded on October 20, 1924, and is based in Resto ...

(NASM) since 1981. In 1992,

new musicologist New musicology is a wide body of musicology since the 1980s with a focus upon the cultural study, aesthetics, criticism, and hermeneutics of music. It began in part a reaction against the traditional positivist musicology—focused on primary r ...

Robert Walser Robert Walser (15 April 1878 – 25 December 1956) was a German language Swiss writer. He additionally worked as a copyist, an inventor's assistant, a butler, and in various other low-paying trades. Despite marginal early success in his lit ...

cited the Musicians Institute as one of the best-known schools for guitarist, one that has flourished outside the ivory tower, offering students broader professional training. But a trade-off, according to a review in the October 2012 issue of

Performer Magazine ''Performer'' is an American music magazine aimed at independent musicians. It has been in publication since 1991 and is distributed nationally throughout the United States. The magazine focuses primarily on musicians who are unsigned and on sma ...

, is that a lack of

academic accreditation Educational accreditation is a quality assurance process under which services and operations of educational institutions or programs are evaluated and verified by an external body to determine whether applicable and recognized standards are met ...

– specifically from the

Western Association of Schools and Colleges The Western Association of Schools and Colleges (WASC ( )) provided accreditation of public and private universities, colleges, secondary and elementary schools in California and Hawaii, the territories of Guam, American Samoa and Northern ...

– can make it challenging for students to transfer credits from MI to academic institutions. To meet the academic criteria for a Bachelor of Music Degree – 45 quarter units or 30 semester units in

liberal arts Liberal arts education () is a traditional academic course in Western higher education. ''Liberal arts'' takes the term ''skill, art'' in the sense of a learned skill rather than specifically the fine arts. ''Liberal arts education'' can refe ...

– the Musicians Institute has a partnership with nearby

(LACC) to study English, mathematics, natural science, social science, and humanities. LACC is accredited by the

The Carnegie Foundation has designated the Musicians Institute as a "Special Focus Institute in Music."

Facilities and constituent institutions

MI began in second floor rooms above Hollywood Wax Museum on Hollywood Boulevard. When MI celebrated its 30th anniversary in 2007, its facilities included over 75,000 square feet of studios, performance venues, classrooms, and practice rooms across several blocks in central Hollywood. In 2013, the Musician's Institute Stage was added as a venue for the Annual

Mayhem Festival The Mayhem Festival is a metal festival that takes place during the summer. The inaugural season took place in 2008; the festival later became an annual event across the United States. Most years also included a single date in either Montreal or ...

and The ESP Company, LTD, unveiled plans to expand its Campus Hollywood complex of schools in Los Angeles. From 2010 to 2013, ESP invested $47 million in new property with plans to expand its facility to exceed 180,000 square feet of adjoining buildings on or near Highland Avenue between

Hollywood Blvd Hollywood Boulevard is a major east–west street in Los Angeles, California. It runs through the Hollywood, Los Angeles, Hollywood, East Hollywood, Los Angeles, East Hollywood, Little Armenia, Los Angeles, Little Armenia, Thai Town, Los Ange ...

. and

Sunset Boulevard Sunset Boulevard is a boulevard in the central and western part of Los Angeles, California, United States, that stretches from the Pacific Coast Highway (California), Pacific Coast Highway in Pacific Palisades, Los Angeles, Pacific Palisad ...

as part of a reorganization and upgrade of existing Campus Hollywood properties that accommodate the Musicians Institute, Theatre of Arts, International Dance Academy, and Elegance International. The new facilities were planned to include a performance venue, student dormitory, and parking lots."ESP Set to Expand Campus Hollywood"
'' Vintage Guitar'', 10 December 2013 Constituent institutions of Campus Hollywood, Inc.: # Musicians Institute # Theatre of Arts, an acting school founded in 1927 # Elegance International, a school for professional makeup artists #

Los Angeles College of Music Los Angeles College of Music (LACM, formerly LAMA College for Music Professionals) is a private for-profit music college in Pasadena, in Los Angeles County, California. It has been accredited by the National Association of Schools of Music ...

