Guitar Lessons in Valley Township, PA

Instruments: Guitar Synthesizer Music Electric Guitar Acoustic Guitar

I like to set realistic goals for students to achieve. The most important thing is that they develop a love and passion for the language of music and learn to communicate through it! This takes a lot of time and can be frustrating at first so I often have students focus more on completing tasks than on how long they're playing every day. This helps them maintain a healthy relationship with music where they feel like they're achieving something right from the beginning! Read More

Instruments: Guitar Bass Guitar Electric Guitar Classical Guitar Acoustic Guitar

For young children, consistency and fun are the name of the game. I like to use some simple materials and try to develop a love for the instrument and love for making music above all else. After a period of discovery and technical growth I will introduce material suitable for a recital performance. For young and older adults I like to take a more focused approach. Many students have an idea of what they would like to work on, and I am happy to help guide them to reach their goal. Read More

Instruments: Guitar Drums

My teaching style relies heavily upon training the ear to dissect what it is hearing. Developing the ear is crucial to being a self-reliant musician. In drums, the visualization how a rhythm works in time is essential to being able to perform that rhythm. Dissection and mapping are the key to furthering one's abilities on the drum kit. In guitar or in piano, being able to isolate frequencies with your ear will lead you to a more accurate understanding for chord structures and progressions than simply looking up tabs, which are often deeply flawed. Read More

Instruments: Guitar Drums Bass Guitar Music Electric Guitar Acoustic Guitar

Once the student has progressed to have a grasp of the fundamentals of drumming, and as I get to know the student better, I will personalize their lessons, setting goals to learn specific songs or drum patterns that cater to their musical tastes and interests, which keeps them invested in their drum set practice. 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: Guitar Banjo Electric Guitar Acoustic Guitar

With banjo I usually begin with The Janet Davis banjo book-it has proved to be a great stepping stone into the more valuable Scruggs Books. We begin by learning some key fundamental rolls and then use to play some easy songs. Then we move to the more complex Slides, Pull-offs and hammer-ons and how to blend into the rolls. Every student I've ever taught graduates to the Earl Scruggs looks! Read More

Instruments: Piano Guitar Voice Flute Harmonica Music Keyboard Electric Guitar Acoustic Guitar

There are often good lessons that go along with these pieces, and I pick pieces that are famous for good reason! For students of any level, it is useful to have a combination of repertoire that is more challenging, and pushes my students to see beyond their current skill level, as well as repertoire that allows them to enjoy the expression that is possible with their current skill level. There are 4 components to every lesson, and for me, every practice sessions as well: warm up exercises, technical exercises, repertoire, and play (aka performing the repertoire, improvising, writing music, etc). Read More

Instruments: Guitar Bass Guitar Ukulele Mandolin Electric Guitar Acoustic Guitar

In addition to teaching material directly, I prefer to cultivate the skill of teaching oneself. Instead of scripting the direction of the students growth I help them to follow their own path by accentuating the qualities that make them special and removing technical roadblocks. My own education straddles many schools (rock, jazz, folk/bluegrass, classical, hip-hop, dance, experimental, funk, etc.), formal and informal. But standardized music education leads to standardized music! Read More