Jack Petersen (guitarist)

Jack Petersen (guitarist)

Jack Leroy Petersen (born 25 Oct 1933 Elk City, Oklahoma) is an American jazz guitarist, pianist, composer, arranger, music publisher, music clinician, and renowned pioneer in jazz education who revolutionized guitar education. He was a pedagogical architect for jazz guitar and jazz improvisation at three institutions of higher learning:

• First full-time jazz guitar teacher at the Berklee College of Music (1962-65 – Inaugural Chair, Guitar Department)

• Longstanding and influential jazz guitar artist in residence at the University of North Texas College of Music (1976-88 – Resident Artist, Jazz Guitar, Improv).

• Joining his close colleague, Rich Matteson, who was recruited from North Texas to build a new program at the University of North Florida focusing on jazz, Petersen built a jazz guitar program (1988–1995; fully retiring 1999 – Resident Artist and Associate Professor).