European Guitar Teachers Association

EGTA’s Aims & Purpose

EGTA (UK) (Registered charity number 1125411) exists ‘To advance education for the public benefit in classical guitar playing in particular but not exclusively by the promotion of classical guitar playing classical guitar concerts and educating young people in the study of the classical guitar.’

Broadly speaking our operational aims are to continue to improve the standard of guitar teaching, to raise the status of the instrument, and to widen interest in classical guitar playing.

We endeavour to achieve these goals through organising and helping to organise events; running an annual conference; providing advice and guidance to newly-qualified classical guitar teachers; campaigning for changes in curriculum and syllabus; advocating the inclusion of classical guitar teaching methods throughout UK music education; reaching out to our European colleagues for mutual support and solidarity.

Member Participation

EGTA (UK) is administered by a national committee which also organises the annual conference. Recent internationally-renowned visitors include Jad Azkoul, Gilbert Biberian, Craig Ogden, Gary Ryan, Sean Shibe, James Westbrook, Xue-fei Yang; and notable past contributors have included Julian Bream, Antonis Hatzinikolaou, Giulio Tampalini and Graham Wade.

Members are kept abreast of news and events, and are encouraged to become actively involved within the Association. We publish a regular newsletter which is sent out to members in the UK and abroad. At present this is produced three times a year. We are actively looking to increase this to quarterly and to also make it available electronically for members who so wish.

We have also recently started to circulate e-mail bulletins to members as a way of filling in some of the gaps between the newsletter publications.

All members can submit proposals to the committee for consideration to run local meetings, concerts and seminars under the EGTA banner. Involvement in ‘local’ activities during 2014 and 2015 included Bowden Arts one-day workshops with Allan Neave (Linlithgow) and Simon Thacker (Perth), The Stoke Newington Guitar Festival (London), Exam Preparation training day (Yehudi Menuhin School), Tone-production residential weekend with Gaelle Solal (Cheshire).

Furthermore all members are heartily encouraged to take an active part in our Facebook and Twitter pages and to tell all their friends and colleagues about the discussions and debates taking place there!

Facebook (https://www.facebook.com/europeanguitarteachersassociation)

Twitter (https://twitter.com/EGTA_UK)

Some EGTA(UK) Achievements To Date

The National Youth Guitar Ensemble

EGTA founded the National Youth Guitar Ensemble in 2000. In time NYGE has become an established and respected provider of the country’s best available ensemble training for young people.

Its twice-yearly residential training courses culminate in highly-regarded and successful concerts across the UK. The consistent professional and supportive work over many years of (amongst others) Chris Susans, Gerald Garcia and Liz Larner has allowed the ensemble to evolve into a unique and admired operation.

In 2015 a difficult but necessary decision was reached, in conjunction with all interested parties, to transfer the administration of NYGE to a new home within the specialist youth music charity The Arts Circus. This move was completed in October 2015 and the ensemble has already expanded its operations to include more auditions and performance opportunities.

EGTA(UK) and all our colleagues wish NYGE well in its new home both now and in the future.

Publications

EGTA has increasingly used its resources to enable projects to be born, to develop and to flourish.

The EGTA Series published initially by Chanterelle, including the One+One and Solo Now books, along with The Baroque Book and Classical Book, is an early example of EGTA’s vision. All the books are extremely popular and are used internationally, not least as set pieces in the syllabuses of the leading examination boards. The publisher Chanterelle was recently incorporated as an imprint of Musikverlag Zimmerman who continue to produce the books. Please see the page this web-site (‘Publications/The EGTA Series’) for more information.

Our own in-house formal production, Guitar Forum, developed into the first and only scholarly publication in English devoted to the teaching of the classical guitar, and its international acclaim is growing. Guitar Forum grew out of EGTA’s Guitar Journal periodical, and the articles first published there are gradually being made available on line, attracting many visits each month.

Syllabus Reform

Please see the web-page ‘About Membership’ for more information on our work in this area so far.

The European Guitar Teachers Association was founded in 1990 following preliminary meetings instigated by Gordon Crosskey, professor of guitar at Manchester’s Royal Northern College of Music. John Williams has been its Honorary President since that time.