Workshop for the Christian Guitarist

Clinicians

Randall Zwally, Director of Guitar Studies and Senior Lecturer in Music at Messiah College, holds Master's Degrees in Guitar Performance and Library Science (with an emphasis in music librarianship). He has also completed postgraduate music studies at Texas Christian University, Johns Hopkins U., Manhattan School of Music, and Ithaca College. In addition to his applied teaching at Messiah College Professor Zwally teaches the courses “Guitar for the Church Musician” and “Music Through Guitar” and directs the Guitar Ensemble. For three years he co-lead Messiah College’s Cross-Cultural Course to Spain which explored the role of the guitar in the history and culture of that country. He is Director of Messiah College’s two Guitar Workshops (for the Christian Guitarist and for the School Music Educator) which are open to the public. His guitar-related articles are published regularly in: Notes, The National Journal of the Music Library Association. For the past two years he has served on the Board of Directors of the Susquehanna Folk Music Society.

See: Randall Zwally's biography page

Jay Umble has studied with world-renowned guitarists Pat Martino and Joe Diorio and has released three nationally-distributed recordings. His latest recording,“Spirit Crossing” includes international percussionist Jamey Haddad from the Paul Simon Group.

He teaches guitar mechanics, harmony-theory, fretboard integration in addition to general guitar playing. His instructional books and CDs (which are available through Mel Bay Publications) have been endorsed by such guitar greats as Steve Kahn, Pat Martino, Paul Bollenback, Barry Greene, Sid Jacobs.

See: Jay Umble’s biography page

Erik Schlosser is a guitarist in Lancaster County, PA. His musical interests include traditional and modern jazz, classical, popular and the avant-garde.

Erik is a high school music teacher at Manheim Township School District in Lancaster County, PA. He has developed a guitar curriculum which is offered to all high school students as an arts elective. Many high school students have enrolled in this unique guitar program. In addition, he has directed a co-curricular guitar ensemble that performs on campus and in the community.

He has presented workshops and clinics on using the guitar and improvisation in the music classroom and church worship services.

Erik received a B.S. Degree in Music Education from Messiah College in 1999 where he studied classical guitar with Randall Zwally. He has completed post-graduate studies in music education at West Chester University, Villanova University and the University of Hawaii at Manoa. He has studied jazz master classes offered by Jay Umble, Tom Lippincott, and Steve Herberman,

His areas of interest include jazz and classical guitar performance and promoting the use of the guitar in a variety of music classrooms.

See: Erik's website

Rob Zwally has over 40 years of full-time experience in the stringed instrument repair business. He began his career as an apprentice with Vincent De Luccia and Son in downtown Philadelphia, a highly-regarded stringed instrument business known for professional quality building and repair. He then accepted the position of stringed instrument repairman at Beacon Music Co. in Boston, a prominent New England music store and a division of Carl Fischer Music. Presently he works by appointment only in his private shop in Lititz, Lancaster County, PA where his work is factory-authorized for warranty repairs on most major brands of guitars. His professional memberships include The Guild of American Luthiers, The Association of Stringed Instrument Artisans, and The Fretted Instrument Guild of America. He is also a multi-instrumentalist with many years of stage and studio experience.

see: Rob Zwally's professional page