Michael V  
Instruments: Piano, Trumpet, Music, Keyboard
Styles: Classical, Jazz, Pop, Rock, Blues, Folk, R&B, Gospel, Musical Theater, Latin, Funk, Hip Hop, Electronic, Flamenco, Salsa, Showtunes, Reggae, Merengue, Latin Jazz, Swing, Samba, Bossa Nova, Marching Band, Mariachi, Avant-garde

One of my favorite parts of my musical journey is having the opportunity to share my experiences with others through education. For the last four years, I have worked with the Academic Center for Tutoring (ACT) at Columbia College Chicago to bring practical and fun lessons in music theory/aural skills, piano, trumpet, composition, and production. The ACT was located in the heart of the Chicago Loop and I would work with students who have never seen sheet music before (completely reliant on their ears) and students with a classical background that struggled to play without sheet music. Balancing the radically different musical backgrounds of each student was difficult at first, but I have realized that the core struggles are universal. The solution for each roadblock typically revolved around the students attitude, rather than their approach. Once the student figured out what they truly wanted to learn and feel from music, they were able to set their mind to it and drastically improve. I sincerely enjoy helping the student find their voice and interests, rather than enforcing my own upon them.

To me, the key element for a successful learning experience is to engage the student in the lesson and during their individual practice. I have battled with ADHD my whole life and I distinctly remember daydreaming during many of my classes in college, retaining little-to-no information. It is very difficult to engage with a topic as complex as music, but it is crucial to absorb every second. My main priority during a lesson is engaging to student in the session material, typically fun and exciting ways. While a consistent practice schedule is ideal but the same principle applies here: focused practice is ideal, practicing just to get in the hours will not progress a students ability (I know from personal experience). Some students enjoy learning exercises from a book while others enjoy learning pop songs by ear, forcing book exercises on a student who may want to learn Ariana Grande songs will result in inefficient practice. No musical compositions are "better" than another; we can learn the same core concepts from Ariana Grande and Mozart. Every student learns in a completely different way, and has unique interests; due to this, I do my absolute best to meet the needs of the student in every manner possible.