Saxophone Lessons in Dayton, NJ

Instruments: Piano Voice Violin Saxophone Bassoon

I like my lessons to be fun! I like to start my lesson with a "music swap": we each play one minute of a song that we found that week from youtube or spotify and take 30-60 seconds to say why we found it interesting or inspiring (it can be any genre). We then aim to discuss and practice a new technical skill and use exercises to develop it, we work on a song from the method series or a song that the student wants to work on (I often transpose pop/rock songs for my students), and then rhythm training, ear training, and music theory concepts are interspersed throughout. Read More

Instruments: Piano Saxophone Flute Clarinet

Comprehensive method individually structured for each student.  Books depending on level and age start with Standard of Excellence and are individually chosen to support the student. For beginning students who are children, I typically start with Hal Leonard's Essential Elements. Once the student has progressed to have a grasp of the fundamentals, I will begin to introduce solo repertoire appropriate for their first recital performance. For adults, I try to find out what the student is interested in, and guide my instruction accordingly to keep the lessons engaging and fun, no matter their ability level. Read More

Instruments: Piano Voice Saxophone Clarinet Recorder

Incidentally, I started teaching when I was still learning myself; in grade-school, on the recorder. I learned early on that my ability to play by memory and through ear afforded me a stark intuitive advantage over peers my own age; naturally, they came to me during our shared lessons to inquire about my talent. While neither of my abilities was necessarily a teachable factor, they did endow me with the ability to "know" my music - through a bit of compositional translation, I was able to share tidbits of knowledge among my colleagues. Read More

Instruments: Saxophone Flute Clarinet Piccolo

As an award-winning flutist, I am a solo, orchestral and chamber musician. I perform with the Puerto Rico Symphony Orchestra, Casals Festival Of Puerto Rico, the Philharmonia Symphony Orchestra, and Camerata Filarmónica, among others. My experience includes performances with conductors such as Pablo Heras-Casado, Maximiano Valdés, Carlos Miguel Prieto, Victor Yampolsky, and Kenneth Kiesler. In 2014, Cosme was appointed artistic director of the summer orchestra " New Symphonic Project". My passion for chamber music, orchestral ensemble, and the awareness to promote concert lead me to the Zafra Wind Quintett (2011), Cosme-Zook Duo (2015) and the Puerto Rico Summer Music Festival (2015). Read More

Instruments: Saxophone Flute Clarinet

My professional experience includes regular broadway sub work (Pippin and Honeymoon in Vegas), at Radio City Music Hall and with the New York City Ballet Orchestra. I have over ten years of teaching experience at the university level as a teaching assistant, at the conservatory as an instructor (Conservatory at Mount Royal University in Canada) and also privately. Read More

Instruments: Saxophone Music

I start with assessing the students' capabilities, after which I begin to develop the following areas: Development of their sound; Instrument Technique; Jazz Improvisation and Jazz Language; Theory and Jazz Harmony; Study and Development of Students' Own Repertoire. Depending on the level of the students and their needs, I push certain areas more or less. The key to becoming a successful student is to practice, to develop a good technique, but also to listen to a lot of music to develop the talent for music. Read More