Music Lessons in Millbrae, CA

Instruments: Piano Guitar Music Electric Guitar Classical Guitar Acoustic Guitar

I start my beginning students with Alfred guitar method. If someone wants classical lessons I start them with the Fredrick Noad books and some Sor and Segovia studies. For people interested in improvisation we begin with Blues and then take it where you want to go. Advanced students I give more master class type lessons where we discuss more advanced music ideas. Read More

Instruments: Clarinet

I like to ground my teaching in a line my own teacher, Carey Bell, often told me-- "if you make a mistake, no one dies!" Music is a challenging discipline in every respect, so I encourage my students to approach it from as positive and joyful a place as possible where mistakes are not a failure but simply a sign that further work needs to be done. Achievement in performance is only rewarding when the student takes ownership of their playing, so I do everything I can to allow clarinet to be a real and positive presence in my students' lives. Read More

Instruments: Double Bass

Music has been the greatest blessing of my life, and to share this art and craft with students is one of the most fulfilling aspects of that. I have a Bachelors and Masters degree from the San Francisco Conservatory of Music. I have performed in venues as small as tents in Mendocino and Bear Valley, and as large as the Davies Symphony Hall and the War Memorial Opera House. I have experience as a classical bassist, as well as a jazz bassist, going as far as to play with a Hip-Hop Orchestra and do improvisation accompanying spoken word. Read More

Instruments: Bass Guitar

Beginning students will learn the basic major scales, then minor scales. They will learn songs applying to the "scale of study," for that day, with the student's input as well. Once an understanding of chords has developed, we will experiment with changing the bass note in the chord, and play with how it effects the sound of the whole chord. Playing with friends and/or recordings of your favorite songs is recommended highly! Read More

Instruments: Trumpet Trombone Euphonium

I've been teaching private trumpet lessons since I was in high school. I taught beginner and intermediate elementary and middle school students in my spare time. In college I taught students of all levels, ages, and backgrounds including advanced high school and college students and adult beginners. I always my encourage my students to pick music they like to play alongside the music I assign. There is a lot of fun trumpet music in movies and pop songs and this helps encourage my students to practice consistently and gain a love for their instrument. Read More

Instruments: Piano Trumpet Trombone Euphonium Tuba

My teaching experience began in my first year of college teaching beginning piano. I have since grown my studio from there to teaching trombone. I encourage students to be passionate about what they play while also balancing what we learn through various method books. I found I improved the most when I was playing music I enjoy rather than playing the music that was given to me by my piano teacher. Read More

Instruments: Cello

I believe a student's progress depends on how motivated they feel during practices, so I work with students while putting emphasis on patience and encouragement. As a usual protocol for beginning students, I start with one active scale and an easy Suzuki solo piece (ex. Twinkle Twinkle Little Star), slowly introducing simple etudes when progress is noted. I usually demonstrate a piece before assigning it to the students for homework so that they have a better idea of what the piece should sound like in terms of both tempo and how the notes should be carried. Read More