Music Lessons in Monroe, WI

Instruments: Flute

My teaching experience dates back to my college days, as I begin teaching private lessons leading flute choirs. I have been consistently teaching students in my home or their homes for the last 6 years. I encourage regular practice as this tends to help the student progress in their instrument talent. I really enjoy challenging my students while having fun during their lessons, it makes my job much more enjoyable it encourages them to love their instrument! Read More

Instruments: Piano Guitar Voice Organ Music Keyboard Acoustic Guitar

Ray has been hailed by Opera News as, "terrific!", the New York Times praised, "Ray C. was effectively cast...a solid professional with vocal elegance." The Taconic Press acclaims him as, an exceptional voiceleaving audiences cheering" with his performances being, ardent and utterly convincing." The New York Sun said of his stage craft: Ray C. makes the most of it, combining savvy stage business with a warm voiceexpertly straddling that razor thin line between parody and poignancyscored a direct hit." While the Berkshire Review simply calls him, "...Perfect!" His travels have led him to make appearances with Grandview Opera (General Co Artistic Director), the Light Opera Company Of Salisbury (General Artistic Director), Prelude to Performance (Associate Conductor), Amore Opera (Principal Conductor), the Opera Orchestra of New York, New York Grand Opera, Connecticut Opera, Connecticut Concert Opera, Greater New Britain Opera, Berkshire Opera, Bardavon Opera, Jacksonville Lyric Opera, Opera Ischia (Italy), Bronx Opera, New Rochelle Opera, Amato Opera, Bleecker Street Opera (Associate Conductor), Regina Opera, Long Island Opera, the New Britain Symphony Orchestra, the Brooklyn Philharmonic, the Staten Island Philharmonic, the Belleayre Music Festival, American Opera Preview, in collaboration with artists and staff of the Metropolitan Opera, at Carnegie Hall, Bechstein Hall, Merkin Hall, Symphony Space, and Avery Fisher Hall at Lincoln Center. Read More

Instruments: Piano Djembe

Taking the teaching perspective that the piano is a percussion instrument, my instructional focuses are on rhythmic development where I use drumming patterns, hemiolas and other metronome tactics to develop your time. I am a Jazz musician, however going deeper means I use music to communicate as a language, taking the language development metaphor further, I use scales, arpeggios, movements, melodies and song forms, just to name a few as methods to communicate or improvise, both with the audience and other musicians. Read More

Instruments: Voice

My teaching is rooted in the philosophy of functional singing, which means everything I teach has a purpose rooted in the physiology of singing. We do a lot of different exercises and say a lot of funny sounding words, but each exercise is carefully crafted to maximize training your voice's flexibility, agility, or strength. Similar to how you might do a bicep curl to make your bicep stronger, vocal exercises are part of a broader "vocal workout" regimen based on what your voice needs on any given day. Read More

Instruments: Piano Guitar Violin Cello Viola Bass Guitar Synthesizer Recorder Electric Violin Double Bass Conga Keyboard Electric Guitar Djembe

For beginning students, I usually start by creating a strong foundation in the student's mind of why they want to learn how to play an instrument and what goals, if any, they initially have for themselves. I then utilize this to help create individual based lesson plans that are driven by the inner workings of the student's mind. I incorporate music theory into every instrument at every skill level because I believe it to be something that is extremely important to understand and that not a lot of students are exposed to before they get to college. Read More

Instruments: Piano Voice

Modern vocal pedagogy informs my teaching methods. By finding balance in air flow, phonation and resonance, the development of the voice is promoted in a healthy manner. Once this balance is consistent, a singer is capable of communicating more clearly and effectively. I encourage students to delve into a variety of genres, languages, characters, and challenges. I cater to each student's expectations in taking lessons, as well as their individual technical, musical, and performing needs. Read More

Instruments: Clarinet

I like to start beginning students with a combination of sheet music and by rote teaching. If a student comes to me with method books or other materials, we will start with those and I will suggest other materials as appropriate. I often have more advanced students work through various scales books and Rose etudes, and whatever other type of music interests them. I utilize duets often in lessons to work on sight reading and blend, tuning, and leadership. Read More