# International Dance Academy Hollywood International sister educational institutions: # MI Japan (ja) –

Tokyo Tokyo, officially the Tokyo Metropolis, is the capital of Japan, capital and List of cities in Japan, most populous city in Japan. With a population of over 14 million in the city proper in 2023, it is List of largest cities, one of the most ...

Osaka is a Cities designated by government ordinance of Japan, designated city in the Kansai region of Honshu in Japan. It is the capital of and most populous city in Osaka Prefecture, and the List of cities in Japan, third-most populous city in J ...

Nagoya is the largest city in the Chūbu region of Japan. It is the list of cities in Japan, fourth-most populous city in Japan, with a population of 2.3million in 2020, and the principal city of the Chūkyō metropolitan area, which is the List of ...

Sendai is the capital Cities of Japan, city of Miyagi Prefecture and the largest city in the Tōhoku region. , the city had a population of 1,098,335 in 539,698 households, making it the List of cities in Japan, twelfth most populated city in Japan. ...

and

Fukuoka is the List of Japanese cities by population, sixth-largest city in Japan and the capital city of Fukuoka Prefecture, Japan. The city is built along the shores of Hakata Bay, and has been a center of international commerce since ancient times. ...

# UTB Video Academy (ja),

Chiyoda, Tokyo , known as Chiyoda City in English,
." ''City of Chiyoda''. Retrieved on December 28, 2008. is a S ...

, founded in 1998 under the auspices of United Television Broadcasting Systems, Inc. (ja) # ESP Entertainment,

Kita-ku, Osaka is one of 24 wards of Japan, wards of Osaka in Japan. Incidents and accidents * 1970 Tenroku gas explosion * 2021 Osaka building fire Notable locations Kita-ku, particularly the Umeda area surrounding Osaka Station, is one of the main comm ...

Other entities closely held by Hisatake Shibuya: # Hollywood Entertainment ESL, founded as a California corporation in 2012, active () # ESP Investment Holdings, Inc., founded as a California corporation in 2010, active () # ESP Gakuen, founded as a Japan corporation in 2001, registered as a foreign non-profit corporation in California, active () #

Schecter Guitar Research Schecter Guitar Research, commonly known simply as Schecter, is an American manufacturing company founded in 1976 by David Schecter, which originally produced only replacement parts for existing guitars from manufacturers such as Fender and Gib ...

, acquired by Shibuya in 1987 – Hisatake Shibuya, President # ESP Company, Limited, ''doing business as'' ESP Guitars, founded by Shibuya in 1975 # United Television Broadcasting Systems, Inc. (ja), a Japanese language television station based in Los Angeles and syndicated in Japan # E.S.P. Shibuya Enterprises, Inc., founded as a California corporation in 1998, active () Inactive entities that were closely held by Hisatake Shibuya: # Tricycle Records, Inc., founded as a California corporation in 2001, dissolved # ESP Co., LTD., doing business in California as ESP Real Estate Investment, Inc., registration surrendered # Entertainment Enterprises Hollywood, Inc., founded as a California corporation, dissolved # CHMG, Inc., founded as a California corporation, no longer active # Hollywood Pop Academy, Inc., founded in 2003 as a California corporation, no longer active

Musicians Institute Press

The Musicians Institute Press is a division of the Musicians Institute, and is focused on instructional publications – print and video – by instructors of guitar, bass, drums, vocals, and film editing, audio engineering, composition, arranging, musicology, music theory, sight reading, sight singing, and the entertainment business. The publications are distributed by the Musicians Institute and

Hal Leonard Corporation Hal Leonard LLC (formerly Hal Leonard Corporation) is an American music publishing and distribution company founded in Winona, Minnesota, by Harold "Hal" Edstrom, his brother, Everett "Leonard" Edstrom, and fellow musician Roger Busdicker. Cur ...

Performing Arts Publishing Group. Since 1997, the publishing imprint has been the "Musicians Institute Press." Before that, from about 1982 to 1997, the imprint was "Musicians Institute Publications."

Notable faculty

Faculty – current and former Guitar *

Chris Broderick Christopher Alan Broderick (born March 6, 1970) is an American musician, best known as a former guitarist of the thrash metal band Megadeth. He is also formerly the lead guitarist for Jag Panzer, appearing on four albums between 1998 and 2004. ...

