Dr. Seth Greenberg – Guitar Coach & Music Educator

I have wanted to take guitar lessons for years but I could not find the teacher I was looking for until seven weeks ago. After taking as many lessons I can tell you that I have found an outstanding teacher, Seth Greenberg. Seth is technically brilliant and his ability to teach is just TERRIFIC!!! He is non-​threatening and very patient. Five stars is not a high enough rating. if you are looking for an outstanding guitar teacher you don’t have to look any further than Seth Greenberg.
Doug Jennings
Pleasanton, California

I started lessons with Seth a few months ago. After lessons with 2 other teachers I can really see the difference in his teaching style. He is patient and methodical in his instruction. He can easily define your strong and weak points and give exercises to progress. Playing along with Seth enforces a sense of timing I was truly lacking. Through his instruction I can understand the importance of this and see I am improving. He gives just the right combination of structure and flexibility. I look forward to every class.

Dr. Seth Greenberg has reintroduced the love of music for my 13 year old son. My son took lessons from several other instructors but always found they were pushing their own agenda and not truly engaged with his interests and what he wanted to learn. Following my son’s first lesson with Dr. Greenberg, my son asked if he could continue lessons with him! That was a first. He is patient, extremely intelligent and engaged with his students. My son is making music on the guitar and we are looking forward to the continued progress with this teacher. He is also very responsive when I message him and also in tune with my son’s taste of music. We are so lucky to have found him and we rate him 5 stars because he has the right balance between teaching and listening to his students to help them achieve their goals.

Seth is an absolutely wonderful teacher. And I cannot emphasize the teacher aspect enough. Over just 3 lessons, he helped me learn a song I wanted to play at my wedding (with almost no prior experience with guitar). He is patient, flexible in his style to match with what worked for me, and has been endlessly supportive. I believe the best teachers adapt to the needs of their students, and Seth excels at this. I give him my strongest recommendation. If you are looking for guitar lessons, he should be your first stop.

Seth played for our Summer Garden party and was fabulous. His guitar background made the event really special. Loved the music selection — variety of lively jazz and popular. Perfect. I would highly recommend Seth given his remarkable talent. He’s reliable, punctual and sure to please your guests.

I don’t have enough words to say that accurately and completely describe my gratitude for Seth’s teaching in my life. Seth taught me for many years and I sought his teaching at various points in my musicianship. He planted seeds in my brain that would later bloom as I began to study music in college.
Seth is a fantastic teacher: I was always provided with enough fundamentals to do the heavy lifting required to progress on the instrument, encouraged to explore my own musical tastes and learn songs I loved, and was always taught with a patience and understanding support that gave me the confidence to push through the awkwardness of expanding my ability on the guitar.
For me, his teaching translated into much more than technical proficiency on the guitar and an understanding of music theory. Seth taught me what it means to have music as a companion in my life, and gave me the tools to discover what that looks like for me.
I highly recommend his teaching to people of all ages and styles; he is truly a once-​in-​a-​lifetime teacher.

One of the most challenging aspects as a beginning guitar player can be knowing where to start. I have had lessons before, but unfortunately not-​so experiences until a good friend of mine recommended Dr. Seth Greenberg. Without a doubt, I am so glad he was recommended! Seth is truly a wonderful instructor, as he made me feel very comfortable and made it easy to learn basic guitar. I love that I didnt feel rushed nor pressured to move onto the next lesson plan until I felt comfortable to continue on. He’s very patient, funny, and made me feel confident playing the guitar. I’ve had previous instructors move on too fast, to where I felt I couldn’t catch up. And if I had to back track, it almost felt like an inconvenience to refresh or review a previous lesson. I feel Seth values his students and ensures his student (s) take away an important learning experience, especially a unique style. I was so excited to learn: strumming patterns, fingerpicking patterns, 12 bar blues, finger placement for chords, guitar scales, major triad positions, and he had me pick 2 songs I loved and wanted to learn to play.
I wanted to learn to jazz, and he made it happen!!! Dr. Seth Greenberg is awesome and i highly recommend him for ALL AGES!!!

Seth is a wonderful teacher and accomplished musician. I have «played» the guitar for the last several years, just strumming and singing. After searching high and low for a teacher with the necessary skills and methodology to teach the fundamentals of guitar, I finally found what I was looking for with Seth.
In the two months since I have started I’ve learned more about guitar than the last few years combined. Can’t recommend it highly enough!

