Danniel Ribeiro

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Guitar, Electric Guitar, Metal Guitar, Rock Guitar, Punk Guitar, Reggae Guitar, Bossa Nova Guitar, Piano Composition, Guitar for Singers, Classical Orchestration, Composition, Orchestral Arranging, Contemporary Composition, Electronic Music Composition, Classical Composition, Orchestration, Genre-based Production, Music Theory for Producers, Songwriting Harmony, Audio Editing, Audio Fundamentals, Music Theory, Harmony, Audio Recording and Music Production, Brazilian Portuguese
Lesson Fees
$25.00 / 30 Minutes
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About

Composer, guitarist, and educator with a Ph.D. in Music Composition from UC Berkeley. My music has been premiered by JACK Quartet, Yarn/Wire, Schallfeld Ensemble, L'Instant Donné, and Dal Niente at festivals across Europe, North and South America. I've spent eight years teaching at the university level — from intimate seminars to lecture halls of 400 students — and I received UC Berkeley's Outstanding Graduate Student Instructor Award for teaching excellence.

I teach guitar, composition, music theory, improvisation, and music technology (Max/MSP, Ableton Live). My students range from absolute beginners picking up the guitar for the first time to advanced composers preparing portfolios for graduate programs. I also offer guidance on applying to North American music graduate schools — something I've navigated firsthand across four countries.

My training includes a Master's from McGill University (Montreal), a postgraduate diploma from the Conservatoire de Strasbourg (France), and a Bachelor's in Composition and Conducting from the Federal University of Bahia (Brazil). Awards include the De Lorenzo Prize (2025), the George Ladd Prix de Paris, and four Brazilian National Composition Prizes (FUNARTE). Beyond the concert hall, I've produced a major music festival in Brazil (coordinating ~100 events per edition) and worked at UC Berkeley's Center for New Music and Audio Technologies (CNMAT) on interactive systems, corpus-based processing, and signal processing.

Lessons available in English and Portuguese.

Teaching Style

I believe music is learned by doing — and by listening closely to what you're doing. My lessons balance hands-on playing and creating with the conceptual tools that help you understand why something works (or doesn't). I adapt my approach to each student: beginners get clear structure and encouragement; intermediate and advanced students get honest, specific feedback that pushes them toward their next step.

For guitar students, I bring years of hands-on experience in rock, metal, Brazilian popular music (forró, trio elétrico, MPB), and extended techniques — alongside strong foundations in theory and ear training. I've performed and recorded across these styles commercially, and I can help you build solid technique, understand what you're playing, and develop your own voice on the instrument. For composition and theory students, I work with notation software, recording tools, and score analysis to develop both craft and imagination. For those exploring improvisation or electronic music, I emphasize deep listening, experimentation, and building a personal sonic vocabulary.

I also work with students preparing applications for graduate programs in music across North America — including portfolio development, writing support, and strategic advice drawn from firsthand experience at institutions in Brazil, Canada, France, and the United States.

My goal is not to make you sound like me. It's to help you find what only you can hear.

Curriculum

Lessons are tailored to each student's level and goals. A typical lesson includes a mix of playing/creating, targeted exercises, listening examples, and discussion. I assign short, focused tasks between sessions so progress stays consistent without overwhelming your schedule.

For guitar students, I use a combination of tabs, standard notation, and audio/video references depending on your reading level and learning style. I often work with pieces you already want to learn and use them as entry points into technique, theory, and ear training.

For composition and theory students, I work with Sibelius, Finale, or MuseScore for notation, and Ableton Live, Reaper, or Max/MSP for electronic and electroacoustic work. Score study and listening assignments are central to the process.

For students preparing graduate school applications, I provide structured timelines, portfolio review sessions, and feedback on written materials (statements of purpose, project descriptions).

I don't follow a single fixed method book. Instead, I draw from a range of resources depending on the student's needs:

  • Guitar: Hal Leonard Guitar Method; William Leavitt's Modern Method for Guitar (Berklee); Nelson Faria's The Brazilian Guitar Book; custom exercises and transcriptions
  • Music Theory: Kostka & Payne's Tonal Harmony; Aldwell & Schachter's Harmony and Voice Leading; Miguel Wisnik's O Som e o Sentido (for Portuguese-speaking students)
  • Composition: Samuel Adler's The Study of Orchestration; Kent Kennan's The Technique of Orchestration; listening portfolios curated per student
  • Electronic Music / Music Technology: tutorials and patches in Max/MSP and Ableton Live; Andy Farnell's Designing Sound; Curtis Roads' The Computer Music Tutorial (selected chapters)

Materials are shared digitally. Students do not need to purchase books in advance — I provide excerpts and resources as needed.