Dean Brown Dean Craig Brown, AO (born 5 April 1943) is a politician who served as the Premier of South Australia between 14 December 1993 and 28 November 1996, and also served as 10th Deputy Premier of South Australia between 22 October 2001 and 5 ...

Joe Diorio Joseph Louis Diorio (August 6, 1936 – February 2, 2022) was an American jazz guitarist. He performed with Sonny Stitt, Hal Crook, Eddie Harris, Ira Sullivan, Stan Getz, Pat Metheny, Horace Silver, Anita O'Day, and Freddie Hubbard. In recent y ...

* Ron Eschete *

Brett Garsed Brett Edward Garsed (born 20 April 1963) is an Australian guitarist, best known for his work as a guitarist with John Farnham and T. J. Helmerich, as well as being a former member of the rock band Nelson. He was featured on Derek Sherinian' ...

Paul Gilbert Paul Brandon Gilbert (born November 6, 1966) is an American hard rock and heavy metal music, heavy metal guitarist. He is the co-founder of the band Mr. Big (American band), Mr. Big, and was also a member of Racer X (band), Racer X, with whom he ...

Jude Gold Jude Gold (also credited as Judah Gold) is an American guitarist who has toured with Jefferson Starship since 2012 and has toured with Kristin Chenoweth, JGB, Eddie Money, 2 Live Crew, Jeff Berlin, and more. Gold has been the Los Angeles edi ...

Scott Henderson Scott Henderson (born August 26, 1954) is an American jazz fusion and blues guitarist best known for his work with the band Tribal Tech. He was born in West Palm Beach and raised in Lake Worth Beach. Biography Scott Henderson is a highly reg ...

Steve Lynch Steve Lynch (born January 18, 1955) is an American guitarist. He is best known as the co-founder and lead guitarist of the glam metal/hard rock band Autograph (American band), Autograph, which formed in 1983. He decided to commit himself to m ...

Alex Machacek Alex Machacek (born 1 July 1972, Tulln an der Donau, Austria) is an Austrian jazz fusion guitarist. Early years Machacek was born to a Czech family in Tulln, Austria. His family had moved to Austria in the 1960s as refugees. Since then, they h ...

Pat Martino Pat Martino (born Patrick Carmen Azzara; August 25, 1944 – November 1, 2021) was an American jazz guitarist and composer. He has been cited as one of the greatest guitarists in jazz. Early life Martino was born Patrick Carmen Azzara in Philad ...

* Doug Rappoport *

Dale Turner Dale Turner may refer to: * Dale Turner (cricketer), Australian cricketer * Dale Turner (trumpeter), American trumpet player with the American new wave band Oingo Boingo * Dale Turner (songwriter), American singer-songwriter, rock musician, and ...

Carl Verheyen Carl William Verheyen (born April 3, 1954) is an American musician best known for being the guitarist of Supertramp, the leader of the Carl Verheyen Band, and as a Los Angeles session guitarist. He was ranked ''One of the World's Top 10 Guitaris ...

Dave Weiner David Jason Weiner (born September 24, 1976) is an American musician, best known for being one of Steve Vai's touring guitarists. He also gives online guitar lessons. Steve Vai Weiner first joined Vai's band when Weiner went to Los Angeles t ...

* Keith Wyatt *

David Oakes Rowan David Oakes (born 14 October 1983) is an English actor and environmentalist. He is best known for his roles in the series ''The Pillars of the Earth (miniseries), The Pillars of the Earth'', ''The Borgias (2011 TV series), The Borgias'', ...

Jamie Glaser Jamie Glaser (born January 21, 1955, in New York City), is an American guitarist best known for his guitar work on popular television shows like ''Seinfeld'', ''Saved By The Bell'', and '' Married... with Children''. He has recorded and toured wit ...

* Dave Hill *

Joe Elliott Joseph Thomas Elliott (born 1 August 1959) is an English singer-songwriter, best known as the lead singer and one of the founder members of the hard rock band Def Leppard. He has also been the lead singer of the David Bowie tribute band the ...

