With 25 years teaching experience, Greg is adept at instructing students of many levels. He has taught at Django in June, DjangoFest NW, The Seattle Jazz Night School and is the Guitar Week Coordinator for the Swannanoa Gathering. He has authored the Oscar Alemán Play-Along Book Vol. 1, Frank D. Waldron: Seattle’s Syncopated Classic, the Pearl Django Play-Along Book and writes for Acoustic Guitar magazine. Contact Greg at greg@gregrubymusic.com for information about private guitar lessons and upcoming on-line workshops.
Upcoming Workshops:
“Having seen Greg Ruby teach in person for years now, and then watching him teach online at one of my camps last year, confirmed in my mind and those who studied with him, that he is a wonderful educator. Greg is impressively organized, thorough, accessible… and he connects with enthusiasm, humility and humor.”
– Joe Craven, multi-instrumentalist and director of Rivertunes Music Camp
“The first time Greg Ruby taught at Django in June his classes were, by our standards, way overcrowded. I tried to tell the participants that others were much smaller and that they were welcome to switch. Nobody did.”
-Andrew Lawrence, director of Django in June
Greg Ruby is an absolute pleasure to study with! I often refer to him to others as my “guitar guru” because he’s soaking with guitar wisdom. I’ve been playing guitar for 25 years and come from a self-taught, rock’n’roll background, which has caused me to miss out on some fundamental skills, mainly reading and theory.
Before I met Greg I was stuck in a rut, not advancing my understanding or playing, and not feeling confident with reading or transcription. And in just over a year, Greg has deeply transformed my understanding of the guitar. He’s helped to advance my rhythmic sense through transcription, exercises, and reading. He’s helped me to expand my reading abilities (not only in treble clef but also in bass clef!). I now feel confident taking any piece of music and starting to interpret it on my instrument.
Greg’s effortless understanding of the fretboard and harmony is intoxicating to witness. Plus he also knows how to explain it in a way that you can understand and grow through your own playing. He’s helped me map the fretboard so I’m actually aware of what notes I am playing – what a revelation!
Greg has a limitless understanding of music (not limited to jazz and swing) and is eager to help you learn whatever you are interested in. Our lessons have spanned from transcribing pygmy music of equatorial Africa to studying counterpoint with Bach’s interventions to notating my own compositions. I leave the lessons feeling inspired and energized. Greg goes above and beyond for his students, and checks in often to make sure you are meeting your goals. Thank you so much, Greg. You’ve elevated my experience not only of guitar, but all music. I become a better music teacher through you.
– Chris Lott, music teacher and musician, wall of ears
I have admired Greg Ruby’s musicality ever since I first saw him perform with Pearl Django more than two decades ago, and I have benefited tremendously from taking a series of week long swing guitar courses with him on two occasions. The first was a course on jazz guitar fundamentals, and I still work with the excellent resources he circulated as part of that course. In fact, the packet for that course remains the most useful jazz guitar primer that I own. The second course I took with Greg included a focus on the virtuosic playing of the Argentine maestro Oscar Aleman (1909-1980), and I’ll never forget the joy I felt as Greg walked the entire class of people through the mind-bending runs that kick off Aleman’s classic recording of “I Got Rhythm.” Newsflash alert: Those runs involve using your thumb to fret some bass notes, but fear not, Greg will show you what you’re capable of playing! A world class musician and an enthusiastic teacher, Greg Ruby is an ideal guitar instructor for jazz beginners and accomplished players alike.
Jeffrey A. Keith, Ph.D., Professor of Global Studies, Warren Wilson College
