Roger Hudson was born into a musical family in Falls Church, Virginia (suburban Washington D.C.).  He grew up hearing the sounds of singing, harmonica, flute, piano, banjo, fiddle and guitar.  It was the sound of the guitar that intrigued Roger the most.  His first chords and notes on the guitar where made around age 5 – pretending to be one of The Beatles.  At age 12 Roger began to imitate the high-amplitude bluesy sounds of Eric Clapton, Duane Allman and Jimi Hendrix during rock music’s “Golden Age” of guitar heroes.  It was also at this time, he began to develop his composing skills.  By his high school years, Roger became a proponent of the energetic jazz fusion of Jeff Beck, Al Dimeola, and John McLaughlin as well as cultivating an interest in progressive rock and art music.  In the 60’s and 70’s Washington D.C. was a haven for classical guitar at a time when that style of playing was relatively unknown in the U.S.  Roger was made aware of local guitarists such as Sophocles Papas, Charlie Byrd, and the recordings of international figures like Andres Segovia and Julian Bream.

Although having great affection for the guitar, it was his desire to be a composer that eventually led Roger to study the classical guitar.  His classical teachers have included Fred Sabback, Christopher Berg, John Sutherland and Christopher Parkening.  As a composer, Roger is primarily self-taught but holds a Master’s degree in Music Theory from Georgia State University.   Roger’s composing abilities have led to accolades from legendary figures.  Chet Atkins spoke of Roger’s “great compositions”.  The illustrious guitarist/composer Jorge Morel has characterized Roger’s work as “a style all his own”.

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