Silvan Joray

I discovered my passion for music and guitar early on. Music is my life and I have been sharing this passion with my students since I was 15 years old. During my 12 years of teaching, I have seen kids grow up together with their instruments, adults take their first steps in their musical life, but also helped young adults get into college and even professional guitarists broaden their knowledge. I'm looking forward to meeting you and supporting you on your personal musical journey!

Hi, I'm Silvan! I was born and raised in Switzerland where I studied classical guitar for 8 years, before switching to electric guitar and discovering my love for jazz. I graduated with a bachelor's degree in jazz guitar performance (2018) and a master's degree (2020) in music pedagogy from Jazzcampus in Basel, Switzerland. I have released two albums as a bandleader and appear on four other albums as a collaborator. I'm honored to have won prizes at international competitions in South Africa and Poland, and have played concerts and tours in Switzerland, Germany, Spain, the UK, Poland, Norway, Israel, and of course here in New York.

Every person has a different way of learning, so I like to tailor my lessons to every student's specific needs and apply a student-centered approach whenever possible. The most important thing is that the lessons are fun and that we establish a positive environment of trust. Trusting that it is okay to make mistakes and to be yourself. This ensures sustained motivation and progress, and enriches the students' lives in a substantial way.

I accept students of all ages and levels. Together we will develop a personal practice plan for you, based on your interests and goals.

Wether you our your kid are just starting out and want to learn some basics (reading music, playing songs, accompanying yourself or others for singing), or you've already been playing for a while and looking to get into music college, or you're an adult who's always wanted to play guitar (it's never too late!) or even a professional who would like to broaden their horizons and dig deeper into their creative voice – I can't wait to meet you and share my passion for music with you!

Here are some possible topics:

- repertoire in various styles (jazz, classical, pop, rock)

- developing a practice routine

- fretboard overview

- right hand technique (different strumming and picking styles etc.)

- left hand technique (legato, bending etc.)

- scales

- arpeggios

- chords and voicings

- reading music

- ear training

- music theory

- composition

- arranging for guitar