Music Lessons in Washington Park, WI

Instruments: Guitar Violin Mandolin Electric Violin Fiddle

We do this- music- to enrich our lives, make us more intelligent and give us inspiration, and this in turn gives other people beauty and inspiration. I'm teaching and playing because I love doing it, and it benefits all facets of my life. That's what I want to see in my students as well. But because we're happy doing it, doesn't always mean it should be easy. We have to practice, practice, and keep practicing. Read More

Instruments: Trumpet Trombone Saxophone Flute Clarinet Euphonium

With beginning and other school age students, I work with any lesson book or material given to them from their director or teacher, regardless of the method book. From my learning, teaching experience and work in music retail I am familiar with most of the method books in use, especially Standards of Excellence, Rubank, Essential Elements and others. I also am knowledgeable in other intermediate and advanced books, such as Klos, Arbans, and Clarke. Read More

Instruments: Piano Flute Keyboard

I love it when my students ask questions. Being curious is one of the most important elements of learning an instrument and fostering the students innate curiosity and giving them a space to personalize their interest in the instrument is vital to my teaching style. Of course, there are basic expectations, which grow from year to year, but I don't mind straying from classical rep into other genres or experiments with sound because it allows them to connect what they are learning in lessons, to their inner voice that needs a vehicle of expression. Read More

Instruments: Piano

Alfred Publishing piano courses (both older and newer), Faber and Faber, Bastien, Edna Mae Burnam, and the Hal Leonard course have all been among my pre-published methods that I have used over the years. I have also adopted some technic content from elsewhere. For example, the Zion Conservatory of Music, where I taught from 2004 to 2018, uses a couple of different customized scale patterns for first- and second-year students. A book I have used with intermediate students is a Conus Russian piano method edited by James and Susan McKeever, who taught the Parkside piano pedagogy courses. Read More

Instruments: Guitar Bass Guitar Music Keyboard Electric Guitar Classical Guitar Acoustic Guitar

Over the years, I've had the opportunity to play in multiple bands, including traveling for performances and filling in on guitar, bass, and drums. Beyond performance, I have experience writing, recording, and producing my own music. I've learned to handle every aspect of music production, from recording instruments and using digital synthesizers to mixing and mastering tracks. I also have expertise in setting up equipment for live shows, basic guitar maintenance, and using various effects for diverse guitar sounds. Read More

Instruments: Guitar Bass Guitar Double Bass Electric Guitar Acoustic Guitar

I start beginning students with both a method book and a blank manuscript which we use to journal weekly. The method book is to instill a variety of fundamental skills while the manuscript (or materials saved and shared in google drive) is used to be a fun way of focussing and developing each student's individual trajectory. More advanced students may or may not require a method book per se but may be referenced to a variety of sources dependent on their current level of development. Read More

Instruments: Piano

For my beginner students who are children I typically start out with either Hal Leonard or Fabre lesson books to learn all the very important foundational keys in music. As I notice they are grasping the concepts and able to apply them I then like to find outside resources such as sheet music, classical, pop to allow them to enjoy and discover what they love most. When it comes to my beginner adult students I usually start them off in the Fabre adult beginner book. Read More