Craig Von Berg

Craig Von Berg serves as a Lecturer in the Department of Music within the College of Arts and Humanities at California State University, Fresno. He has taught jazz-related courses at Fresno State since 2000, including jazz ensemble, jazz theory/improvisation, jazz composition/arranging, and the upper-division course Popular Music: Jazz & Rock.

Education:

• B.A. in Theory/Composition, California State University, Fresno
• M.M. in Theory/Composition/Jazz Performance, University of Nevada, Reno

His professional focus centers on jazz performance, composition, and historical analysis of jazz, blues, and rock within their socio-political contexts. He integrates empirical description and critical thinking into music education while expanding into computer music production and cross-genre appreciation.

Von Berg maintains active educational outreach through Valley community colleges and private instruction in piano/composition. He regularly clinics for young jazz students via California Music Educators, Jazz Fresno, and the California Band Directors Association.

He founded and directs the long-running "Jazz Jam at Tokyo Garden" performance series—the Valley's longest continuously operating jazz venue since 2003—and collaborates with major artists including Terence Blanchard, Arturo Sandoval, and Peter Erskine.