Always meant to learn guitar? This is the session you actually do it.

Acoustic Guitar Foundations is for older beginners who want to get playing real songs quickly. No experience needed. Because this room can absorb information faster than the youth section, the pace is quicker and the chord vocabulary goes further — including barre chords and fingerpicking by the end of the session.
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The class plays as an ensemble throughout, choosing a song together and performing it on the final day.

Fall Session Open Now!
Every Saturday, 12:00–1:00 PM in The Pocket

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Single Class: $29  |  Full Session: $192 ($24 per class)

Drop-ins: We recommend reviewing the schedule below before joining.
​If you drop in near the end, you may be joining a class preparing for (or presenting at) the final showcase.

SIGN UP HERE!

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Students Will Learn:

• Chord Basics: Fingerings, open chord shapes, and clean transitions between them.
  
  
• Strumming & Rhythm: Common strum patterns and keeping steady time under a chord change.
  
  
• Fingerpicking & Barre Chords: Two techniques that take you past first-position strumming.
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• Group Playing: Play alongside peers, lock into a shared groove, and perform together.

What To Bring:

Acoustic guitars are available onsite, but students are welcome to bring their own.

The 8-Week Plan:

• Week 1 — Guitar Basics & First Chords: Parts of the guitar, posture, tuning, plus Em and Am in week one.
  
  
• Week 2 — Strumming & Adding G and C: Down-up strum patterns and a four-chord vocabulary.
  
  
• Week 3 — Chord Changes & Timing: Switching cleanly between all four chords while staying in time.
  
  
• Week 4 — Playing Your First Song: Putting chords and strumming together into a complete song.
  
  
• Week 5 — Fingerpicking Basics: Simple picking patterns as an alternative to strumming.
  
  
• Week 6 — Barre Chords Intro: Introducing barre shapes and how they open up the neck.
  
  
• Week 7 — Group Playing & Song Choice: Ensemble playing; choosing the song the group will perform.
  
  
• Week 8 — Group Performance: Performing the song together.

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Meet Your Instructor

Danny Ortiz is a drummer and multi-instrumentalist instructor who has been performing since age eleven and gigging on drums since fifteen. While at George Mason University, he studied under experienced professors and performed in both large and small jazz ensembles, honing his skills as a jazz drummer. Today, he can be caught freelancing around the DC area as a drummer and solo acoustic act. Since beginning his teaching career in 2015, he's helped students learn their favorite songs, develop their playing, improvise, and prepare for auditions, bringing genuine passion and a love of helping others reach their musical goals on the kit.​

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