Guitar Lessons in Beacon Hill , WA

Instruments: Piano Guitar Trumpet Trombone Bass Guitar Euphonium Tuba

Beginning piano students who are children will begin with the Faber and Faber lesson books which slowly progress the student through techinque and rhythmic exercises built into easy memorable songs. After building a strong base of fundementals I will the begin to introduce and teach songs the student wishes to learn alongside traditional literature to continue the technical progress. Brass lessons of all ages begin with Emory Remmington's Warm Up Studies and initially focus on production of tone, and slide/valve techinque. The Arban's book follows shortly after and sticks with the student throughout their studies. With guitar students I like to teach technique through learning music of the students preference, coupling that with the Fretboard Logic method to enhance understanding of the instrument results in a well rounded approach to the guitar.

Instruments: Guitar

I have played the guitar my entire life and never lost my love for it (even when I tried!). I have a bachelor’s degree in guitar from Wichita State University where I studied with jazz guitar legend Jerry Hahn (Rolling Stone magazine called him one of the top 3 jazz guitarists in the world). From there I traveled to Hollywood, CA where I attended G.I.T. at the Musicians Institute. I spent several years travelling the Pacific Northwest with different rock bands before settling down to a career in financial services and becoming a husband and father.

Instruments: Guitar Ukulele Electric Guitar Acoustic Guitar

I began playing guitar at a young age, prompted by my infatuation with classic rock music as I idolized such groups as Led Zeppelin, Black Sabbath, The Beatles, and many more. This was only the beginning of a life long intimate relationship with music and guitar playing. Since my first introduction to the guitar my musical tastes quickly expanded as I established a love for blues and all of its incarnations, from Chicago Blues to the varying acoustic and electric styles found in New Orleans, Mississippi, and Texas among other places. Through high school I played in rock and blues bands writing original music and getting my first real experiences as a composer and a bandleader. High School was also the place where I discovered my interest in Jazz music as I began playing guitar in the school's Jazz band. Following high school I began playing more jazz music as I attended Bellevue College studying theory and composition with Dr. Brian Cobb and guitar performance with Mark Hillard Wilson. After this I soon met renowned Jazz Guitarist Chris Spencer with whom I studied with for years to follow. I eventually found himself at Cornish College of the Arts where I graduated with a Bachelors degree in Music Composition. While at Cornish I had the opportunity to play guitar and compose for Jazz Orchestra, Latin Jazz ensemble, and Modern Jazz groups while playing under the direction of internationally know musicians and composers such as Wayne Horvitz, Tom Varner, Jovino Santos Neto and Chuck Deardorf. In the realm of composition I studied privately with composers Jarrad Powell and Tom Baker, with a deep focus in contemporary classical music. After college I worked as a composer for a few years writing music for theater and dance as well as doing residencies with different Seattle based companies. Currently I spend my time working as a guitar player in Seattle while also writing chamber music for various ensembles and art groups. I perform on a regular basis with a variety of groups in the Seattle area.

Instruments: Guitar Bass Guitar Electric Guitar Acoustic Guitar

There are several methods I use as a professor and they're all dependent on the student, their age and their goals. If they are younger, I like to employ elements of the Suzuki method because subjects like musical notation and theory might be too dense for the student. If the student has the aptitude/and or the discipline I can begin to apply a more systemic approach in terms of practice regiments like scales, practicing sight reading, their rhythmic feel, and even ear intonation and sight singing if the student is prepared for it. For real results and musical growth, consistency and discipline are key elements. There are several books that I particularly enjoy like the classic Dandelot, Louis Bellson Modern reading in 4/4 and in odd meters when they are more advanced.