Jennifer Batten Jennifer Batten (born November 29, 1957) is an American guitarist who has worked as a session musician and solo artist. From 1987 to 1997, she played on all three of Michael Jackson's world tours, and from 1999 to 2001, she toured and recorded w ...

Bass guitar *

Tim Bogert John Voorhis "Tim" Bogert III (August 27, 1944 – January 14, 2021) was an American musician. As a bass guitarist and vocalist he was best known for his powerful vocal ability and his fast runs, fluid agility and ground-breaking sound on hi ...

* Louis Johnson *

Stuart Hamm Stuart Hamm (born February 8, 1960) is an American bass guitar player, known for his session and live work with numerous artists as well as for his unconventional playing style and solo recordings. Career Born in New Orleans, Hamm spent his chil ...

Bob Magnusson Bob Magnusson (born February 24, 1947, in New York) is an American jazz bassist. Career Magnusson studied French horn for 12 years before switching to bass in 1967. He toured with Buddy Rich's Orchestra in 1968 and played with the San Diego Symph ...

Chuck Rainey Charles Walter Rainey III (born June 17, 1940) is an American bass guitarist who has performed and recorded with many well-known acts, including Aretha Franklin, Steely Dan, and Quincy Jones. Rainey is credited for playing bass on more than 1,00 ...

* Alexis Sklarevski * Greg Weiss (son of

Larry Weiss Laurence D. "Larry" Weiss (born March 25, 1941) is an American songwriter and musician. He wrote " Rhinestone Cowboy", a US no.1 hit for Glen Campbell in 1975; and co-wrote " Bend Me, Shape Me", " Hi Ho Silver Lining" and several other internatio ...

) Vocal *

Debra Byrd Debra Byrd (July 19, 1951 – March 5, 2024) was an American vocalist who worked with Barry Manilow in and after Lady Flash and Bob Dylan, appeared on Broadway, and served as the head vocal coach for ''American Idol'' and ''Canadian Idol'', al ...

, Chair * Anika Peress Percussion * Cengiz Baysal (tr) * Efa Etoroma *

Chuck Flores Charles Walter "Chuck" Flores (January 5, 1935 – November 24, 2016) was an American jazz drummer. One of the relatively small number of musicians associated with West Coast jazz who were actually from the West Coast, Flores was born in Orange, Ca ...

Horacio Hernandez Horacio \ho-ra-cio\, a masculine given name, is a variant of Horace (given name), Horace. The given name Horacio is found sporadically throughout all of Latin America. Horacio is a boy's name with Latin origins said to mean 'timekeeper'. The Portug ...

Thomas Lang Thomas Lang (; born 5 August 1967) is an Austrian drummer. He is the founding member of the Los Angeles–based progressive metal, progressive/avant garde metal band stOrk and is known for his international session work on a wide variety of ge ...

Glen Sobel Glen Sobel (born December 27, 1970) is an American drummer who has performed and recorded in many different genres. Mainly known for being the drummer for Alice Cooper since 2011, Sobel has worked with other musicians/groups, including Mötley ...

* Ralph Humphrey Keyboards *

Russell Ferrante Yellowjackets is an American jazz fusion band founded in 1977 in Los Angeles, California. History In 1977, guitarist Robben Ford, for his first solo album, recruited keyboardist Russell Ferrante, electric bassist Jimmy Haslip and drummer ...

* Carl Schroeder *

Steve Weingart Steve Weingart (born March 1966 in Dayton, Ohio) is a jazz-funk keyboard player based in Los Angeles, California, United States, who has recorded and performed internationally with an array of well known musical artists. Amongst many other well-k ...

Audio engineering * TJ Helmerich Music Industry, entrepreneurship * Don Grierson * Vicky Hamilton Independent Artist program * Lisa Harriton, Chair *

Marko DeSantis Sugarcult was an American rock band from Santa Barbara, California, formed in 1998. The band consisted of Tim Pagnotta (vocals, rhythm guitar), Airin Older (bass), Marko DeSantis (lead guitar), and Kenny Livingston (drums). History Formation ( ...

Original Song Pre-Production *

Richie Zito Richie Zito (born August 21, 1952) is an American songwriter, composer and record producer from Los Angeles. In a career spanning more than 50 years, Zito has experienced success as a prolific session musician, being featured on a wide array of ...

