Drum Lessons in Green Mountain Falls, CO

Instruments: Drums

On the first lesson, I seek to establish long-term goals based on the interest and skill level of the player. One of the first questions I ask is, "what song do you want to learn the drum part to?" The most important thing about playing any instrument is to have fun, so I custom-tailor every lesson in order to see the most enjoyment on my students' faces as possible. While I have hundreds of pages of exercises I have written from which to pull, I will usually hold off even opening my book until I feel the student is ready to have fun with it. Read More

Instruments: Piano Saxophone Flute Clarinet Drums Synthesizer Piccolo Mallet Percussion Orchestral Percussion Oboe Bassoon English Horn Keyboard

I like to think I'm a laid-back kind of guy, though I can get loud and boisterous sometimes when a student figures something hard out. I wonder sometimes if I don't get more excited about a student's breakthrough than he does! My wife sometimes tells me I have no "indoor voice," lol. I don't give grades (except for my college students, because I have to), but if I did, the grade would be either "A" or "I," as in incomplete, as in do it over until it's great. Read More

Instruments: Drums

I want to find out each student's skill level, and start from there. For beginners, I try to keep thing informal and fun while teaching basics without putting any pressure to get into the technical stuff like hand technique and reading until they're ready. For intermediate students, I nudged them along with weekly lessons that are challenging enough to keep them engaged - this includes reading, hand technique and limb independence. Read More

Instruments: Drums

For beginners, I like to start with the basics. Students will learn proper stick positions, basic rhythms, tempo, and count. A lot of work is done primarily on the snare drum, progressing to the full set when the student is ready. Once the student has a handle on the fundamentals, I can then have them play along with a simple song. I am using a Roland V-Drums electronic set for instruction, so any source of music can be played through the set, and the drums then mixed in with the song. Read More

Instruments: Guitar Drums Bass Guitar Mallet Percussion Orchestral Percussion

I have always enjoyed teaching others. Even in high school, I consistently helped my peers with their learning and enjoyed helping them learn how to play percussion instruments. After starting college in 2009, I began formally teaching percussion privately and in groups at high schools in my area. I have since expanded to teaching guitar, bass guitar, and composition, incorporating compositional elements into all of my lessons. I have found that encouraging students to explore music through composing original material helps them in every other facet of learning music. Read More