Andrew M. Cavallo

I offer three courses of study for guitarists interested in rock, hard rock, and melodic heavy metal. As a former student of Joe Stump, I specialize in neoclassical rock guitar. My own original music, which you can hear on my Rumble channel , fuses Medieval, Renaissance, and Baroque musical influences with rock guitar.

The appropriate course of study depends upon the student's individual interests and goals.

Performer Track

Designed for guitarists whose primary goal is performance.

Students build a challenging repertoire of complete musical works while developing the technical and musical skills necessary to perform them with confidence and expression. Each piece serves as an opportunity to study technique, phrasing, improvisation, ornamentation, music theory, and musical interpretation within a genuine musical context rather than through isolated exercises alone.

Composer Track

Designed for guitarists whose primary interest is creating original music.

Students work progressively through the subjects outlined below in a hands-on manner by studying complete musical works, composing original music, and receiving detailed feedback throughout the creative process.

For an example of this approach, see my measure-by-measure analysis of a Vivaldi-inspired guitar solo from my original song Teutonic Knights .

Foundations of Tonal Music

• Melody and motivic development
• Harmony and voice leading
• Counterpoint
• Phrase structure and musical form
• Chromaticism
• Large-scale musical forms
• Arrangement and orchestration

Foundations of Medieval & Renaissance Modal Music

• Modal melody and harmony
• Modal counterpoint
• Cadential practice
• Ornamentation and diminution
• Musica ficta and modal chromaticism
• Renaissance musical forms
• Applying modal techniques to original rock, melodic metal, and neoclassical composition

Recording & Music Production

• Recording techniques
• Digital audio production
• Mixing
• Mastering
• Developing an initial musical idea into a finished recording

Performer–Composer Track

Many students wish to develop both as performers and composers.

This course of study combines the Performer and Composer Tracks into a unified program of technical development, repertoire, improvisation, composition, arrangement, recording, and production. The objective is to develop complete musicians whose principal instrument is the guitar.

Lesson Format

• Private online lessons conducted via Zoom.
• Minimum lesson length: one hour.
• Longer sessions are available for composition, recording, and other extended creative projects.
• Scheduling based on mutual availability.