- Performed for five U.S. Presidents and the Pope
- Juilliard-trained
- Instrumental pop songs
- Classical guitar
Personable and a pleasure to listen to.
So professional and OMG can he play his instrument. Wish I could listen to him in concert. Truly an outstanding addition to my party.
Ben was absolutely wonderful! He communicated clearly beforehand and was very polite and professional. He arrived early to the event and played beautifully! I can't express how wonderful and talented he was onsite. We received several compliments from our attendees, and I can't recommend him enough!
Ben showed up early, dressed to the nines, and played a beautiful 3 hours of music for our birthday event. He stayed an extra half hour upon request when the party was not quite ready to finish!
Extremely easy and professional. Did an amazing job with minimal guidance or management needed.
Ben is superb. Would definitely recommend!
Ben was absolutely wonderful. He tried to play any requests we had and did amazing. Played plenty of songs we could sing along to. Set up very quickly and plays beautifully.
Ben's performance throughout the event was nothing short of amazing! I had so many guests ask about him and how to book him for future events.
Ben is extremely talented and easily provides a broad mix of songs and styles. He’s extremely flexible and super pleasant to work with. He made our evening event totally special.
I was looking for some background music for a Holiday party. He arrived on time and the music was great.
I had Ben play at my wedding reception. He was wonderful!. Everyone enjoyed his talent and diverse song repertoire, there was something for everyone! He was a true professional and an absolute joy!
Ben Pila was so amazing and made our special day so much more magical. He plays so flawlessly and beautiful, our guests were raving about him all night. I could not have asked for a better guitarist! He was great with communication throughout our planning and delivered all that we asked for and more. If you want your event to have class and elegance, Ben is your guy!
Ben was amazing. His music is very, very beautiful. All of our guests commented on how talented he is. He was very charismatic and professional. We will definitely reach out again for his services. Highly recommend to anyone who wants an exceptional performance to remember. Thank you!
Loved his playing
Photos from this event
Ben's music made our event very special.
Ben was prompt, professional, personable and gave a beautiful performance!
Great communication, arrived on time, and made everything easy. Everyone said it was the highlight of the night. Thanks for everything, Ben.
Ben played at my daughter's outdoor wedding ceremony March 4, 2017. The ceremony was a bit of chaotic but Ben remained professional and cool. His music was wonderful and added beautifully to the whole ambiance of the ceremony and the setting. I could not have asked for a better musical accompaniment. He is also very easy to work with via email, etc. Kudos!!!!!
Ben played at my daughter's outdoor wedding ceremony. His music was wonderful and greatly appreciated......I am hoping someone has a video of the ceremony so I can listen to his music again. The ceremony was not without its chaotic moments but Ben rolled with the flow. Kudos to Ben for being an island of calm and artistry.......he is just a great guy!
We love using Ben. He is very professional, always together, and his music is wonderful. Ben's offers us reasonable rates and folks love him. We always get great customer feedback when he plays at events.
Great communication within 24 hours of booking Ben. Expert guitarist with a variety of songs! Thanks Ben for adding a special touch to our celebration!
Ben was wonderful. We had about 5000 folks at our Rootstock event here at Bok Tower Gardens, and I kept hearing about how great he was form everyone. People loved his solo acoustic guitar performance. He played modern contemporary hits. He was great.We will use him again.
Ben was fantastic. Great communication and very patient with my many scenarios and questions.
He arranged our song beautifully and when the wedding roles around...he will probably be a part of that day as well.
Thank you Ben for making this engagement idea and surprise a reality.
Ben was amazing! He played a great variety of music and our guests loved him! He is absolutely one of the best guitarist we have seen we will definitely use him again. Thank you Ben for making our holiday party a success! Jen and Brian
Ben was accomodating, kind and the music was perfect for my Lexus celebration/business event. I would absolutely call him again to perform or be part of the background music. His rate of pay was not over-priced it was fair and everyone enjoyed the versatile music. Great for all occasions and ages. Thank you Ben! My new friend!!
