Kai Lyons is a San Francisco-based guitarist, tresero, and educator whose teaching and performance explore the connections between jazz, Afro-Cuban music, and traditions of improvisation from around the world. He holds a Bachelor of Arts in Music from San Francisco State University, where he studied jazz performance, composition, and improvisation. Kai currently teaches Jazz Guitar at both San Francisco State University and California State University, East Bay. He has also served as an educator with programs including SFJAZZ, the San Francisco Symphony’s Adventures in Music, Stanford Jazz, and the California Jazz Conservatory. His teaching approach is shaped by progressive educational philosophies, critical pedagogy, and humanistic, student-centered learning, as well as Orff Schulwerk pedagogy and his participation in Orff-Afrique in Ghana, where he studied community-based music making, movement, and creative learning. As a performer, Kai specializes in jazz, Latin jazz, and Cuban music, and was honored with the Chito Latamblet Best Tresero Award at the 2022 Changüí Festival in Guantánamo, Cuba. He is passionate about helping students develop their own musical voice through creativity, curiosity, and a deep understanding of tradition.