He is widely regarded as one of the most important figures of the classical guitar in the beginning and mid 20th century. Segovia's main musical aesthetic preferences were Spanish romantic and Spanish nationalist music of the late 19th and early 20th century - a style different from flamenco. He started playing the guitar at age six. As a teenager, Segovia moved to the town of Granada, where he studied the guitar.

His first public performance was at age sixteen and a few years late he performed at a concert in Madrid. He disliked the traditional flamenco style and with a few others pioneered his own style. He plucked the strings with a combination of his fingernails and fingertips, producing a sharper sound than many of his contemporaries. He said that he "..rescued [the guitar] from the hands of flamenco gypsies"

With his new style, it was possible to create a wider range of timbres, or tones, than when using the fingertips or nails alone. Historically, classical guitarists have debated which of these techniques is the best approach. The vast majority of classical guitarists now play with a combination of the fingernails and fingertips.

Segovia viewed teaching as vital to his mission of propagating the guitar and gave master classes throughout his career.

Segovia was awarded many prizes and honours including Ph.D., honoris causa from ten universities He received the Danish Sonning Award in 1974 He received the Grammy life time achievement award in 1986.

Segovia was credited by his publicity for bringing the guitar (as a solo instrument) to the concert stage. He widened the audience for the guitar and was a vital force in helping it to gain respectability among other serious musicians, critics, and academia. Segovia was frequently lauded as the world's greatest classical guitarist.