Rick Beato ’87 MM on Music, Mentorship, and the Meaning of Connection

When Rick Beato ’87 MM first picked up a guitar as a teenager, he had already spent years immersed in classical string playing. Yet something about the instrument changed the way he experienced music. “It was the instrument I felt a real connection with,” he later recalled. That spark of curiosity, and a lifelong drive to understand how music works, has guided every step of his journey.

Beato’s musical foundation began with the cello and double bass, which led him to study jazz and music education at Ithaca College. After completing his undergraduate degree, he came to NEC to pursue graduate studies in Jazz, drawn to the institution’s creative energy and the spirit of collaboration that thrived across disciplines.

Following his time at NEC, Beato returned to Ithaca to teach before shifting his focus toward production and recording. By the mid-1990s, he had become a fixture in Atlanta’s vibrant music scene, working with artists across genres and building a reputation as a versatile producer and educator.

Beato’s most unexpected chapter began decades later, with a YouTube video. In 2015, he posted a short clip of his eight-year-old son, Dylan, demonstrating perfect pitch and remarkable theoretical understanding. The video went viral, and suddenly Beato found himself at the center of an online conversation about how musicians learn and listen.

Today, his YouTube channel has grown into a global classroom with more than five million subscribers. Blending his experience as a performer, educator, and producer. Beato shares accessible lessons, interviews, and insights on everything from harmony to songwriting. He jokingly said,

"I make these videos so I can upload my brain" 

This is an apt description of his mission to make musical knowledge freely available to anyone eager to learn.