Diana Alvarez
Vocalist, guitarist, songwriter, and educator with a PhD and a love for teaching soulful music of all styles
Bio
Dr. Diana Alvarez is a vocalist, guitarist, songwriter, and educator, who is passionate about sharing their vast musical experience with students of all ages. Versed in a wide array of styles and genres, Diana enjoys teaching jazz, pop, musical theater, rock, country, and Latin. With a Ph.D. in Electronic Arts, MFA in Poetry, and a Bachelor’s degree in music, Diana specializes in nurturing artistry, expressions and helping students develop a unique musical voice.
Originally from Corpus Christi, Texas, Diana started studying music at age 11. Under the mentorship of the late multi-instrumentalist, performer, and recording studio founder, Linda Flores, Diana performed and recorded music professionally from the age of 14. Alvarez went on to study voice, music, and writing as an undergraduate student, and earned an MFA in Poetry at Sarah Lawrence College as part of a mission to refine their songwriting.
Diana continued to earn a Ph.D. in Electronic Arts at Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute, where they were mentored by groundbreaking composer Pauline Oliveros. While at Rensselaer, Alvarez studied composition, songwriting, voice, and guitar alongside their research of multimedia performance and QTBIPOC artist gatherings. As a postdoctoral teaching fellow, Diana taught music and designed the first-ever songwriting curriculum to be taught at Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute. Alvarez has since been a faculty member at Bard Microcollege Holyoke, Holyoke Community College, Upward Bound Summer Academy, and Greenfield Community College, to name a few.
As an instructor, Diana passionately nourishes the artistry of vocalists, musicians, and artists through joyful, dynamic, student-centered teaching and performance. They specialize in supporting students who want to create and perform music that is soulful, regardless of style and genre. Diana’s motivation is to help aspiring musicians see a true transformation in their musical abilities, whether they’re children studying music for the first time, teens and adults returning to music, or established performers looking to better their craft.
Schedule Lessons
STEP 1
BOOK
Choose your lesson from the list and pick a good day and time. You can even schedule recurring or multiple lessons and sync lesson times with your Google, iOS or Outlook calendar. Want to get some lessons for a friend or loved one? Private music lesson gift certificates are available here.
STEP 2
PAY
We accept all major credit and debit cards as well as PayPal. You can choose to pay as you go, buy multiple lessons in advance, or set up autopay – whichever works best.
STEP 3
PLAY
We’ll text you a couple of days before your lesson to remind you that it’s almost music time.
On lesson day, come to our studio in Lafayette or login to your remote music lessons from wherever. Your instructor will meet you right on time so you can dive into music right away. Before your lesson is up, we’ll make sure you have a handle on your practicing assignments and double check that you have everything you need to practice at home.
Have questions about anything? We’re here to help! Hit us up and we’ll figure it out together.
Reviews
We are the highest rated music studio in the Bay Area and maintain a 5-star rating on Yelp, Facebook, Google and Thumbtack. Check out what our students have to say about their experience at ModernTone.
Voice Lessons Gift Certificate
Looking for a unique music gift that the singer in your life will love? Get them lessons with a professional vocal coach! Gift certificates are available for all types of singing lessons and are great for both experienced vocalist and first timers.
More Info
ModernTone is located in the heart of downtown Lafayette at 1018-B Almanor Ln, Lafayette, CA 94549. We have a private parking lot and street parking is easy and plentiful. The studio’s location is right off the freeway so getting here from Walnut Creek, Orinda, Moraga, Martinez, Danville, San Ramon, Pleasant Hill and Concord is a fast and simple.
Lessons are $90 for a full hour and $55 for half-hour sessions. We recommend weekly lessons, but you are free to set the lesson frequency as you wish. We also offer monthly lesson plans designed for committed students who take lessons regularly. We respectfully request at least 24 hours notice for cancellations. No-shows and lessons cancelled less than 24 hours in advance will be charged in full.
- We believe in pushing our students to their full potential, but doing so in a positive, nurturing and encouraging way
- We believe that matching students with the right instructors help to form a better human connection between them and leads to better, happier students
- We believe that music should be learned in a soulful, inspiring, and comfortable environment, using hi-end professional gear.
Our teaching and recording studios have been built from the ground up with acoustics and soundproofing in mind. We designed the spaces to be ideal for music teaching and recording. We handpick all of our amps, instruments, and accessories, and pride ourselves with using high-quality equipment that is made in the USA.
Don’t take our word for it – read what our students have to say:
Let's Talk
Drop us a line and let us know what you are thinking. We typically respond in minutes, but it can take up to 24 hours when things are super busy.
