Clarinet Lessons in Linden, NJ

Instruments: Saxophone Clarinet

I have been teaching bassoon, saxophone, and clarinet privately and in conservatories for over ten years, and have been a professional performer for twelve. Read More

Instruments: Piano Saxophone Flute Clarinet

My first love is jazz, and as such I have a strong love of improvisation and aural skills, which I believe are relevant in all forms of music (even Bach improvised!). Once some fundamental skills and theoretical knowledge is ascertained, I like to build on more advanced musical skills like learning songs by ear, being able to identify certain common chord progressions, helpful tips for memorizing pieces, and learning to personalize music through expressive techniques and improvisational application where appropriate. Read More

Instruments: Piano Saxophone Clarinet Synthesizer Music

For beginning students, what I start with generally depends on what instrument they play, but in general, I use various "Essentials" books. As the student progresses past the fundamentals of music and playing their instrument, I will move on to more advanced or technical musical exercises, as well as solo repertoire if the student is looking to perform for a recital, NYSSMA, etc. My teaching style for older, more advanced students is relatively the same, excluding the "Essentials" and fundamentals. Read More

Instruments: Clarinet

Depending on your experience, I will base it on that. There are many things we can learn without books and then as you progress we can introduce method books and eventually repertoire. I believe in slowing down to speed up, which means really taking the time to learn fundamentals before going beyond that. Once you master that, is when you can really start having fun with repertoire! No matter what ability level is, from student to professional, scales are always useful! Read More

Instruments: Piano Trumpet Saxophone Flute Clarinet Music Keyboard

I focus on tone production, articulation and phrasing. Sight reading, improvisation and music theory follow next. With clarinet and saxophone students I spend a lot of time on reed selection and care. There are so many misconceptions about reed strength and how it relates to mouthpieces that I could talk about it all day (and usually do). I work on clarinets and saxophones every day and consider myself proficient in identifying problems with instruments and then fixing those problems. Read More

Instruments: Trumpet Trombone Saxophone Flute Clarinet Euphonium Tuba

For beginning students, I like to start them on the Hal Leonard Essential Elements. I believe it moves at the proper pacing for young children. For intermediate students, Accent on Achievement works well because I find the music is more challenging. Also I require older students to know scales, primarily Bb, Eb, and F major being that they are the easiest to learn. It is from there that I gradually add a new scale (one every few weeks) until ultimately all 12 major scales are learned. Read More

Instruments: Piano Trumpet Saxophone Flute Clarinet Bass Guitar Recorder Double Bass Music

It is important to adopt a teaching style that is tailored to the individual needs of each student, especially because each student learns at their own pace. Setting goals is one of the first topics I discuss with my students, and then indicate some of the steps they need to take to achieve the goals that they set for themselves. Keeping track of a student's hours of practice and their musical achievements is beneficial for me to determine what new material and concepts to work on, and also allows the student to stay organized and motivated.  Read More