Guest instructors – current and former Guitar * Jimmy Boyle *

Kim Carroll Kim Carroll (born 10 May 1970 in Cork, Ireland) is a film score composer and multi-instrumentalist. Life and career He attended Glenstal Abbey School where he studied music with pianist/composer Mícheál Ó Súilleabháin. After teaching mu ...

Marty Friedman (born December 8, 1962) is an American guitarist, best known for his tenure as the lead guitarist of thrash metal band Megadeth from 1990 to 2000. He is also known for playing alongside Jason Becker in Cacophony from 1986 until 1989, as well ...

Steve Vai Steven Siro Vai ( ; born June 6, 1960) is an American guitarist, songwriter, and producer. A three-time Grammy Award winner and fifteen-time nominee, Vai started his music career in 1978 at the age of eighteen as a Transcription (music), transc ...

Bass guitar *

Jaco Pastorius John Francis Anthony Pastorius III, also known as Jaco Pastorius (; December 1, 1951 – September 21, 1987), was an American jazz bassist, composer, and producer. Widely regarded as one of the greatest and most influential bassists of all time, ...

Alphonso Johnson Alphonso Johnson (born February 2, 1951) is an American jazz bassist active since the early 1970s. Johnson was a member of the jazz fusion group Weather Report from 1973 to 1975, and has performed and recorded with numerous high-profile rock and ...

* Patrick "Putter" Smith *

Gary Willis Gary Willis (born 28 March 1957) is an American bassist and composer known foremost as the co-founder (with Scott Henderson) of the jazz fusion band Tribal Tech. Aside from his work in Tribal Tech, Willis has worked with numerous other jazz music ...

Percussion *

* Dom Famularo Guitar Craft Academy * Howard R. Paul

Notable alumni

Sharon Aguilar Sharon Isabel Aguilar (born 1986) is an American multi-instrumentalist, singer, and songwriter. She toured with 2NE1 in 2012, and has both founded and performed with several other groups. She played lead guitar and violin with Scarlet Fever, th ...

Howard Alden Howard Vincent Alden (born October 17, 1958) is an American jazz guitarist born in Newport Beach, California. Alden has recorded many albums for Concord Records, including four with seven-string guitar innovator George Van Eps. Early life Ho ...

Juan Alderete Juan Alderete de la Peña (born September 5, 1963) is an American musician. He is best known as the longtime bassist of Racer X and for his tenures in the Mars Volta and Marilyn Manson. Biography Alderete was born in Los Angeles, California th ...

* Shane Alexander * Ioannis Anastassakis (el) * Viktoria Andersson (sv) * Mateus Asato(br) * Corrado Sgandurra (it) * John Ballinger *

* Cengiz Baysal (tr) *

David Becker David Becker (born October 20, 1961) is an American jazz guitarist and leader of the David Becker Tribune. He is also a graduate of the Musicians Institute. Biography Becker began his musical life on the trumpet and won the "Outstanding Achiev ...

* Jean Marc Belkadi *

Jeff Berlin Jeffrey Arthur Berlin (born January 17, 1953) is an American jazz rock bassist and composer. He first came to prominence in the 1970s as a member of the band Bruford, led by drummer Bill Bruford. Musical career Berlin was born on January 17, 195 ...

Curt Bisquera Curt "Kirkee B." Bisquera is an American drummer known for his extensive work as a touring and session musician. Biography Bisquera has worked with Johnny Cash, Josh Groban, Mick Jagger, Seal, Sarah McLachlan, Elton John, Johnny Hallyday and To ...

* Roberto Bossard (de) * Jimmy Boyle *

Rolf Brendel Rolf is a male given name and a surname. It originates in the Germanic name ''Hrolf'', itself a contraction of ''Hrodwulf'' ( Rudolf), a conjunction of the stem words ''hrod'' ("renown") + ''wulf'' ("wolf"). The Old Norse cognate is ''Hrólfr''. ...

(de) * Gunnlaugur Briem (de) *

Bishop Briggs Sarah Grace McLaughlin (born 18 July 1992), known professionally as Bishop Briggs, is an English singer and songwriter. Her single "River (Bishop Briggs song), River" peaked at number 3 on the US Alternative Chart, and has been streamed more t ...