My wife bought me guitar lessons from Seth for a Christmas gift.
I really enjoyed the lessons. Seth is a wonderful patent thoughtful teacher. He listened to my interests, and what I wanted to get out of the lessons and then came up with a series of exercises and lessons which not only helped me to develop my playing, but also coincided with my preferences musically and added some music theory. Too bad my work schedule has prevented me from continuing, but that’s my fault!
Highly recommended.

guitar bucket list — If you want to lay the foundation for excellence with the guitar, I can highly recommend Seth. I had a background in music and piano but at 55 yrs of age, wanted to learn the guitar. Seth did an excellent job of customizing what I already knew about music with what I needed to learn about the guitar and moved at a pace that was both challenging and rewarding for me, while being patient and encouraging along the way. I would recommend him without hesitation to anyone looking to check that ‘always wanted to learn to play the guitar’ box on their bucket list.

Last year, we met Seth in Claremont. My daughter took her first lesson, and I thought that Seth was an amazing teacher. Sadly, Seth had to move to San Francisco, but he was such a good teacher that we wanted to have online lessons with him. Seth is so kind, gentle, and has great manners. He is the best teacher we’ve ever met. My daughter loves Seth as a teacher also. Sometimes, he comes to Claremont and he invites our family to his shows. They are so much fun to watch! Seth will definitely make you want to continue lessons with him and you will most likely learn guitar much more fun with him.

Seth is both an amazing musician and an amazing instructor. His talent really shines with his ability to both nurture and push his students to become better musicians. I took lessons from Seth for about four months and when I started, I was brand new to playing guitar and to music. Seth was patient and listened to my musical goals. He taught me to read music, and play some basic songs through sight reading as well as a multitude of chords. Most importantly Seth makes playing the guitar fun. With every student there are struggles, but he encourages students to excel. I could not imagine a better instructor or person to take lessons from. If you or your child wants to learn how to play the guitar or improve upon your skills, give Seth a call. You will not be disappointed. I would still be seeing Seth every week if I hadn’t moved away!

I have a 7 year old boy who on his own cognizance exhibited the desire to learn the guitar. That was a year ago. We set up a time to visit a local music school and were introduced to Dr. Greenberg, the resident guitar instructor. Dr. Greenberg came across as a calm and warm man an my son took to him immediately. Thus he began instruction with Dr. Greenberg. Starting from a complete newbie, I quickly began to notice that he was progressing rapidly and proper tunes were emerging from his strumming! I found this astonishing not least of all because I had not witnessed such a transition before (not surprising because I don’t teach music!). What was more important was that Yen (my boy) stuck to the instrument despite having the typical short attention span of a boy of this age. When Dr. Greenberg moved from the school and set up his own academy, we had no hesitation in having Yen move with him and continue lessons. Thus we were saddened when Dr. Greenberg eventually moved out our area altogether. However, he has left a 7 year old behind who continues to play with enthusiasm (now with another instructor) and remembers his old mentor with great fondness. I owe Dr. Greenberg a lot… he has crafted a burgeoning musician in our family and this we will cherish for long! Best wishes Dr. Greenberg!

Both of my daughters took guitar lessons from Dr. Greenberg at the tender age of 7, and it was a wonderful experience for both of them! He is patient and supportive, gently building confidence and ability while fostering a general love of music. Seth is extremely knowledgeable of many music genres, and he encourages students to play what they enjoy. His passion for music is inspiring and contagious! Though my daughters ended up choosing piano, I credit Seth Greenberg with teaching them how to read music and follow tempo, and for giving them a solid and lasting foundation.
Aside from being a wonderful teacher, Seth is also a great person and an AMAZING guitarist! We make it a point to hear him perform whenever we can. I just can’t say enough about him!

I have been a student of music since the fourth grade — clarinet, saxophone, and guitar — and have had many, many music teachers throughout the years. Seth stands out from the rest because he not only loves making great music, he loves teaching and working out the challenges of each student. His knowledge and love of music is expansive (his PhD in musicology speaks to that), and, most importantly, he knows how to translate that knowledge into a language that each student can understand.
There is no reason to look any further for an exceptional musician and teacher — regardless of your age, abilities, or goals.

Great guitarist! Played during our wedding. Beautiful music! Would re-​hire…

Seth is wonderful teacher with a great deal to offer beginners and experienced players alike. I fall in to the latter category and Seth really helped me break through to a level of playing that I would have never believed was within my reach. I even sent my daughter to him and she is a trombonist! His approach to improvisation is not limited to guitar. Seth’s studio is conveniently located in a lovely Claremont neighborhood with plenty of parking. He is reasonably priced and can accommodate those with demanding schedules (like mine).I can highly recommended him to all aspiring or accomplished guitarists, or anyone with an interest in jazz improvisation.

I took a group guitar class with Seth and I also took private lessons with him. He adapted well to our needs in the group class and also to my own needs in the private lessons. We worked on reading the music and improvising, and worked on both rhythm and lead playing. Seth is well organized and very knowledgeable about music. My area of interest is Rock and Blues and even though Seth’s area of specialty is jazz, he easily answered all my questions and I was able to walk away a better guitar player. Seth is an amazing guitar player –benefit from his experience by taking some lessons!