Photo by Estelle Silberman

Women's School of Rock

Nikki O'Neill is the founder of Women's School of Rock, which is based in Los Angeles. She teaches electric/acoustic guitar, electric bass and theory for songwriters.

Students of all popular styles, ages and playing levels are welcome.

Private and group lessons are available. For more info and rates: nikki@nikkioneill.com

Here's a cool side-note: Nikki used to teach a rock guitar class in NYC at New School University in the fall of 2005. For a class description, click here.

Did you also know this? Nikki went to Sweden in March, 2005, to guest teach at a rock college for women. Read about her trip here.

Nikki O'Neill's former class at New School University, Fall 2005:

Women's Contemporary Rock Guitar (Level 2.7)

With respected players like Sue Foley, Alison Robertson, Deborah Coleman and Jennifer Batten, more women guitarists are gaining attention on the rock and blues scene, and in guitar magazines.

In this class, we learn open-position chords, "power chords" and the strums and muted right-hand techniques used in rock, pop, blues and metal. We explore the pentatonic scale; left-hand skills (bends, vibrato, slides and hammer on/pull-off techniques) and some "classic licks" to build vocabulary for blues and rock solos.

We gain an understanding of songwriting concepts, by learning I-IV-V chords and rock harmony evolving beyond the blues. We learn the fundamentals on guitar pickups, amps and effects pedals. Examples are drawn from 70's, 80's and 90's rock, as well as Bonnie Raitt, Sue Foley, Susan Tedeschi, Heart, Joni Mitchell, Joan Jett, Hole, PJ Harvey and The Donnas.

For more information, call the Guitar Study Center at New School University: (212) 229-5873.