Guitar

ABSOLUTE BEGINNER: Perfect for anyone who wants to learn to play guitar. The teachers give advice on how to buy a guitar and teach you the basics of guitar playing.
Teachers: Lou Manzi and Susan Mazer


ACOUSTIC: Learn different styles and techniques for the acoustic guitar and get ready to play guitar songs from our growing catalog.

Beginner: Learn basic techniques, including syncopated strumming patterns, how to approach switching between a variety of open chords, Major and Chromatic Scales, and some Country and Bluegrass style techniques such as the Boom-Chick strum pattern.
Teachers: Pat Johnson and Susan Mazer

Intermediate: Expand your basic skills and explore the relative minor scale, harmonics, hybrid scales, alternate open tunings, Travis picking, suspended chords, augmented and diminished chords, minor chords and the minor Blues.
Teachers: Tomas Cataldo, Greg Horne, Lou Manzi, Larry Marciano

Advanced: Experiment with new techniques, sounds and ideas. Explore harmonics, odd time signatures, chord inversions, learn the CAGED technique, practice modal scales and progressions, lead and backup style variations and learn how to transform traditional playing styles into new modern sounds.
Teachers: Greg Horne, Larry Marciano

BENDING: Discover the many variations of string bending. It's more than just pulling strings.

Intermediate: The Finger-Bending Boot Camp will teach you how it's done right from the beginning. Learn quartertone and multi-note bends, double-stop bends and bends with right hand tapping technique, and take in some cool bending ideas.

Advanced: Discover four more kinds of bends, multi-target bends and learn how to apply vibrato to a bent note.
Teacher: Harry Jacobson

BLUES: Learn the main musical ingredients of the Blues that have been developed by the great Bluesmen.

Beginner: Learn the essential techniques and topics that all guitar players should know, such as Major, Minor and Pentatonic scales, barre chords, bending, trills, rakes, and hammer-ons and pull-offs. Develop the techniques that give the Blues it's unique flavor such as bluesy 7th chords, the 12-Bar Blues form, swing and boogie rhythms, walk-ups and turnarounds, and of course, learn how to build and play bluesy solos.
Teachers: Alan Bennett, Jeff Bilhman, Reggie Chavez, Dennis McCumber, Scott A. Smith

Intermediate: For blues players who already have a firm grasp on the basic concepts of playing blues guitar. These lessons will teach you about the 12/8 blues, the minor blues, how to apply scales all over the fretboard, rhythm variations, chord construction, the 8-bar blues, as well as swing and jump blues.
Teachers: Mark Dziuba, Dennis McCumber, Matt Smith, Scott A. Smith

ADVANCED: For the blues guitarists who want to add a lot of variation to their playing, and really break out of the box. To expand on your playing, these lessons will cover topics such as using arpeggios for rhythm and lead playing, using different modes in the blues, finger shifting methods, playing in the style Jimi Hendrix, using R&B variations, and developing interesting solo techniques.
Teachers: Jonathan Barker, Matt Smith

CHOP SHOP: Learn and develop essential "guitar chops" that are useful for many different playing situations.

Intermediate: Get valuable tips, such as getting the most out of daily practice, moving one note in a chord, or funky rhythm fills. Learn more about mastering the fretboard, chord-tone approach, rhythms and grooves, and creating chord fills over a minor chord. Discover open D tuning and Travis picking, DADGAD tuning in Celtic and Indian music, slide guitar techniques incl. Hawaiian Slide guitar, and harp scales. Learn about the secret Country Blues diagram, and finish the course with "words to live by."
Teacher: Matt Smith

CLASSICAL: For students who already play the guitar and read music or tab, but don't necessarily have any experience playing the classical guitar.

Intermediate: Learn about the right posture and finger positioning, rest-stroke and unprepared strokes, and get introduced to dynamics. Develop various right-hand techniques and practice using the right-hand thumb, chords and arpeggios, and right-hand string crossing. Learn about good study habits, combining right-hand string crossing & left-hand shifts. Discover more right-hand techniques, including tremolo, thumb rest-stroke, and right-hand speed development, and slurs (hammer-ons and pull-offs) for the left hand.
Teacher: Martha Masters

COUNTRY: Learn Country songs at the beginner level with easy to play chords and strum patterns.
Teachers: Jeff Bihlman and Susan Mazer

FINGER STYLE: Fingerstyle technique is used for many styles of music such as Blues, Folk, Jazz, Rock and every style in between.

Beginner: The beginner lessons cover the basic playing skills, discuss the terminology, and introduce basic right and left-hand playing technique, and demonstrate some picking patterns and basslines.
Teacher: Susan Mazer

Intermediate: At this level you'll discover various ways of playing bass notes, Travis Picking, and some prominent guitar techniques, such as hammer-ons and pull-offs, slides and bends. Learn about different tunings and the Bossa Nova rhythm.
Teacher: Susan Mazer

FOLK: These song lessons teach you how to play many popular guitar songs, for absolute beginners to intermediate players.

