Probably best known as the owner/instructor at Klotz Guitar Studio or the guy who note-for-note recreates all of the great Steely Dan guitar solos live with the band Reely Dan, Eric Klotz has been a full-time musician for more than 20 years. His experience in a wide variety of musical styles has kept him in demand playing anything from solo jazz guitar to musical theater to large-hall rock performances. Eric can be found performing regularly throughout the Chicago area with Grape Juice Plus (free improvisation/multimedia), Soul Vaccination (funk/soul covers), Reely Dan (Steely Dan Tribute), Red Clay Collective (jazz/rock), Fire Hot Opera (rock/R&B), Rio Bamba (latin jazz), and as a solo guitarist. He is also a composer and in 2008, the Eric Klotz Trio was one of 5 bands in 3 states selected as a finalist to perform for a spot at Minnesota's 10,000 Lakes Festival. Eric has performed with Dennis Tufano (The Buckinghams) and Will Kennedy (Yellowjackets).  Grape Juice Plus has opened for Tony Levin’s Stickmen and jazz-fusion legends, Brand X.

Eric began playing guitar at 9 years old and a few years later developed an obsession with it. He is a recipient of the Louis Armstrong Jazz Award for his performances while still in high school. He holds both a Bachelors and Masters in Jazz Performance and his mentors Dan Phillips and Glenn Ginn are graduates of Berklee College of Music and North Texas State University. As a university student, Eric was routinely hired to perform alongside and as a sub for his instructors.

Eric’s teaching career began in 1999 with a recommendation by one of his college instructors to the area’s largest music store. Since then he has been developing his diagnostic approach to instruction through private lessons and masterclasses in public school systems, music stores, and summer camps. Upon finishing his undergrad in 2002, he was hired as an adjunct instructor at Minnesota State University Moorhead where he taught for 5 years before relocating to Chicago and starting his own teaching studio in 2007. Klotz Guitar Studio has gained a reputation for high quality private guitar instruction and was recognized in CBS Local’s most recent listing of the top 5 places in Chicago for guitar lessons (2015). The studio’s reviews reflect Eric’s ability to connect with people on their musical interests and deliver the information they want. Now more than a decade old, Klotz Guitar Studio has put Eric in his best position yet to help people understand music and how to create it at a higher level with the guitar.

Eric uses Klotz cables live, in the studio, and at Klotz Guitar Studio because they sound better.  Klotz AIS is a separate company and no known relation to Eric.