VISITING ARTISTS & INSTRUCTORS

Lisa Carver - (featured guest artist - Guitar in Songwriting) - hit Nashville songwriter and artist, cuts by Sugarland ("Everyday America") and others.

Lisa is not only a hit songwriter with a resume any aspiring Nashville writer would hope to match, but a commanding and compelling artist in her own right. Lisa will discuss how she uses the guitar in her writing process, and how she uses her writer's vocabulary to make the guitar an integral part of the song.

Bill Neale - (Creating Essential Guitar Parts, R&B styles) - Motown house band guitarist, independent producer (Temptations, Deniece Williams, Teddy Pendergrass, and many more)

Bill has had an illustrious career working with artists across the soul and R&B spectrum onstage and in the studio as both session musician and producer. As a former member of the Motown hit machine and producer of hits like Deniece Williams' "Let's Hear It For The Boy", Bill will discuss how to find just the right part to fit into a well-oiled machine like the Motown house band as well as his experience as a producer.

Webb Wilder - (Featured guest artist ) artist/songwriter and roots-rock icon.

Webb is an electrifying performer whose infectious roots-rock brims with wit and soul. A fine guitarist as well as an outstanding songwriter, Webb will discuss the art of driving a song and supporting some of the great lead players he has played alongside.

Denny Sarokin - ("Make Your Guitar Your Co-writer") - Every Mother's Son, Ricky Nelson's Stone Canyon Band, cuts by Crosby, Stills, & Nash and others, author of Lick*tionary: The Songwriter's Guide to Great Guitar and Songwriting in 3D.

Denny's books and videos continue to be top sellers, and his workshop "Make Your Guitar Your Cowriter" is a must for any songwriter.

Ladd Smith - (SOUP Theory & Solos) Ladd Smith is a Recording Artist, Nashville Producer, Guitar Player Magazine's Guitar Hero of 2007 & Author/Instructor of Truefire's 'Monster Nashville Guitar' & 'Modern Nashville Guitar' Instructional Courses. In this class Ladd will be sharing secret insight into the basic principles of his original SOUP Theory as well as how you can apply the fundamentals of 'Simple/Original/Universal/Profound' in the studio & on the stage to maximize the impact of your guitar solos. Ladd's lightning-fast chicken-pickin' won him top honors in Guitar Player Magazine's national "Guitar Hero" competition in 2007, and he has continued to build a reputation as an ace country guitarist.

Chip Henderson - (jazz improvisation) - TSU and Belmont University faculty, respected jazz guitarist and author. Years ago, Chip sold his Stratocaster to immerse himself in jazz, and has since gone on to publish nine books on jazz guitar for Hal Leonard. He taught jazz guitar at the University of Memphis for eight years before moving on to positions at TSU and Belmont.

Mark Robinson- (fundamentals, blues styles) - multi-instrumentalist, producer, and veteran blues/Americana sideman (Tommy Womack, Davis Raines, many more)

Mark is a master instructor with an encyclopedic knowledge of musical styles and a musical history that reaches from playing alongside Buddy Guy in Chicago to producing Americana treasures like Davis Raines.

Dave Isaacs - Summit Coordinator & writer/artist (fundamentals, Nashville Number system, moderator). TSU Music faculty and one of Nashville's most respected guitar instructors.

From his days as frontman for nationally-acclaimed country-rock band Jackalope Junction to his most recent release with his trio DI3, Dave has explored literate singer-songwriter folk, ambient jazz, Americana-soul, and blues-driven swamp rock over the course of his career as an independent recording artist. In addition to his duties at TSU, he maintains a busy teaching studio on Nashville's Music Row working with established and aspiring songwriters and artists.

Lester Ray Sears - (bluegrass flatpicking)

Tiger Fitzhugh - (improvisation) - TSU and Austin Peay guitar faculty.

(bios coming soon)

Jonathan Riggs - (Nashville Number System) - Ever hear professional musicians refer to music as numbers? For example, "Hey Bobby, let's push the 5 going into a diamond on the 1." What does that mean? Breaking the code is not as difficult as you might think. Join us for an interactive overview of the Nashville Number System and other tips for reading and playing like a pro.

Jonathan Riggs is a professional singer, songwriter, and educator. His "gig bag book," Diamond on the 1, takes a "just what you need to know" approach to the Nashville Number System.


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Musicians lead complicated lives and schedules and commitments may change. This website will be updated regularly to reflect any addtions or cancellations.