Music Lessons in Sheridan, CA

Instruments: Piano Guitar Voice Keyboard Acoustic Guitar

My primary goal as a teacher is to develop a love of music within the students. I'm more interested in developing Artists than I am developing "Performers". Perfection is not something that I aspire to as an Artist. Sometimes perfection, and striving for impeccable technique can become on of the biggest hinderances for a Musician to truly embody the stage, and show their passion. While I do have a focus on technique, I tend to find it within the student through their artistry, and I try to allow for that artistry to be the catalyst. Read More

Instruments: Flute Piccolo

I taught music for several years in college as part of arts mentorship programs conducted in Trenton. In general I believe that music education should be inclusive and accessible to people of all backgrounds and skill levels, and I also believe strengthening foundational technique by encouraging regular practice of scales and exercises is very important. In addition to teaching classical repertoire, I'm also open to teaching any genre of music that a student might be interested in – the flute is really versatile and I'd love to work with students to explore their interests more! Read More

Instruments: Flute Piccolo

This might be to learn to play specific pieces that they like, to gain help with something they are struggling in, to win first chair in their school ensemble, to win a competition, or to get into college as a musician, among many other things. With those goals in mind, I like to take a holistic approach to the learning process. We will work on developing a great tone, mastering technique, playing with strong intonation, and learning how to phrase and play expressively within the different types of music. Read More

Instruments: Bass Guitar Electric Guitar

Whenever someone describes what music is, they will use words like passion, expression, life, love, or things of that nature. NEVER will someone say music is scales, theory, or sitting alone in your room practicing. I aim to combine the theory and basic knowledge of music with the purity of expression that comes whenever you're on stage. With this style of learning, you'll never want to put your instrument down! Read More

Instruments: Drums Mallet Percussion Orchestral Percussion Latin Percussion

I began teaching in college and focused on motivating younger players to continue to exploring the instrument. I noticed early on that so many young students would stop showing up to lesson after just a few weeks. My goal has always been to expose every student to the potential their instrument has. A lot of this comes with making the lessons reinvent to "Real life". During drum lessons I often have a guitar or bass on me so we can play Example 23 from page 10 in a real musical setting. Read More

Instruments: Drums

GRAMMY In The Schools Mentor, Music Director, Music Instructor Instruct and mentor high school students in music performance, music industry career guidance, direct musical performances at San Francisco State University Rusty Key Record Company Founder Responsible for music recording, production of audio projects from song writing and arranging, recording, manufacturing through promotional phases 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