About us
The guitar occupies a unique place in the hearts and hands of players and enthusiasts alike, unequalled by that of any other instrument - its place in popular culture has been assured for all time over the last hundred years, its elegant presence has been felt for more than four hundred years and its impact on music has probably never been stronger than it is today.
At the IGF (International Guitar Foundation) we've understood and embraced this appeal wholeheartedly for the last fourteen years.
We've nurtured and celebrated the varied pleasures of this beautiful and multi-faceted instrument with unparalleled dedication. We've promoted concerts and recitals all over the country, from The Royal Festival Hall and the Sage Gateshead, to schools and youth clubs and in every field of music, from classical to blues, from flamenco to jazz and from rock, via folk, to world music. We've taught the guitar in schools around the country, staged educational programmes at all levels and organised festivals, seminars and workshops nationwide and at our famous summer schools in Bath. We have commissioned and recorded more ‘serious’ new music for the guitar than any other institution and so have created a heritage of contemporary music for the future through this dedication to new work.
From primary-school kids through to aspiring teenagers, twenty- and thirty-somethings and middle-aged, middle-management escapees, up to eighty-year-old retired enthusiasts, all of these people regularly choose either to learn with us or to listen with us, whether they are beginners, teachers or professionals of recognised status. The resurgence of the guitar amongst young rock bands is as marked now as it was during the fifties and sixties. This appeal brings many to our doors to explore the wider knowledge we offer.
