Bachelor of Music in Performance: Guitar

All students at Berklee College of Music study a principal instrument and will ultimately select a major in their second semester. We offer 15 diverse majors; many students choose performance, the largest major at the college.

The Guitar Department provides individualized instruction in all styles, including jazz, blues, rock, metal, funk, fingerstyle, classical, world music, microtonal music, and the avant-garde.

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Find Your Style

The Berklee Guitar Department allows you to balance the technical with the artistic, all in service of helping you find your voice on the instrument. All styles of playing are offered, including jazz, blues, funk, metal, classical, fingerstyle, and modern improvisation; and you are encouraged to focus or branch out as you wish. Shape your artistic path in a department that trained musicians such as Bill Frisell, Annie Clark (St. Vincent), Kevin Eubanks, Steve Vai, and Emily Remler, among many others.

Financial Aid and Scholarships

Learn about financial aid, scholarships, and others ways of paying for your Berklee education.
Study Abroad

Study abroad at our Valencia, Spain, campus. It is recommended that performance majors study in Valencia during their third, fourth, fifth, or sixth semester. For specific program information, please see the chair of your major or contact the study abroad office.

Our Alumni Network

Angie Swan '05: Guitarist, Bassist, Producer

Accomplished guitarist, bassist, and producer Angie Swan ‘05 has toured with David Byrne, Cirque du Soleil, Fifth Harmony, CeeLo Green, Will.i.am, and many others. Learn about Swan’s experience as a female artist and how her education and network at Berklee continually allow her to make valuable professional connections.

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Award-Winning Alumni

Molly Tuttle '14

Molly Tuttle, a 2014 Berklee alumna, and fellow alumna Sierra Hull B.M. ’11 recently received 2017 International Bluegrass Music Association Awards (IBMA) for Best Guitarist and Best Mandolinist, respectively. Each were the first female instrumentalist to win in their award category since the IBMAs began in 1990.

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Program Details

Full Description

Guitar players majoring in performance learn the skills and concepts required to demonstrate professional-level proficiency on their principal instrument. The curriculum includes private lessons, which comprise proficiency-based final exams, guitar labs, ensembles, and performance studies classes.

Performance majors will complete a series of performance juries, supported by recital preparation. These lead to the final performance, the senior recital, played in one of Berklee’s recital halls. Most students engage in extracurricular concert performances on and off campus.

Performance majors take specialized courses in ear training and harmonic applications. They participate in master classes and perform with visiting artists. This work is designed to deepen instrumental knowledge and musicianship, which are skills that can be applied to a wide range of musical contexts: recording sessions for audio, film, and television; concert performance; festivals; touring; and gigging. Performance majors develop a theoretical, practical, and conceptual foundation that will allow them to adapt to an ever-changing professional environment.

What Will I Learn?

Demonstrate technical proficiency on the guitar, including aural skills (tuning, call and response, hearing changes, etc.), good technique and playing habits (posture, hand position), and the development of expression and tone color.
Improvise using linear and harmonic vocabulary based on diatonic major, pentatonic, natural minor, melodic minor, harmonic minor, whole tone, diminished, chromatic, and modal theory.
Improvise using a variety of song forms, phrase structures, rhythmic patterns, and motives.
Play in ensembles of varying size, instrumentation, and stylistic orientation.
Synthesize and integrate knowledge of posture and instrumental technique into daily practice routine.
Use various web-based performance applications and record performances using a variety of software.
Analyze and transcribe music in a variety of styles.

Entrance Requirements

As a second or third semester student declaring performance as your major, you will be asked to participate in a short audition and interview with the Guitar Department faculty. Details about this process include the following:

For the audition, you will be asked to perform five minutes of prepared music.
Regarding format, you may choose to perform solo guitar, playing with a pre-recorded play-along track, or in a duo or trio (bass and drums)—you will provide the accompanying musicians.
The style of music you choose can be reflective of your own tastes with the objective of presenting your instrumental skills in the most positive light.
You will be evaluated on your potential to be an effective participant in the performance major, and criteria will include time, intonation, tone, touch, execution, and overall musicality. During this audition process, you may be asked to perform some scales, chords, and so on, commensurate with your level of study.

Further information regarding this audition and interview process should be directed to your private lesson instructor, Larry Baione, Kim Perlak, or Rob Ruffin in room 400, 921 Boylston Street.

Curriculum and Courses

There are 30 credits required for this major. To view the full program of study, which includes core music, liberal arts, and general electives, see sample curriculum for the bachelor's degree.

ILGT-119 Guitar Styles Skills
ILRE-375 Recital Workshop for Performance Majors
PSH-xxx Health and Wellness for the Musician
PSHR-321 Harmonic Considerations in Improvisation 1
PFSS-331 Survey of Guitar Styles
PIGT-311 Private Instruction—Guitar Level 5
PIGT-312 Private Instruction—Guitar Level 6
PIGT-411 Private Instruction—Guitar Level 7
PIGT-412 Private Instruction—Guitar Level 8
RPGT-211 Recital Preparation—Level 3
RPGT-212 Recital Preparation—Level 4
RPGT-311 Recital Preparation—Level 5
RPGT-312 Recital Preparation—Level 6
RPGT-411 Recital Preparation—Level 7
RPGT-412 Recital Preparation—Level 8
8 credits of approved specified electives—see the sample curriculum for labs and major electives