GUITAR INTENSIVE

Study guitar with
Steve Cardenas

Enroll in Sonora Guitar Intensive and study 1-on-1 with Steve Cardenas for 3 months.

Receive lessons, daily feedback on your playing, and a clear path to fretboard fluency.

Apply Now

Limited Availability.

Steve Cardenas

Renowned Guitarist and Educator

Steve Cardenas is a New York City jazz guitarist. Steve was a longstanding member of the Paul Motian Electric Bebop Band , Steve Swallow Quintet and Joey Baron'sband, Killer Joey. He is currently a member of the Charlie Haden Liberation Music Orchestra, Ben Allison & Free Think, John Patitucci Electric Guitar Quartet, Adam Nussbaum Lead Belly Project and Jon Cowherd Mercy Project.

Steve has also been in groups led by Madeleine Peyroux, Norah Jones, Eliane Elias, Marc Johnson, Paul McCandless and Mark Isham.

He has toured extensively throughout Europe, North and South America and Asia, performing at international jazz festivals, theaters, and clubs. Steve is on over 100 recordings as a sideman has released six recordings as a leader, his latest being ‘Blue Has A Range’ on Sunnyside Records.

Steve is on faculty at The New School for Jazz and Contemporary Music in New York City. He has been on the faculty at the California Institute of the Arts, Siena Summer Jazz Workshop, Stanford Jazz Workshop, Banff International Workshop in Jazz and Creative Music, and Brubeck Summer Jazz Colony. Steve is co-author, with editor Don Sickler, of the Thelonious Monk Fakebook, released by Hal Leonard Publishing.

Sonora Guitar Intensive

Made for intermediate guitar players, Sonora is a 3-month intensive program that helps you break through multi-year plateaus and find your creative freedom.

Cutting Edge Software

Absorb, polish, and retain core concepts through accelerated learning and language acquisition techniques.

LIVE Masterclasses

Learn and engage with with industry-leading musicians 5 days per week in our live classes.

Streamlined feedback

Chat with your mentor in real-time. You’ll also get detailed feedback when you share videos of your guitar playing.

A modern approach to study

Unlike private lessons, Sonora's Fellowship students get unlimited access to feedback so learning and progress can happen every day – not just once a week.

THE OLD WAY

Traditional weekly lessons

Students met with an instructor for just an hour, once a week. For the remainer of that week, students were more likely to practice bad habits and progress slowly.

THE MODERN WAY

Sonora's anytime framework

Students get unlimited access to a mentor, 7 days a week. Along with a custom daily practice plan, forward progress can happen rapidly and at any time.

A clear path to
fretboard fluency

Our curriculum helps you achieve a complete understanding of the foundations of music, regardless of your playing style.

Over 20 years experience

Developed by deeply experienced music educators, our comprehensive curriculum identifies the key skills required to advance your musicianship.

Successfully tested by thousands

Our curriculum is proven. Over a thousand Sonora students have successfully broken through their learning plateaus and unlocked fretboard fluency.

Years of study condensed into months

Our students make more progress in 3-6 months of intensive study in our program than most students make in several years.

Grow with our community

Sonora connects you with other intermediate guitar players pursuing creative fluency.

Our community is a great place to find practice buddies, share progress, get feedback, and cheer each other on — all with the support of the whole Sonora team.

Apply Now

Our Program

Join our industry leading guitar intensive program with Steve Cardenas guiding you every step of the way.

BY APPLICATION ONLY

Sonora Guitar Intensive

Included with the program:

  • Unlimited access to Steve Cardenas
  • 1-on-1 lessons w/ Steve Cardenas*
  • Daily video feedback on your playing
  • Custom practice plans
  • Membership to our community
  • Lifetime access to our core curriculum
  • Lifetime access to our learning software
Apply Now

*Pricing depends on duration of study and lesson frequency, apply for a quote.

Not quite intermediate yet?

Check out our Prep Program for beginners