Clarinet Lessons Midwest

Instruments: Saxophone, Flute, Clarinet

I usually start with asking what kind of music students would like to learn and go from there. For a student starting band at school, typically I start with the method book they are going to use and move on to the Rubank method book series. For adult beginners, I start with the Essential Elements book for Alto Saxophone to get a good understanding of notes and the basics of how to read music. Read More

Instruments: Piano, Guitar, Voice, Clarinet, Bass Guitar, Shakuhachi, Keyboard, Electric Guitar

"Live" practice would be an ideal way to describe how I teach. I never encourage too much of one practice or rote memorization. The mind consolidates information more quickly and makes many more neural connections through variety and "new stimuli." Many practices in our culture can be boring and lack efficiency because they lack these basic principles. As educators, we really need to turn that "dead" practice into "live" practice. Read More

Instruments: Piano, Clarinet, Music

My goal is to make sure every student has fun with their instrument. Nothing is worse than seeing a student hate their instrument because they are forced to play. I have supplemented scales and technical exercises with rock music, church music, and Disney songs to keep each child engaged! If a student is self-motivated, they are more likely to practice on their own, continue finding new music to play, and want to advance their skill level to play more challenging repertoire. Read More

Instruments: Saxophone, Flute, Clarinet

My teaching experience dates back to high school, I was the section leader in both Wind Ensemble and Jazz 1, so running the sectionals I had to have a proficient understanding of the style and instrument to relay that information to the other members of the section. This continued through my undergraduate degree and evolved into coaching jazz combos and leading other groups. In graduate school I was directly responsible for teaching many undergraduate saxophone lessons and in teaching the saxophone techniques course to music education majors. Read More

Instruments: Clarinet, Music

The short cut to playing the clarinet like a pro is actually the long way done properly. In other words, there are no short cuts. We will work with patience, persistence, and of course, with a metronome. We will set written goals and come up with reward systems. For serious students, in my studio, we will treat playing the clarinet like being an Olympic athlete preparing for a gold medal! Read More