Doctorate Degree in Music
Graduate-level expertise dedicated to offering you the best resources and guidance.
Dr. Costa's Mentorship
Private Guitar Mentorship
Learn to play guitar effortlessly — with less tension and more music: a relaxed, natural touch that uses no more effort than the music needs, smooth string release, decisive position shifts, and a calm, focused mind. Taught by a 10-time international competition winner (including 3rd Prize at the GFA), Carnegie Hall performer, and Doctor of Music.
10 International Competition Wins
Including 3rd Prize at the GFA — technique, artistry, and experience that translate into actionable advice for your playing.
Carnegie Hall Debut
Performances on world-class stages to inspire your musical journey.
Second edition · 23 chapters
The Effortless Guitarist
Everything I teach in mentorship, written down. Your fretting fingers were never meant to supply the force — your arm already weighs more than any note needs, and learning to let that weight through is the difference between an arm that finishes an hour tired and one that finishes the way it started. Plus the two practice strategies I lean on hardest: a game that makes what you find dependable, and the questions that decide what you work on at all.
Read it inside My Practice Canvas, with every future update included free — the second edition added two full chapters, and everyone who already owned the book got them at no cost.
One-time payment · lifetime updates · read on any device
Request a Complimentary First Video Assessment
The first step is a focused assessment of your playing. I will invite you to my online studio, ask you to send one short video, and send a first assessment of what I observe, what the first priority may be, and whether ongoing mentorship makes sense.
VERY IMPORTANT!! → IF YOU DON’T RECEIVE MY EMAIL, PLEASE CHECK YOUR SPAM FOLDER FOR MY RESPONSE!!
Areas I Can Help With
Whether your goal is classical guitar, improvisation, theory, rhythm, or another style, the work begins with the same question: what outcome do you want, and what is getting in the way?
Classical Guitar
Refine your technique, sound, interpretation, and comfort on the instrument. I help you identify the habits that create tension or limitation, then build a clearer path toward effortless playing.
Solo Guitar Improvisation
Develop the ability to create music on the guitar without feeling trapped by patterns. The videos below were created on the fly, with no preparation — pure improvisation. We can work on harmony, phrasing, fretboard awareness, and the confidence to let ideas unfold naturally.
Electric Guitar
Improve consistency, phrasing, fretboard control, and musical confidence. Whether you are working on technique, improvisation, or original music, I can help you organize the next step.
Acoustic Guitar
Build a more controlled and expressive approach to steel-string playing, from fingerstyle technique to harmony, rhythm, and arranging ideas across the neck.
Ukulele
Use guitar-based musical understanding to make the ukulele feel clear, expressive, and accessible, whether it is your first instrument or a companion to guitar.
Music Theory and Appreciation
Understand how music works so your playing becomes more intentional. We can connect theory to the fretboard, repertoire, improvisation, and the way composers create meaning.
Rhythm Mastery
Strengthen your sense of pulse, subdivision, groove, and rhythmic confidence so you can practice and perform with greater security.
YouTube Performances
Explore more performances, improvisations, and teaching ideas on my YouTube channel.
Hear My Complete Repertoire
Beyond the samples above, my full performance archive is searchable below — hundreds of performances, improvisations, compositions, and teaching videos from my channel.