* Norman Brown *

Jeff Buckley Jeffrey Scott Buckley (raised as Scott Moorhead; November 17, 1966 – May 29, 1997) was an American musician. After a decade as a session guitarist in Los Angeles, he attracted a cult following in the early 1990s performing at venues in ...

* Bruce “Buck” Cameron * Mike Campese *

Joacim Cans Joacim Cans (born 19 February 1970) is a Swedish singer, best known as the lead vocalist of power metal band HammerFall. He is the only member aside from founder and guitarist Oscar Dronjak to appear on all of the band's albums. Cans attended ...

* Sydnei Carvalho (br) * Giacomo Castellano (it) * Alberto Cereijo (es) * Jeffero Chan (zh) * Hinson Chou Tsz Yeung (zh) *

Tanya Chua Tanya Chua (; born 28 January 1975) is a Singaporean singer-songwriter. She launched her singing career by releasing her debut studio album ''Bored'' in 1997. She was part of the trio that sang "Moments of Magic" (1999), Singapore's official millen ...

Alessandro Cortini Alessandro Cortini (born 24 May 1976) is an Italian musician best known for his work with the American industrial band Nine Inch Nails. He plays modular synthesizers, keyboards, guitar, and bass guitar. Cortini is the first Italian inducted ...

Rivers Cuomo Rivers Cuomo ( ; born June 13, 1970) is an American musician best known as the lead vocalist, guitarist, and primary songwriter of the rock band Weezer. Cuomo was born in New York City and raised in several Buddhist communities in the northeaste ...

Demir Demirkan Demir Demirkan () (born 12 August 1972) is a Turkish musician, Eurovision Song Contest winning composer, guitarist for thrash metal band Mezarkabul and writer. Demir Demirkan started playing music when he was 13 and played guitar with various gr ...

* Marcus Deml (de) *

Michael Denning Michael Denning (born 1954) is an American cultural historian and William R. Kenan, Jr. Professor of American Studies at Yale University. His work has been influential in shaping the field of American Studies American studies or American ci ...

* Francesco DiCosmo * Douglas R. Docker *

Kenan Doğulu Kenan Doğulu (; born 31 May 1974) is a Turkish pop musician. He represented Turkey at the Eurovision Song Contest 2007 in Helsinki, where he was placed fourth, with 163 points. In the summer of 2006, Doğulu released the album ''Festival (Kena ...

Greg Edmonson Greg Edmonson is an American music composer for television and movies. He is primarily known for composing the soundtrack to the television series ''Firefly''. He is also the composer for the first three games in the ''Uncharted'' video game se ...

* Peter Engberg (fi) * Backa Hans Eriksson (sv) * Emil Ernebro (sv) * Gustav Eurén (sv) * Big Chris Flores *

Kevin Fowler Kevin Fowler (born May 11, 1966) is an American singer-songwriter. He has released five studio albums, and has charted four singles on the ''Billboard'' Hot Country Songs charts, including the top 40 hit "Pound Sign (#?*!)". In addition, he wrot ...

John Frusciante John Anthony Frusciante ( ; born March 5, 1970) is an American musician and the guitarist of the Red Hot Chili Peppers, having been with the band across three iterations. He has released 11 solo albums and 7 EPs, ranging in style from acoustic gu ...

Shane Gaalaas Shane Gaalaas (born August 8) is a Canadian-born drummer, multi-instrumentalist and songwriter best known for his long running affiliation with Japanese rock superstars B'z, whom he joined in 2002, and his extensive work with guitar virtuosos Mic ...

Frank Gambale Frank Gambale ( ; born 22 December 1958) is an Australian jazz fusion guitarist. He has released twenty albums over a period of three decades, and is known for his use of the sweep picking and economy picking techniques. Recording career Sol ...

* Greg Garman (es) *

Synyster Gates Brian Elwin Haner Jr. (born July 7, 1981), better known by his stage name Synyster Gates or simply Syn, is an American guitarist, best known as the lead guitarist of heavy metal band Avenged Sevenfold. He ranks No. 9 on ''Guitar World''s best m ...

