Saxophone Lessons in Fair Lawn, NJ

Instruments: Trumpet Trombone Saxophone Flute Clarinet Euphonium Tuba

For beginning students, I like to start them on the Hal Leonard Essential Elements. I believe it moves at the proper pacing for young children. For intermediate students, Accent on Achievement works well because I find the music is more challenging. Also I require older students to know scales, primarily Bb, Eb, and F major being that they are the easiest to learn. It is from there that I gradually add a new scale (one every few weeks) until ultimately all 12 major scales are learned. Read More

Instruments: Piano Saxophone Clarinet

My creative apporach to teaching is shaped by the interests of each individual student, finding a personalized strategy to make learning fun! I work together with my students and their families to establish mutual goals and we acheive them through learning techniques that keep students engaged, interested, and motivated. I offer a well-rounded experience that establishes strong fundimentals in techinique and quality of sound production. To develop technical proficiency and an understanding of lyrical phrasing, I have intermediate and advanced woodwind students work out of the Klose, Ferling, and Rose etude books. Read More

Instruments: Saxophone Flute Clarinet Recorder

I have taught at all levels, from pre-school through college. I have taught these levels privately, and in group environments, My college teaching experiences include Seton Hall, Bergen Community College, an Fairleigh Dickenson University, My public school teaching included Paterson, and also several Catholic schools, including St. Andrew's in Clifton, St. Anne's in Fair Lawn, and St. Thomas in Midland Park. I played in the The North Jersey Orchestra, The Bergen Syphony, and the Adelphi Orchestra. Read More

Instruments: Piano Trumpet Saxophone Flute Clarinet Music Keyboard

I like for a student to look at a piece of music and then to explain to me what they think it is. Their perception is different than my perception and I can learn a lot about how to teach them based on how much they may already understand or do not understand. Understanding musical concepts and musical language is important and I emphasize getting basic concepts right immediately. If a student has a misconception about something I try to correct it so they can move forward make progress. Read More

Instruments: Saxophone Clarinet

When an instrument is physically easy to play, it is much more enjoyable to practice! Other areas that I focus on include posture, breath support, emboucher, and reed placement. These are fundamentals of a woodwind player, and with some attention can make the playing experience that much more gratifying. I also encourage students to learnaboutthe history of the music they are studying and theirinstrument. I have a great passion for thetraditionand history of western music, and findthat knowledge of this tradition can inspire one to improve and study. Read More

Instruments: Piano Saxophone Flute Clarinet

For young beginners on wind instruments, I really focus on getting a good sound out of the instrument first. Then, I have them learn simple songs by ear to strengthen their relationship with the instrument. At the same time, I will teach them how to read music if necessary. I like to use the Rubank or the Sound Innovations band method books to start with. For my piano students, I go over posture and hand position first, in addition to the basics of the keyboard and fingerings for scales. Read More

Instruments: Guitar Saxophone Ukulele Music Electric Guitar Acoustic Guitar

Every student responds differently to a method of teaching. Some react better to being challenged while others respond better to encouragement and positive reinforcement. It is my responsibility to find the method for each student and adapt accordingly. Another factor that is not constant among all students is their pace. I make sure that each student has goals that they can achieve at their current level, to avoid extreme frustration and to always keep them moving forward. Read More