Besides Bens impeccable resume and his experience, Ben arrived on time and created a fantastic beach wedding atmosphere with his selection of music. Ben is friendly, personable and extremely professional. His skill level is impressive and I would definitely recommend using him for your event. His price is affordable for just about any budget and was simple to book. He kept great communications with us up to the minute of his arrival. If you are interested in an extremely talented guitarist for your next event...I would definitely recommend Ben Pila....you will not be disappointed. We thank you Ben!!!!
Price Range: $400+
Gig Length: 30 - 360 minutes
Languages: English
Ben Pila has performed for five U.S. Presidents, the Pope, at Carnegie Hall, the Kennedy Center, Lincoln Center, the Met Museum, and the 9/11 Memorial & Museum.
Pila is classically trained, but also plays pop music on one guitar. His book, Pop Standards for Fingerstyle Guitar, includes 15 songs that are “expertly arranged and recorded” (Hal Leonard).
Pila has been featured on NBC’s Today Show and NPR’s From the Top. He’s been a soloist with the Florida Orchestra and the San Francisco Chamber Orchestra. He's won ASCAP’s Best Performance of a Contemporary Work and is the only classical guitarist ever named a Presidential Scholar in the Arts.
Pila received his bachelor’s degree from FSU, his master’s degree from Juilliard, and his Doctoral degree from the USC. He currently lives in Tampa, Florida, and is a professor of humanities and music at Polk State College.
I use a wire-framed guitar and a battery-powered amp for most gigs. I don't even require power outlet.
| May 31, 2024 • 6:30pm - 10:30pm | Birthday Party |
| February 03, 2024 • 2:00pm - 6:00pm | Personal Occasion |
| November 03, 2022 • 5:00pm - 7:00pm | Corporate Event |
| December 11, 2021 • 7:00pm - 10:30pm | Wedding Engagement |
| November 13, 2021 • 1:30pm - 3:30pm | Birthday Party |
| October 30, 2021 • 6:00pm - 8:00pm | Birthday Party |
| September 27, 2021 • 6:00pm - 8:00pm | Wedding Reception |
| September 23, 2021 • 3:30pm - 7:30pm | Cocktail Party |
| August 01, 2021 • 6:00pm - 8:00pm | Birthday Party |
| July 03, 2021 • 6:00pm - 9:00pm | Anniversary Party |
| March 06, 2021 • 3:00pm - 4:00pm | Wedding Ceremony |
| December 12, 2020 • 10:30am - 12:00pm | Funeral/Memorial Service |
| October 15, 2020 • 4:00pm - 6:30pm | Grand Opening |
| March 13, 2020 • 6:00pm - 7:00pm | Rehearsal Dinner |
| December 27, 2019 • 6:00pm - 8:00pm | Birthday Party |
| December 06, 2019 • 6:00pm - 9:30pm | Christmas Party |
| November 23, 2019 • 6:30pm - 10:30pm | Wedding Reception |
| May 05, 2019 • 1:00pm - 3:30pm | Children's Birthday Party |
| March 30, 2019 • 7:00pm - 7:30pm | Wedding Ceremony |
| January 25, 2019 • 8:30pm - 10:30pm | Cocktail Party |
| December 15, 2018 • 6:30pm - 10:00pm | Christmas Party |
| December 11, 2018 • 6:00pm - 9:00pm | Christmas Party |
| December 08, 2018 • 2:00pm - 4:00pm | Christmas Party |