Absolute Beginner: Learn songs with easy to play chords, including "Gates to the City," "Skip to My Lou" and others.
Teacher: Greg Horne

Beginner: Learn songs with more complex chord progressions and melodies, including "House of the Rising Sun," "America the Beautiful," "Scarborough Fair" and many more.
Teachers: Ralph Agresta, Jeff Bihlman, Ian Campbell, Greg Horne, Pat Johnson, Susan Mazer, Bess Rogers

Intermediate: These songs require a good right-hand picking technique. Learn to play "Buffalo Gals," ""Nobody Knows the Trouble I've Seen" and more.
Teachers: Ian Campbell, Pat Johnson, Bess Rogers

JAZZ: Jazz guitar lessons from the beginner to the advanced level. The lessons discuss the main subjects of Jazz: Scales and chords, arpeggios, comping, phrasing and improvisation.

Beginner: Perfect for those early guitarists who want to expand their playing and who want to have a better understanding of the theory behind the music. These in-depth jazz guitar lessons will cover essential topics such as Major, Minor and Pentatonic scales, intervals and building chords, arpeggios, comping and rhythms, phrasing, and Major, Minor, and Diminished 7th chords.
Teachers: Tom Dempsey, Amanda Monaco

Intermediate: These jazz lessons go more in depth into the technique and theory of jazz guitar by covering such areas as the Modes of the Major scale, modal improvisation, Major, Minor and Dominant 7th chord arpeggios, chord extensions, advanced comping, the Natural and Harmonic Minor scales, chord construction and substitution, modal planning, and chord melody arrangement.
Teachers: Tom Dempsey, Mark Dziuba, Jody Fisher, Amanda Monaco

Advanced: The advanced lessons bring unique perspectives to the essential techniques of the jazz guitarist. These lessons will improve your playing through the use of walking bass lines, artificial harmonics, diminished scales, the jazz blues, and these lessons will give you ways to vary your sound when playing solo jazz guitar.
Teachers: Mark Dziuba, Jody Fisher

ROCK: Our Rock Guitar lessons cover everything you need to know to become a Rock star.

Beginner: These rock lessons cover a wide variety of topics and techniques such as the Major, Minor and Pentatonic scales, hammer-ons and pull-offs, vibrato, bending, slides, how to build solos, power chords, and classic rock chord progressions that have stood the test of time. These rock lessons will prepare you to start rocking out with friends, and even to take on some of the great rock song lessons available here at Workshop Live.
Teachers: Ralph Agresta, Geoff Hartwell, Paul Howard, Tobias Hurwitz, Alex Nolan, Tim Quick, Glenn Riley, Raleigh Green, German Schauss

Intermediate: The rock Guitar lessons at the intermediate level cover topics such as diatonic harmony, combining Pentatonic scales, advanced bending and vibrato, strumming logic, moveable chords, playing guitar using patterns and sequences, hybrid picking, sweep picking, suspended chords, and more advanced scales and modes.
Teachers: Joel Gregoire, Tobias Hurwitz, Dave Martone, Jared Meeker, Jeff Peretz, Tim Quick, Glenn Riley, Ken Steiger, Raleigh Green, German Schauss

Advanced: The advanced techniques covered in these lessons include extending intervals and chords, speed picking, string skipping, using the whammy bar, multi-finger tapping, advanced sweep picking, slapping, advanced soloing, symmetrical scales and arpeggios.
Teachers: Joel Gregoire, Tobias Hurwitz, Dave Martone, Raleigh Green, German Schauss

SLIDE: These lessons show you how to create the typical slide sound, the use of different tunings and how to play with a bottleneck.

Beginner: Learn basic right and left-hand technique, and licks in Standard and Open G tuning.
Teacher: Greg Horne

Intermediate: Learn Delta Blues licks, tricks and special effects.
Teacher: Greg Horne

THEORY: The theory lessons are ideal for the guitarist who wants to understand the musical concepts behind the playing and how to notate musical ideas.

