Born and raised in Nagoya, Japan, Tetsuya Nishiyama is one of the most called upon guitarists in the midwest. Tetsuya enrolled at Northern Illinois University, where he studied with guitar virtuosos Fareed Haque and Bobby Broom. After earning a B.M. and M.M. in Jazz studies, he moved to Chicago and quickly became a part of the city’s growing jazz scene.

Tetsuya’s career highlights include performances with jazz heavyweights Ryan Kisor, George Fludas, Marquis Hill, Adam Larson, Reginald Thomas, Jeff Jenkins, Geoffrey Bradfield, Greg Ward, Christopher McBride, Frank Basile, Ari Brown, Robert Irving III, Marcus Lewis, Tony Monaco, Bobby Floyed, and Victor Garcia, to name just a few. His ability to move seamlessly between diverse styles has made him a side-man with renowned artists such as Buddy Guy, Roy Ayers, The Emotions, Nathan East, and John “JR” Robinson.

Tetsuya has performed at established venues in the midwest such as Green Mill, Andy’s Jazz Club, Jazz Showcase, The Blue Room, the Lied Center in Lincoln, and The Jewel. In addition, he has performed in Chicago Jazz Festival, Glen Ellyn Jazz Festival, Jazz in June and Chicago Blues Festival.

Tetsuya is currently a graduate teaching assistant and working towards his D.M.A. in Jazz Performance at the University of Nebraska – Lincoln, where he teaches courses in Jazz small ensembles and UNL guitar ensemble.

What to expect in lessons with Tetsuya:

• Learning the role of guitar playing within ensembles including pop, rock, blues or jazz
• Improvisation techniques based on ear training, solo transcriptions, and learning repertoire.
• Developing own repertoire for live performances
• Basic ear training and music theory to learn music efficiently
• Improving guitar fretboard knowledge (scales, arpeggios and chords)