* Isabell Gerschke (de) *

Terje Gewelt Terje Gewelt (born 8 June 1960) is a Norwegian jazz musician (upright bass). Career Gewelt was born in Oslo and raised in Larvik, a small town on the southeastern coast of Norway. He started playing guitar at the age of 10, switched to elect ...

* Roney "Giah" Giacometti *

Kat Graham Katerina Alexandre Hartford Graham (born September 5, 1989) is an American actress, singer, dancer, and activist. She played Bonnie Bennett on The CW supernatural drama series ''The Vampire Diaries'' (2009–2017). Her film credits include '' ...

Shruti Haasan Shruti Haasan (born 28 January 1986) is an Indian actress and singer who predominantly works in Telugu, Tamil and Hindi films. One of the highest paid actresses in South Indian cinema, Haasan is the recipient of various accolades, including t ...

* Kenya Hagihara (ja) *

* Tony Hernando (es) * Magos Herrera *

Jimmy Herring Jimmy Herring (born January 22, 1962) is an American guitarist, known as the lead guitarist for the band Widespread Panic since 2006. He is a founding member of Aquarium Rescue Unit and Jazz Is Dead and has played with The Allman Brothers Ban ...

Rick Hill Richard Allan Hill (born December 30, 1946) is an American politician and businessman who served as a member of the United States House of Representatives from Montana. He was the Republican nominee for Governor of Montana in 2012. Early life ...

* Allen Hinds * Pelle Holmberg (sv) * Gabriel Improta (pt) * Cherno Jobatey (de) * Amaire Johnson * R.J.Jones (sv) *

Elli Kokkinou Elli Kokkinou (, ; born 24 July 1970) is a Greek singer. Sony BMG Greece. Retrieved on February 20, 2008 She is among the most popular singers in Greece today and has performed together with many notable Greek names of the music industry such a ...

* Folayan Kunerede *

Dave Kushner Dave Kushner (born November 16, 1966) is an American musician best known as the rhythm guitarist for the hard rock supergroup Velvet Revolver. Kushner has also been a member of Wasted Youth, Electric Love Hogs, Loaded, Danzig, Jane's Addi ...

* Charles Olivier * Wolfgang Laab (de) *

Lex Lang Lex Lang is an American voice actor and voice director, who has provided voices and served as a director for a number of animations and video games. He is best known for voicing Doctor Neo Cortex in the '' Crash Bandicoot'' franchise, Suguru ...

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JinJoo Lee JinJoo Lee (; born November 15, 1987) is a Korean-American musician, best known as the guitarist for the pop rock band DNCE. Early life JinJoo Lee was born in Incheon, South Korea on November 15, 1987. Lee taught herself to play guitar at t ...

Chris Letchford Chris Letchford (born October 7, 1984) is an American guitarist. He is the lead guitarist in the instrumental progressive metal band Scale the Summit. His technical ability has been recognized in magazines such as ''Guitar World'', ''Revolver'' ...

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Guernica Mancini Guernica Mancini (born ) is a Swedish musician. She is the lead vocalist of the hard rock group The Gems. Mancini was formerly the lead vocalist of the rock group Thundermother, having parted ways with the band in early February 2023. Biogra ...

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Meja Meja Anna Pernilla Kullersten (formerly Beckman; born Anna Pernilla Torndahl, 12 February 1969) is a Swedish composer, artist and singer. Among her best known songs are "Happy" (with Legacy of Sound), " Private Emotion", a duet with Ricky Mart ...

* Miri Miettinen (fi) * Nikki Misery *

Teri Moïse Teri Moïse (March 25, 1970 in Los Angeles, California – May 7, 2013 in Madrid, Spain) was a Haitian-American French singer. Her parents emigrated from Haiti to South Central, Los Angeles. After high school she studied economics at the Unive ...

(nl) *

Sonny Moorman Cyril "Sonny" Moorman (born 1955) is an American power blues guitarist. His style is sometimes compared to that of the Duane Allman, Jimi Hendrix, Eric Clapton, Lonnie Mack, Gov't Mule, and occasionally Warren Haynes. Moorman's parents owned ...

