Events
November 2019
There was dancing in the street this month when Oxford University Press released Christopher Berg’s The Classical Guitar Companion.
January 10, 2020
Christopher Berg performs music by Ponce, Villa-Lobos, and Castelnuovo-Tedesco in Sumter, SC
Sunday, March 22, 2020
Soprano Tina Stallard & Christopher Berg perform Mátyás Seiber's Four French Folk Songs @ UofSC.
Performing
Christopher Berg’s experience performing early music on lutes and guitars has afforded him a unique perspective when performing the standard classical guitar repertoire. He also believes each artist has a responsibility to create something that never existed before.
Teaching
Although Christopher Berg’s teaching is systematic, he teaches each student rather than a system. His pedagogy unites critical thinking and problem-solving skills with refined artistic sensitivity. Read more about his approach to teaching here.
Recordings
The Pilgrim Forest is a musical novel, a wordless story told in music of a traveller who has strayed from the main road in search of truth. Although conceived as an hour-long cycle, each piece also stands alone.
Resources
Here you will find free downloads of scores in the public domain edited by Christopher Berg, teaching handouts, and selected writings. Some are available as PDFs, ePub, and mobi files.
Books
Mastering Guitar Technique is packed with information about what constitutes good positioning and movement and how best to cultivate these. Giuliani Revisited re-imagines Giuliani's famous 120 right-hand exercises. The Classical Guitar Companion is an anthology of essays and study pieces unprecedented in its organization.
Scores
Scores of Christopher Berg’s compositions from The Pilgrim Forest are gradually becoming available. “Lullaby Blue”, “Pavane for All Souls,” and “Waltz of the Hermit” are currently available. The rest will be added soon.
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Christopher Berg and Andrés Segovia Los Angeles, 1981
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"Lullaby Blue touched me so deeply that the tears kept falling. It was obvious after the Haydn that we were in for a real treat, but I was unprepared for the deep connection to The Pilgrim Forest selections."
—Cindy (SC)
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"We have since bought your CD The Pilgrim Forest and look forward to listening to the whole collection—as soon as we can stop listening to "Lullaby Blue" over and over."
—Sandra (IN)
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"I just want to thank you for your book about guitar technique. I have suffered from dystonia, but now the problems are definitely solved thanks to your writing. You understand the rest! I will always refer to you when I feel that I'm slipping back into my old technique again."
—Bo L. (Sweden)
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Mr. Berg’s analysis is among the most thorough and professional to come my way…. If you are having real problems playing clearly, efficiently and in a relaxed manner, Mastering Guitar Technique could be the book for you to read and open up your technical know-how.
—Classical Guitar Magazine (Great Britain)
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Berg’s performance is beautiful. His sound, his sense of progression, and level of artistic intensity are compelling and make repeated hearings of this recording very enjoyable.
—Soundboard, journal of The Guitar Foundation of America
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Christopher Berg gave a stellar display of guitar virtuosity Tuesday night… His technique was awesome!
—Post and Courier (Charleston, SC)
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Christopher Berg’s Sunday afternoon recital at the Columbia Museum of Art left the standing-room-only crowd eager for more!
—The State (Columbia, SC)
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The full house was treated to an outstanding performance…. His lyrical phrasing and rich tone exemplified the romantic potential of the guitar in the hands of a master.
—Post and Courier (Charleston, SC)
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The Rodrigo concerto was electrifying…
hugely enjoyable and freshly played.—The State (Columbia, SC)
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A man with no technical boundaries, angelic composing abilities, simply breathtaking! This album tells a terrific tale, and is full of imagination. From start to finish, Mr. Berg is able to touch on every human emotion. It is a wonderful contribution to the ever-growing guitar literature.
—Chad
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Packed with pleasure… expertly played guitars and lutes… wondrously nimble passage work.
—The State (Columbia, SC)
Classical Guitar at the University of South Carolina
Excellence in Performance and Pedagogy
Classical Guitar And Lute
The University of South Carolina Classical Guitar Program has dedicated itself to attracting accomplished young guitar students from across the country, in addition to talented South Carolina residents, and providing them with superior training as performers and teachers. USC guitar students and recent graduates have distinguished themselves as recipients of major grants and awards, Emmy nominations, artists-in-residence for southern arts commissions, soloists with regional symphony orchestras, faculty members at U.S. universities, colleges, and conservatories, and as winners and finalists in major national and regional competitions: MTNA Collegiate Artist Auditions, Society of American Musicians Young Artist Competition, Augusta Symphony Paganini Competition, South Carolina Philharmonic Orchestra Young Artist Competition.
The Classical Guitar Companion
Published by Oxford University Press in November of 2019, The Classical Guitar Companion features over 200 examples, etudes, and pieces organized to help serious guitar students better navigate the shoals of becoming well-trained and expressive artists. Rather than try to shepherd each student down the same path, the book allows students to approach their training within a flexible and personal curriculum based upon their weaknesses and strengths.
