Music Lessons in Avoca, IA

Instruments: Piano

I prefer to instruct out of the James Bastien method books for the student's main lesson assignments. However, I also encourage students to bring and play out of books that inspire and motivate them individually. This keeps lessons lighthearted and keeps the student interested in the next lesson in my experience. I set realistic weekly and monthly goals for my students so I'm able to gauge how the student has performed, as well as how they should be instructed going forward. Read More

Instruments: Piano Guitar Bass Guitar Keyboard Electric Guitar Acoustic Guitar

For students who already have the groundwork of the instrument, I typically move forward with whatever they are interested in learning and what would make them feel more accomplished. For beginner students, I typically start them out in the Fast Track Guitar 1 book just to get them comfortable with the instrument, proper technique, basic music theory, etc. Additionally, I always implement scales into the lessons, no matter the age or skill level. Read More

Instruments: Drums

I’ve been playing drums for about 35 years. I’ve toured the entire US including some European countries. I’ve been on record labels, played many live shows of all types. I’ve also c-written songs, produced, engineered, and performed on quite a few successful albums. I started drumming in the 5th grade and continued through high school. I then starting focusing on performance and song writing. I joined some original bands and began building those songs and albums to make those bands successful. Read More

Instruments: Drums Mallet Percussion Orchestral Percussion

As technology and the nature of music is always changing and evolving, a large part of my teaching involves work with a metronome, the encouragement of playing along with recordings(even for orchestral excerpts), and transcription. I strongly encourage drum set students to find songs they like to learn by ear as well as learn to notate them. Regular practice routines, weekly goals, long term goals, and consistent metronome usage will all provide a strong framework for any student. Read More