| July 01, 2018 • 12:00pm - 2:00pm | Nonprofit Event |
| March 23, 2018 • 6:00pm - 8:30pm | Grand Opening |
| November 17, 2017 • 6:00pm - 9:00pm | Reunion |
| October 23, 2017 • 5:00pm - 8:00pm | Corporate Event |
| September 21, 2017 • 4:30pm - 6:30pm | Dinner Party |
| September 02, 2017 • 10:30am - 11:30am | Wedding Ceremony |
| March 10, 2017 • 7:00pm - 10:00pm | Dinner Party |
| March 05, 2017 • 11:00am - 2:00pm | Campus Event |
| March 04, 2017 • 5:00pm - 6:00pm | Wedding Ceremony |
| January 06, 2017 • 6:00pm - 7:30pm | Dinner Party |
| December 10, 2016 • 6:00pm - 10:00pm | Holiday Party (Christmas) |
| October 15, 2016 • 12:30pm - 2:30pm | Festival |
| August 19, 2016 • 5:00pm - 7:00pm | Cocktail Party |
| May 21, 2016 • 10:00pm - 11:00pm | Wedding Engagement |
| May 19, 2016 • 12:00pm - 1:30pm | Nonprofit Event |
| April 23, 2016 • 2:00pm - 2:45pm | Wedding Ceremony |
| December 12, 2015 • 7:00pm - 10:00pm | Holiday Party (Christmas) |
| December 04, 2015 • 12:00pm - 1:00pm | Corporate Event |
| October 09, 2015 • 6:00pm - 8:00pm | Wedding Reception |
| August 01, 2015 • 6:30pm - 8:30pm | Corporate Event |
| June 27, 2015 • 7:00pm - 7:45pm | Wedding Ceremony |
| March 21, 2015 • 12:00pm - 1:00pm | Other |
| January 17, 2015 • 2:00pm - 4:00pm | Birthday Party |
| January 10, 2015 • 3:30pm - 4:00pm | Wedding Ceremony |
| November 14, 2014 • 5:00pm - 8:00pm | Corporate Event |
POPULAR SONGS ARRANGED FOR SOLO GUITAR
A Great Big World - Say Something
Andrea Bochelli - Time To Say Goodbye
Andy Grammer – Don’t Give Up on Me
Backstreet Boys – I Want It That Way
Bastille - Pompeii
Ben E. King - Stand By Me
Ben Folds - The Luckiest
Billy Joel - Piano Man
Bob Dylan - Wagon Wheel
Bob Marley - Redemption Song
Bobby McFerrin - Don't Worry, Be Happy
Bon Jovi – Livin’ On a Prayer
Bright Eyes - The First Day of My Life
Bruno Mars - Grenade
Camila Cabello – Senorita
Chicago – Hard to Say I’m Sorry
Chris Isaak – Wicked Game
Christina Perri - A Thousand Years
Coldplay - Fix You
Coldplay - The Scientist
Coldplay - Viva La Vida
Dave Matthews Band – Crash Into Me
Dave Matthews Band - Lover Lay Down
Don McLean – America Pie
Ed Sheeran - Perfect
Ed Sheeran – Shape of You
Ed Sheeran - Thinking Out Loud
Elton John – Candle in the Wind
Elton John - Can You Feel the Love Tonight
Elton John - Tiny Dancer
Elton John – Your Song
Elvis Presley - Only Fools Rush In
Eric Clapton - Signe
Eric Clapton - Wonderful Tonight
Fleetwood Mac - Landslide
Fountains of Wayne – Hackensack
Frank Sinatra – They Can’t Take That Away From Me
Fun. – We Are Young
George Harrison – Give Me Love (Give Me Peace on Earth)
Green Day – Good Riddance (Time of Your Life)
Imagine Dragons - Demons
Imagine Dragons - Radioactive
Israel Kamakawiwo'ole - Over the Rainbow
Jack Johnson - Better Together
Jack Johnson - I Got You
James Arthur – Say You Won’t Let Go
James Taylor - You've Got A Friend
Jason Mraz - I'm Yours
Jason Mraz – I Won’t Give Up
Jimmy Buffett - Margaritaville
John Denver - Leaving on a Jet Plane
John Denver – Take Me Home, Country Roads
