Aspiring Guitarists, Take Note

Renowned Instructors, Successful Alumni

The Guitar Seminar was created and directed by Shea Welsh (MM ’01), who earned a master’s degree from the Studio Guitar program. A guitarist, songwriter, producer and educator, Welsh has shared the stage with the likes of U2 and the Red Hot Chili Peppers, can be heard on film and TV, and is a Blujazz recording artist who performs jazz regularly. 

“After I earned my Master’s degree from the Studio Guitar program, I was asked by then chair of the department, Richard Smith, to create and run the USC Summer Guitar Seminar,” Welsh said. “The clean template allowed us to design a program that would really give an aspiring young guitarist a true taste of what majoring in music would be like while also filling in gaps of knowledge in theory, sight-reading, improvisation, ensemble performance practices, and an introduction to composing and songwriting.”

In addition to Welsh and Stoubis, exceptional Thornton faculty members Steve Trovato and Tim Kobza have taught annually in the program, and many other faculty and alumni come in for guest seminars or master classes.

The primary purpose of the program, Welsh said, is to teach students about music and guitar and to help them develop their playing skills at the highest level possible.

“As high school guitarists can vary wildly in their formal musical education, we always made the main requirement and qualification be a student’s willingness to work hard and tackle the challenges of a rigorous program,” Welsh said.

For a full month on campus, students attend daily classes and clinics with Studio Guitar faculty and other renowned guitarists and educators. In addition to studying theory, technique, sight-reading and songwriting, students learn about the profession, attend concerts in Los Angeles and get multiple opportunities to perform. 

“It prepares students for studying music and provides them with prerequisite skills, including rehearsing music, working with other musicians, professionalism, common practices in the profession, collaborating with other musicians, collaborating with faculty, and communication of ideas, whether musical or beyond. It serves them well whether they choose to apply to USC or any other music school,” said Stoubis, who had just received an email from a seminar alum who had earned a DMA. 

He added that other seminar alumni were currently in Thornton’s DMA program. And, like Miller, many alumni of both the seminar and USC have built successful careers. 

For example, after earning his bachelor’s degree in Popular Music, singer-songwriter-musician Alec Benjamin (BM ’10) had a 2018 hit, “Let Me Down Slowly,” on the top 40 in 25 countries; it garnered 1.4 billion listens on Spotify. His 2020 album climbed to No. 8 on Billboard’s Top Album Sales chart. 

Or consider Studio Guitar/Popular Music alumna Emily Rosenfield (BM ’11). She is a guitarist, producer and arranger whose career highlights include appearances on “The Tonight Show with Jimmy Fallon” and “Late Night with Seth Meyers,” producing music for the Disney Channel and being the first woman to play guitar for the hit Broadway musical “Hamilton.” Most recently, she’s performed with Olivia Rodrigo and Post Malone.

“It’s been amazing to watch my Instagram feed and see our Guitar Seminar alumni first matriculate into USC, or another great music school, and then to also go onto amazing careers,” Welsh said. “It was a pleasure to run the program for the first 18 years, and I’m excited to be part of it as it starts its next 18-year run.”