Nicholas Spataro

Music has been the throughline of my entire life! From picking up my first guitar as a kid to spending late nights in the studio chasing the right sound for an artist halfway across the world. These days I wear a lot of hats: producer, songwriter, label co-founder, touring guitarist... But teaching has always been the thing that grounds me, because it reconnects me to why I fell in love with music in the first place.

I grew up in the New York area and graduated with a bachelors in Music Production at SUNY Purchase. Although I have formal training, some of my most important musical education happened outside the classroom: in sessions, on stages, and through a lot of trial and error. That balance of formal training and real-world experience is exactly what I try to pass on to my students.

Over the years I've had the privilege of working with hundreds of students across every age and stage from total beginners picking up an instrument for the first time to aspiring professionals trying to break into the industry. Whoever you are and wherever you're starting from, my goal is  to meet you where you are and help you become the musician you actually want to be!

My approach is conversational, project-based, and student-driven. I meet students where they are and build lessons around their goals and musical interests. I believe students learn best when they're working on music they care about, so I lean heavily on real songs, original projects, and creative challenges rather than solely relying on rigid method books. Beyond teaching the how, I place a strong emphasis on giving students the tools to learn and problem solve on their own. I believe that self-sufficiency is one of the most important qualities a musician can develop. I also bring a mentorship mindset to everything I do, helping students build not just technical skills but the long-term creative confidence to keep growing long after our lessons together.