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Bachelor Degree: University of Florida
I have primarily been a church musician for the past 15 years, but have also played in drum and bugle corps, orchestra and concert style bands. My main instrument is the trumpet, having played for 35 years. I give lessons on all brass instruments, although trumpet is my primary. I can teach any style. I have played guitar for about 25 years and my primary focus is classical or accoustic. Currently I am the choir and band director at Saint Francis Catholic Academy (High School) and am available during the summer, and throughout the year in the late afternoons.
I have played trumpet since middle school. I played in a military drum and bugle corp, and continued playing through college where I received a degree in music theory and composition all the while being a part of the trumpet studio at the University of Florida. Since I have been a music minister being involved playing at church services on a regular basis. For the past 8 years I have run the music program at Saint Francis Academy. Throughout the years I have given lessons on trumpet, baritone, and guitar.
Whenever I give lessons, I set a teaching plan based on individual circumstances. I use the same materials the student uses in their school. I add material as I see fit as we go along, I have found it is more effective than trying to fit everybody into the same box. Some examples say on guitar with a few high school students I have had in the past. I had a couple who wanted to simply be able to play along with their church choirs. One had a bit of a knack and was able to move along quickly and I was able to give them more advanced strumming patterns early on. The other had no natural sense of rhythm. Our lessons had more to do with learning a steady rhythm than really playing the guitar. Both were beginners, but due to their natural abilities, I had to use different approaches and techniques.
I look for abilities and goals of my students and I foster them to achieve those goals. I also work hard to find methods that work for individual students. What I have found over thee years is that each student has different needs when approaching playing an instrument and so I look to identify those and work with the student's strengths. I also try and find creative ways to help students overcome various issues, such as developing range or learning to feel a steady sense of beat. I n my lessons I also provide instruction on understanding how to approach music of different styles and genres.