John Legend – All Of Me
John Mayer – Daughters
John Mayer – Gravity
Johnny Cash – Ring of Fire
Jose Gonzalez – Heartbeats
Katie Perry – Rise
Lady Gaga, Bradley Cooper - Shallow
Led Zeppelin - Stairway to Heaven
Leonard Cohen – Hallelujah
Lewis Capaldi – Someone You Loved
Louis Armstrong – Dream a Little Dream of Me
Louis Armstrong - Wonderful World
Marc Anthony – You Sang to Me
Mark Knopfler - Storybook Love
Mason Williams - Classical Gas
Metallica – Nothing Else Matters
Metallica - The Unforgiven
Miley Cyrus - Flowers
Miley Cyrus - Wrecking Ball
Modern English – I Melt With You
Mumford and Sons – Little Lion Man
Neil Diamond – Sweet Caroline
Nicki Minaj – Starships
Otis Redding - (Sittin' On) The Dock of the Bay
Pasek & Paul – This is Me from the Greatest Showman
Pat Benatar – We Belong
Patsy Cline – Walkin’ After Midnight
Peter Paul & Mary - Puff the Magic Dragon
Peter Paul & Mary - The Wedding Song
Plain White T’s – Hey There, Delilah
Prince – Purple Rain
Queen - Bohemian Rhapsody
Richard Marx – Right Here Waiting
Ritchie Valens - La Bamba
Rupert Holmes – Escape (The Piña Colada Song)
Shania Twain – From this Moment On
Sixpence None the Richer – Kiss Me
Simon and Garfunkel - Bridge Over Troubled Water
Simon and Garfunkel - Scarborough Fair
Simon and Garfunkel - The Sound of Silence
Simple Minds – Don’t You (Forget About Me)
Stephen Sondheim – Send in the Clowns
Sting – Fields of Gold
Tears for Fears - Mad World
The Band - The Weight
The Beach Boys – Wouldn’t it be Nice
The Beatles - All You Need Is Love
The Beatles - Here Comes the Sun
The Beatles – Here, There and Everywhere
The Beatles – Hey Jude
The Beatles - In My Life
The Beatles - Something
The Beatles – While My Guitar Gently Weeps
The Beatles – Yesterday
The Eagles - Desperado
The Eagles - Hotel California
The Flaming Lips – Do You Realize??
The Lumineers - Ho, Hey
The National – Fake Empire
The Rolling Stones – Wild Horses
Tom Petty – I Won’t Back Down
Toto – Africa
Train - Hey, Soul Sister
Train - Marry Me
U2 – With or Without You
Van Morrison - Have I Told You Lately?
Velasquez - Bésame Mucho
Walk the Moon - Shut Up And Dance
Warren/Brooks - That's Amore
Woody Guthrie - This Land is Your Land
TV/MOVIE (THEME) SONGS
Disney - A Whole New World
Disney - Beauty and the Beast
Disney - Be Our Guest
Disney – How Far I’ll Go
Disney - Under the Sea
Ennio Morricone – Gabriel’s Oboe
Ennio Morricone - The Good, The Bad & The Ugly
Game of Thrones Theme Song
Harold Arlen - Over the Rainbow
Harry Potter Theme Song
Linus and Lucy
Love Theme from The Godfather
Pirates of the Caribbean Theme
Star Wars Main Theme
Super Mario Brothers Medley
Tetris Theme
TRADITIONAL WEDDING MUSIC -
Air on a G String - J.S. Bach
Jesu Joy of Man’s Desiring from Cantata No. 147 - Bach
Prelude in C (Well-Tempered Clavier) - Bach
Prelude from Cello Suite No. 1 – Bach
Sheep May Safely Graze from Cantata No. 208 – Bach
Sleepers Awake – Bach
Simple Gifts – Joseph Brackett
Ode To Joy – L.V. Beethoven
Trumpet Voluntary - Jeremiah Clarke
