Joshua F
Instruments: Piano, Saxophone, Harmonica
Styles: Classical, Jazz, Pop, Rock, Blues, Folk, Country, R&B, Gospel, Musical Theater, Opera, Latin, Funk, Hip Hop, Electronic, Flamenco, Salsa, Showtunes, Spirituals, Reggae, Merengue, Latin Jazz, Swing, New Age, Samba, Bossa Nova, Soul, Marching Band, Punk, Mariachi, Avant-garde
Joshua F
Instruments: Piano, Saxophone, Harmonica
Styles:
Classical, Jazz, Pop, Rock, Blues, Folk, Country, R&B, Gospel, Musical Theater, Opera, Latin, Funk, Hip Hop, Electronic, Flamenco, Salsa, Showtunes, Spirituals, Reggae, Merengue, Latin Jazz, Swing, New Age, Samba, Bossa Nova, Soul, Marching Band, Punk, Mariachi, Avant-garde
Where I Teach:
Ages Taught: 5-80
BS and BA from Rutgers University MA from San Francisco State
2007 was selected to enter NJPAC Jazz Band 2009-2010 was in a professional jazz band
I have been playing music since I was in 6th grade, and have been playing in bands on and off since high school. While I do not have an academic background in music per se, I have years of experience teaching children and adults, and I feel I can teach you just as well as I have taught my other students in the past, and honestly myself---I started playing saxophone (in 6th grade as I previously mentioned), and in more recent years I have started playing piano, guitar, and harmonica (in that order of competence).
As I mentioned in the previous section, I started playing music in my early middle school days, as I needed an art requirement for school. However, I quickly grew to love music as an art form. In addition to teaching music (which I have done on and off for about 4 years), I also enjoy teaching in and of itself---I have worked as a substitute teacher, a personal trainer, and a martial arts master at various points in my life. As cliched as it might sound, I just enjoy helping people improve themselves.
I start with theory and technique for beginning trainees, combined with songs that utilize the modes and scales that the trainee will be learning, thus combining the academic with the practical. More specifically, I feel that learning scales and modes are of vital importance to any musician (no matter the skill level), as such a thing is necessary not only for improvisation (which is very important as my background is in jazz), but also for writing music, which I feel that every musician should do in addition to playing other people's music.
I like to think that I am even-handed with my students: put in the work and show respect, and you will get the same. My teaching style is pretty heavily implied in the above sentence---when the student enters my studio, we will warm up with scales, chords, and modes. Then we will learn whatever new concept we will be learning that day, and finally end the lesson by doing the fun stuff (ie: playing actual songs). At the end of each lesson I will give you "homework" of some kind that reinforces the lesson of the day.
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