Greg Ruby

I’ve been listening to Jazz for about 25 years now, and I started learning guitar about 5 years ago.  As a fan of Greg’s music for many years, I came to his classes as a beginner/intermediate guitar player.  Immediately I was impressed by three things:  

First, Greg has developed wonderfully well-thought out systems and written materials that are both logical in their structure, and immediately applicable to PLAYING MUSIC, not just practicing it. Through the PDF handouts, the videos following the classes, and his ability to clearly explain complex concepts, he lays the foundation for guitar players of every level.  

Second, Greg’s classes are filled with magical nuggets of wisdom – little tips and tricks that advance your playing immediately. These might be exercises, positional tips, or simple ways of explaining rather opaque concepts – the kinds of knowledge that only comes from decades of experience, and it can take a lot of the frustration out of the learning process.  

Lastly, Greg is able to communicate to the students’ experience in a way that so many players at his level cannot.  He loves what he does, and it shows.  I feel that he truly wants his students to succeed.  The chance to learn from such a gifted performer, historian, and teacher who is generous with his knowledge and materials has been a highlight of my guitar journey.

I discovered Greg’s teaching 3 years ago after seeing a Greg Ruby lesson on chord melody in Acoustic Guitar magazine.  The lesson spoke to me as it was clear,  concise and addressed exactly what I was interested in working on.  I reached out to Greg and have been working with him ever since.

I’m in love with 100 year old music and Greg continues to help me grow with Trad Jazz in particular. My comping, improvisation, repertoire, theory and integration of  chord melody into my playing has increased dramatically. Frankly. I was a low intermediate player and my journey with Greg has helped my musicality grow to levels that I had never imagined I could achieve. I am clearly a stronger and more confident player due to my interaction with Greg, not only with Trad Jazz but also with other genre that I play.

In addition to being a consummate professional player, Greg’s knowledge and communication skills make him a first class music educator. I would be remiss if I did not mention Greg’s finest quality- he is one of best human beings I have come into contact with in my life. A nicer,kinder man you will not find.
 

It’s easy to conclude that Greg is a great musician who understands composition, melody, the mechanics of music, and has a mysterious ability to swing hard. So it’s a real bonus to find that he’s also a great teacher and all-around helluva nice guy.

Kind, patient, respectful and generous, he’s quick to focus on whatever areas of improvement you’re interested in. Whether you’re interested in forming new chord shapes, making sense of melodies, composition, picking techniques to coax just the right sound out of your guitar, composition, or just general guitar talk, it’s obvious that Greg lives a life immersed in music. No matter how much time you’ve spent getting to know your guitar, you can count on Greg to meet you where you’re at and help you find your way to being a better player.

Personally, I’ve been playing guitar for 45 years. After a lesson with Greg, I’ll spend several more hours playing back the video and looking at the PDFs. It feels like I’ve made more progress in the last few months than in the last yen years. It’s been a blast.

I've taken two classes on Swing Guitar with Greg Ruby and have been slowly working my way through his chord melody book. Though I am not a jazz guitarist by any stretch of the imagination, I do really love early jazz guitar music and working with him has improved my playing and understanding of the guitar by leaps and bounds. His teaching style is song-focused. This allows the student to break down theoretical ideas in context. I left Greg's 9-week course being able to play 3 songs, but also had so much material to keep working on developing more intricate versions of the songs on my own. I highly recommend him for his knowledge, teaching style, and the encouraging classroom he creates.

“New to swing and trad jazz? Old to swing and trad jazz? Greg Ruby offers online workshops to take you to your next level! Greg is a superb musician and performer, an excellent teacher/coach, and a great person filled with enthusiasm, patience, and humor.

I’ve played music for decades and turned my attention to jazz/swing guitar about 10 years ago. It just didn’t stick so I let it go. I love the music but couldn’t get it out of my head, into my fingers, and onto my guitar. Greg has changed that over the past year.

Last fall, I started with the Foundations of Swing online course. It was a challenge. I loved it. I was learning, and bits and pieces of each lesson were sticking. The lessons are song/tune-based with a focus on one or more skills (rhythm, chord progressions, passing chords, etc.). I took full advantage of revisiting the videos and handouts between lessons and continue to use them months later. There was a wide range of experience among participants in our class and Greg had something to offer every person at every lesson. He genuinely welcomes all questions and does a fabulous job addressing them.

    I have made more progress in my playing in 6 months of studying with Greg Ruby than I have in the last 10 years of self-directed study. Coming from the world of Lindy Hop, his Foundations course taught me the fundamentals I needed to play the music I’ve danced to for years. I find myself revisiting the course material several times a week, and each time I come away with new insights and an appreciation for just how much knowledge Greg packed into that course.

Greg offers his students unbridled enthusiasm, kindness, and a willingness to meet you wherever you are in your musical journey. His teaching is rooted in a deep love for and understanding of jazz and swing-era music, and his passion is infectious — thanks to Greg’s mentorship, I’ve never been more excited to pick up the guitar every day.

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.