Music Lessons in River Vale, NJ

Instruments: Voice

For those students (both children and adults) who are just beginning lessons, we will focus on the development of basic technique. This is centered around breathing, posture, and basic musicianship. We will spend time working on basic notes, rhythms, and ear-training in addition to vocalizing and learning songs to help develop and reinforce what we learn in our exercises. For those with a bit of experience I like to spend our first lesson getting acquainted and determining what your goals are for our lessons. Read More

Instruments: Piano

I use a combination of established teaching methods, such as Alfred, Bastien, Hanon and Hal Leonard, as well as my own methods, which I've developed over the years. I also effectively utilize technology, such as Finale notation software to create special arrangements of songs for my students, YouTube videos for audio/visual support, and iPads. I have cultivated a warm demeanor and good sense of humor, which has helped my students remain engaged and in anticipation of the next lesson. Read More

Instruments: Drums

A strong foundation is key to becoming a good drummer. I also encourage students to play many styles of music.The more well rounded that you aremakes you a better player with the music of your choice. It's always rewarding to have astudent make it into All-County band. Many students start their own rock bands. To me it doesn't matter what style of music they like, as long as they enjoy playing. Read More

Instruments: Drums

For beginner students, I will introduce the basics of drumming techniques as this is the most important step in becoming a proficient drummer. Once the student has progressed and shown me that they can play simple beats with the proper technique, I will begin introducing them to repertoire appropriate to their skill level to get them to be able to play drums in a more musical manner. If the student is older and/or more experienced, I will likely start with exercises and ideas to build their level of skill within areas of their interest or what I think would benefit them the most. Read More

Instruments: Guitar Music Electric Guitar Classical Guitar Acoustic Guitar

I begin my Classical students with the Julian Sagreras guitar method book, then move into the Aaron Shearer Learning the Classic Guitar series. Once students have a firm grasp of the fundamentals, we begin on solo repertoire. For contemporary styles, I prefer to start complete beginners on the Hal Leonard guitar method books, and then I encourage them to seek out artists that they enjoy. In all of my lessons, students will analyze chord structures, sing and dictate melodies, and learn history about the guitar and general music. Read More

Instruments: Drums

I want to make learning the drums as much fun to the student as possible. If they aren't having fun then I am not doing my job as a teacher. Every students has different inspirations and different passions in music so I make sure to make my lessons specific to each student. Some students want to learn their favorite songs, while others want to learn a specific genre of music. Read More

Instruments: Voice

I always provide my students with recordings of the exercises we do in class, so that they can practice during the week. I constantly show images of the vocal instrument, Its really important for the student to understand their mechanism, and when teaching young people I share the same information but using a more digestible vocabular. For the songs, whenever its possible, we use the music score, so that I can introduce music theory little by little. Read More