Hi there! Thanks for visiting my site. My name is Christian Botta and I’m a guitar teacher and performing musician with lots of experience and training. I work in NYC but I’m available for ZOOM lessons far and wide. I teach all levels of students, from total beginners (click links to check out a lesson) to people who are in bands and quite accomplished in their own right. I teach technique mainly through songs, solos and licks, focusing on what’s needed to get the job done. I don’t use a lot of exercises, although I do recommend practicing scales.
I’ve performed tons of different types of music so my teaching is informed by that. From classic rock and alternative rock to blues and different styles of singer-songwriters, I’ve backed up lots of people, been in collaborative bands and I’ve had my own band on the blues and r&b circuit for over ten years, called Saints and Sinners. I write original songs and we have an album out on SoundCloud. I’m also very happy teaching music theory and fundamentals. Lead guitar and finger-picking are two of my high-skilled areas along with slide guitar.
But let me tell you a little story. Before I went to college, I had to learn classical guitar in a hurry in order to pass the audition to the Mannes College of Music. I was practicing six hours a day working from books and I was getting somewhere, but with many miles to go. Then I took a lesson from the wife of my prospective teacher at Mannes, her name is Laura Oltman. Let me tell you, I learned so much in that one lesson – with all the time I put in, that one lesson transformed my whole technique, hand position and approach to the classical guitar. I remember and think about things that she told me to this day. You should think about that sometimes when you’re spending hours looking at youtube videos and you’re not making the progress that you think you should. Lessons help, a lot!
You can reach me through this site (leave a comment) but better still my email and phone number are here. My lessons are very affordable. If you have questions, please don’t hesitate to ask. -Christian Botta
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