Music Lessons in Gatewood, WA

Instruments: Trumpet Trombone Clarinet Drums Mallet Percussion Conga Latin Percussion Djembe

I make my own lesson materials using musical notation software and cater the lesson to the needs of the student. Every student is different and requires special attention. For example, a beginner percussionist would start off learning how to read and notate rhythms all the way up to 16th notes to start. I would then move into how to hold drum sticks and how to hit a drum. I would build upon these concepts to facilitate lessons to come and tailor the lesson to the individual. Read More

Instruments: Piano Guitar Bass Guitar Ukulele Mandolin

I teach for several different schools in the Seattle area in addition to Musika. I've taught mandolin to an elderly woman who wanted to sing German folk songs to her grandkids, I've taught piano and ukulele to kindergartners, I've helped teenagers write their own songs and perform them to peers, and I've helped dads in their thirties to relive the glory days of Shoegaze and Grunge. With all of these students, I've helped them love the subtle, intricate, surprising parts of music and how to not only play music, but have their life enriched by it and share that with others. Read More

Instruments: Piano Trumpet Drums Conga Latin Percussion Music Keyboard

I began the study of trumpet in 1965 under the instruction of Les Beigle, noted Seattle trumpeter. In 1969, I graduated from Snohomish (WA) High School, where he played solo trumpet in the high school band under the direction of Edward Peterson. I received his Bachelor of Music degree with honors from Cornish College of the Arts in Seattle in 1980. Instructors included Gary Peacock, Jim Knapp, Butch Nordal, Art Lande, and Julian Priester. Read More

Instruments: Guitar

In guitar lessons with me, I generally go through a guitar book (the book varies depending on the students experience and what we decide to use) but mainly focus on what the student wants to learn. Learning the fundamentals of guitar will help the student learns what they want to learn, so that is applied to the lessons. A typical lesson with me goes as follows: Tune and warm up song (something the student is confident in). Read More

Instruments: Piano Violin Viola

For younger students who are beginning, I usually start with Hal Leonard's Essential Elements. This book has great materials for setting up the violin and bow hold, reading notes, rhythm and other musical markings, and introducing basic music theory such as time and key signatures. Also, this book incorporates the foundation of all musical learning, scales and arpeggios, into fun exercises that are enjoyable for every student.For older students who have more experience, I have a range of etudes from Sevcik to Kreutzer that can futher develop and solidify a good foundation of technique.For musical training, I use solo repertoire from Suzuki and other sources that are appropriate for each student's level so that he/she can be healthily challenged musically and technically while feeling accomplished during performances. Read More

Instruments: Piano Voice French Horn Music

Every lesson begins with a check-in! How is life? What is going on? How are you? These are questions that are essential parts of our shared living experiences. Depending on what level students are working through in their development, we will spend time working on the physicality of technique: posture, healthy hand/arm/wrist practices, and breathing freely. The rest of the lesson will be simply an exploration of the music that we are working on together. Read More

Instruments: Piano Guitar Bass Guitar Electric Guitar Classical Guitar Acoustic Guitar

I like working with students in a way where our love of music is the center of our attention, as such musicality is always the goal. For beginner students who’d like to sight-read, I like to start with the Alfred Modern Guitar Method 1 and supplement that with the Mel Bay Modern Guitar Method, Grade 1, or Frederick Noad’s Solo Guitar 1 if we’re learning classical guitar. Alternatively, if the student wishes to take a route in which he/she does not sight-read musical notation, I like to start with basic picking technique, proper guitar positioning, reading tabs and chord diagrams. Read More