* Rafael Moreira * Taps Mugadza * OX (aka Samer El Nahhal) * Naomi Namasenda *

Ant Neely Ant Neely is an English composer and musician, known for an eclectic style. Career Neely attended Glasgow University and holds a degree in Zoology. After graduating, he studied jazz guitar at the Musician's Institute in Hollywood, California ...

Ehsaan Noorani Ehsaan Noorani is an Indian composer and guitarist. Music career Noorani is the part of the ''Shankar–Ehsaan–Loy'' trio, which consists of Shankar Mahadevan, Loy Mendonsa and himself. He started off as a freelance guitarist for many comp ...

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Stefan Olsdal Bo Stefan Alexander Olsdal (born 31 March 1974) is a Swedish-Luxembourgish musician, best known as the bassist/guitarist of the alternative rock band Placebo (band), Placebo, he is also part of the electronic band Digital 21 + Stefan Olsdal and l ...

* Naoki Osawa (ja) * Anderson .Paak * Phillip Michael Pacetti *

Mimi Page Mimi Page (born February 2, 1987) is an American singer-songwriter, record producer, and composer. Musical style Page's original music blends ethereal vocals with piano-driven, atmospheric soundscapes. She attributes her ethereal sound to her ...

* Toss Panos *

Russ Parrish Russell John Parrish (born November 24, 1970), better known as Satchel, is an American musician. He is the lead guitarist for the comedic glam metal band Steel Panther. Early life Russell John Parrish was born in Redwood City, California. ...

Patiparn Pataweekarn Patiparn Patavekarn (, also Mos Patiparn or Mos, born March 23, 1973), is a Thai film and television actor and pop singer from GMM Grammy. He released his debut album in 1992 and is known for his melodic ballads. Biography Mos debuted at 16 as ...

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* Anel Paz * Francisco Pachi Paz * Ridho Hafiedz *

Rio Rio or Río is the Portuguese and Spanish word for "river". The word also exists in Italian, but is largely obsolete and used in a poetical or literary context to mean "stream". Rio, RIO or Río may also refer to: Places United States * Rio, Fl ...

''(né'' Takeshi Kubo) (ja) * Yannick Robert (fr) *

Rose Villain Rosa Luini (born 20 July 1989), known professionally as Rose Villain, is an Italian singer-songwriter and rapper. Villain first achieved popularity in 2016, thanks to the platinum certified single "Don Medellín" together with Italian rapper Sal ...

''(né'' Rosa Luini) (it) * Constantine Roussos * Mitsuhisa Sakamoto (ja) *

Ilya Salmanzadeh Ilya Salmanzadeh (; ; born 19 September 1986), known mononymously as Ilya, is an Iranian-born Swedish songwriter, producer, and singer. He rose to prominence outside of Sweden after co-writing and producing Ariana Grande's hit single "Problem" ...

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''(né'' Chu Ting) *

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(Honorary) * Leonardo Valvassori * Eric Vandenberg * Jakob Wahlberg (sv) * Brooke White * Nick Wong (zh) * Aguai Wu (zh) * Keith Wyatt *

Yammy In the fictional ''Bleach'' manga/anime universe, a is a type of monstrous lost soul who can harm both ghosts and humans. Many of the series' antagonists are ''hollows''. Some hollows possess characteristics that are similar to those of a Soul ...

(ja) * Jennifer York(August 2, 1994
"Jennifer York's High-flying Days, Bass-playing Nights"
''Los Angeles Times''. Retrieved February 27, 2024. *

Jeff Young Jeffrey "Jeff" Young (born March 31, 1962) is an American guitarist. He graduated from Musicians Institute in 1985, and is best known for his time with the thrash metal band Megadeth, appearing on the 1988 album '' So Far, So Good... So What! ...

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* Jeff Zwart (nl) Language codes : hr = Croatian : de = German : el= Greek : es = Spanish : fi= Finnish : fr= French : ja= Japanese : it= Italian : nl= Dutch : pt= Portuguese : sv= Swedish : tr= Turkish : zh = Chinese

References

Primary sources

General

External links

Official website
{{Authority control Educational institutions established in 1977 For-profit music schools in the United States Music schools in California