Bridal Chorus - Felix Mendelssohn
Canon in D - Johann Pachelbel
O Mi Babbino Caro – Giacomo Puccini
Un Bel Di – Puccini
Symphony No. 3 – Camille Saint-Saens
Ave Maria - Franz Schubert
Spring from the Four Seasons - Antonio Vivaldi
Here Comes the Bride - Richard Wagner
SPANISH/LATIN/FLAMENCO GUITAR
Asturias/Leyenda - Isaac Albeniz
Rumores de la Caleta – Albeniz
Spanish Romance – Anonymous
Una Limosna Por el Amor de Dios – Augustine Barrios
Cancion de Cuna - Leo Brouwer
Un Dia de Noviembre – Brouwer
Tango en Skai - Roland Dyens
Catedral de Los Pajaros – Jose Luis Merlin
Fantasia X - Alonso Mudarra
Cancion del Emporador - Luis de Narvaez
Guardame las Vacas – Narvaez
Sounds of Bells - Joao Pernambuco
Concierto de Aranjuez - Joaquin Rodrigo
Canarios - Gaspar Sanz
Espanoleta - Sanz
Rujero y Paradetas - Sanz
Villano - Sanz
Segovia Estudios 5, 17 - Fernando Sor
Malaguena - Traditional Spanish
Adelita - Francisco Tarrega
Capricho Arabe - Tarrega
Lagrima - Tarrega
Recuerdos de la Alhambra – Tarrega
Etude 1 - Heitor Villa-Lobos
El Choclo - Angel Villoldo
CLASSICAL GUITAR
Day by Day - Oscar Ahnfelt
Jesu Joy of Man’s Desiring from Cantata No. 147 - Bach
Prelude in C (Well-Tempered Clavier) - Bach
Prelude from Cello Suite No. 1 – Bach
Sheep May Safely Graze from Cantata No. 208 – Bach
Sleepers Awake – Bach
Study 3, 7 – Mateo Carcassi
Koyunbaba - Carlo Domeniconi (Moderato, Presto)
Air - Ian Krouse
Hungarian Fantasy - Johann Kaspar Mertz
O Fortuna – Carl Orff
Greensleeves - Traditional English
Wild Mountain Thyme - Traditional Scottish
Concerto in D, RV 93 - Antonio Vivaldi
In Sorrow's Wake - Andrew York
Squares Suspended - York
Sunburst - York
Sunday Morning Overcast - York
Waiting for Dawn- York
JEWISH TRADITIONAL SONGS
Al Kol Ele
Dodi Li
Erev She Shoshanim
Hatikvah
Hava Nagila
Jerusalem of Gold
Meheira
Simon Tov
Sunrise, Sunset
CHRISTMAS MUSIC
Auld Lang Syne
Carol of the Bells/God Rest Ye Merry Gentlemen
Come All Ye Faithful
Dance of the Sugar Plum Fairy - Tchaikovsky
Deck the Halls
Have Yourself a Merry Little Christmas
Hark, the Herald Angels Sing
Jingle Bell Rock
Joy to the World
O Holy Night
Silent Night
The First Noel
The Little Drummer Boy
We Wish You a Merry Christmas
Regular-sized armless chair
Sarasota, FL 
Guitarist
119 Verified Bookings Brian B. said “Rich arrived prior to our event and had his professional equipment set up with time to spare. He brought everything needed to perform and didn’t require…”
Boston, MA
Guitarist
27 Verified Bookings Beverly H. said “We had just a small group of family and friends. Some had gone through some difficult times recently and this was such a happy time for them. John was…”
Tampa, FL
Guitarist
14 Verified Bookings Lisa D. said “We would recommend Jose. He is awesome!!”
Clearwater, FL
Guitarist
10 Verified Bookings Hilda O. said “Greg Smith arrived on time and we were extremely satisfied with his performance! We will definitely hire him again. He is a true professional!”
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