Absolute Beginner: Learn the notes on the guitar and how to notate pitch and rhythm.
Teacher: Tom Dempsey

Beginner: Learn the major and the minor scale and discover their relationships. Understand intervals and triads in all inversions.
Teacher: Tom Dempsey

Intermediate: The lessons at the intermediate level discuss the natural minor scale, and 7th chords and their inversions.
Teacher: Tom Dempsey

Piano/Keyboard

ABSOLUTE BEGINNER: Perfect for anyone who wants to learn to play piano or keyboard. Even if you have no musical background at all, these lessons will get you started on the right foot. These keyboard lessons cover a variety of essential topics such as posture and hand position, the parts of a keyboard, how to read music, finger warm-ups, basic Major and Minor scales, and Major and Minor chords. You'll also learn about the different musical styles and directions you can take your keyboard playing, as well as how to learn to play a piece of music without having looked at it before.
Teachers: Amy Rosser, Cathy Schane-Lydon, Donald Sosin

ADULT REFRESHER: WorkshopLive's Adult Refresher course is designed for someone who has not played piano or keyboard in a long time, and is looking to have his musical knowledge refreshed. These lessons will have you back on your feet in no time as they quickly, but efficiently discuss topics such as posture and hand position, reading music, Major and Minor scales and chords, accidentals, dynamics, changing finger positions, arpeggios, rhythm and syncopation, and even some more in-depth scales and chords.
Teachers: Andrea Amos, Leo Marchildon

JAZZ: WorkshopLive's Jazz Keyboard lessons are perfect for the beginning keyboard player who wants to take his playing into the world of jazz.
Teacher: Noah Baerman, Andrea Amos, Donald Sosin

ROCK: These lessons teach you how to play some great Rock songs, complete with harmony and melody.

Absolute beginner: Learn "Stairway to Heaven." Separated into three lessons with intro, chorus, opening and middle-verses and ending.
Teachers: Andrea Amos, Cathy Schane-Lydon

Beginner: Learn easy songs for the piano: "Sunshine of Your Love," "Boulevard of Broken Dreams," "Lola," and the solo part for "Stairway to Heaven."
Teachers: Andrea Amos, Cathy Schane-Lydon, Donald Sosin

MAKE YOUR OWN MUSIC: Designed for the beginning pianist who just wants to dive right in and start making music without having to know how to read music. You'll get right into playing your own tunes by learning about playing a tune by ear, spontaneous improvisation, understanding chords and the tonic key, and utilizing all the keys on the keyboard.
Teacher: Cathy Schane-Lydon

Bass Guitar

ABSOLUTE BEGINNER: These Absolute Beginner Bass lessons are perfect for anyone who wants to learn to play the bass guitar. Even if you don't own a bass, these lessons will teach you all about the parts of the bass, as well as what to look for when buying one. These bass lessons will discuss essential topics such as the jobs of the right and left hands, reading music and other basic elements of music, the notes on each string, and the role of the bass in a band or ensemble.
Teachers: Alfredo Grado, Chris Kuffner

ROCK: Learn all the essential techniques and styles for Rock bass guitar so you'll be ready to lay the groove.

Beginner: These Beginner Rock Bass lessons are designed for the beginning bassist who wants to dig into the world of Rock 'N' Roll. The lessons cover a variety of essential topics such as Major and Minor scales and triads, using a pick, slide techniques, rhythm studies, and a tool used by all great rock bassists, the Pentatonic scales.
Teachers: Dave Overthrow, Tracy Walton

Intermediate: Expand your fretboard knowledge and learn major, minor and pentatonic scales, and the chromatic approach. Learn left-hand muting, pick technique, various triads and grooves such as Funk and Reggae.
Teachers: Dave Overthrow, Sharon Ray, Tracy Walton

Advanced: These lessons discuss modes, 7th chords, basslines in different modes, slap technique, pop and muted notes, triplets, and different time signatures.
Teachers: Chris Kuffner, Matt Scharfglass

Drums & Percussion

WorkshopLive's Hand Drum and Percussion lessons are designed for any musician who wants to take himself into the world of Percussion. These lessons cover a vast amount of instruments including Bongos, Triangle, Shaker, Tambourine Caxixi, Cabasa, Clave, Agogo, Dundun and Djembe, and the drumset. You'll also learn many different styles and patterns that are used all over the world.

ABSOLUTE BEGINNER: Learn the names of all the parts of a drumset, watch how to set it up and how to tune the drums. Get introduced to drumset notation and basic note values including eighth-note and sixteenth-note reading exercises. The lessons then focus on drum rudiments such as single-stroke and double-stroke roll, accents and paradiddles. Explore the drumset further and learn bass drum and hi-hat technique, along with various eighth-note and sixteenth-note beats. Practice one and two-beat fills, and discover drumset sound possibilities.
Teacher: Pete Sweeney

HAND DRUMS AT THE INTERMEDIATE LEVEL: Learn all about the large and small percussion instruments that are played around the world. The lessons focus on instruments typically used in Afro-Cuban/Latin music and in African music. Latin music instruments include congas, bongos, calves, maracas, caxixi, cabasa, tambourine and triangle. Individual lessons are dedicated to learning the technique for some of these percussion instruments, including bass tone, open tone, edge and slap tone, and to learning rhythms and styles associated with the instruments: Rumba Colombia and Guaguanco, Songo, Calypso and Merengue are some of the styles you can learn.
Teacher: Kalani