Seth B
Instruments: Guitar, Bass Guitar, Mandolin, Electric Guitar, Acoustic Guitar
Styles: Jazz, Rock, Blues, Country, Musical Theater, Funk, Swing, Punk
Seth B
Instruments: Guitar, Bass Guitar, Mandolin, Electric Guitar, Acoustic Guitar
Styles:
Jazz, Rock, Blues, Country, Musical Theater, Funk, Swing, Punk
Where I Teach:
Ages Taught: 10-80
BM, Berklee College of Music, Guitar Performance
1996-1998 Berklee Achievement Scholarship
As long as I can remember, I've been interested in music. My father used to rock me to sleep while listening to classic singer-songwriter records, so I remember having an affinity towards music, and towards the guitar in particular, since I was very young. When I started buying music with my own money, I bought the music of rock instrumental virtuosos like Joe Satriani and Steve Vai. Inspired by those virtuosos, I set my sights on Berklee College of Music and got accepted there. While I was at Berklee, I was awarded the Berklee Achievement Scholarship and I graduated Summa Cum Laude with a degree in Guitar Performance. I studied with many amazing teachers there, including Bruce Bartlett, Kevin Barry, Tomo Fujita, Bret Wilmott, and Pat Pattison. I also was in several bands and played on many demo recordings and music production projects. I have been playing in groups, recording and teaching ever since.
It seems like I've been teaching as soon as I started learning. It's like I had a secret I just couldn't keep too myself, so anytime I encountered another guitar player or musician, I would ask them if they had ever seen the thing I had just learned, and I would teach it to them. I have developed several methods for helping my students achieve the things they want to achieve. I have an ear training method and a book that focuses on basic technique and dexterity, as well as an improvisation book. I love it when I can take a student from the state of knowing nothing about the instrument, to the point that the lights of understanding go on, and after a lot of hard work, they can easily play something that completely intimidated them at the beginning.
My methods tend to vary based on the student's particular needs. For young students, I would say up to the age of 12, I like to use the Beginning Mel Bay books, because they have a nice, even approach that introduces fundamentals. For students older than 12, the Berklee books "A Modern Method for Guitar" are my go to. Also at this age, I introduce the concept of transcription. After about 16 or so, if the student shows that they are passionate and have the attention span to stick with something that isn't easy at first glance, I graduate them to Mick Goodrick's "The Advancing Guitarist." At this point, they should have some grasp of ear training and transcription, so they will be picking solos and tunes they are challenged by and are excited to learn.
I think that goal setting and the ability to break large goals into smaller, more easily attainable sub-goals is something that will help students with other non-musical goals in their daily life. By asking the student about their desired outcomes, which musicians they admire, and what they would want to sound like, I can tailor my instruction and advise the student about which realistic sub-goals and milestones will get them to that place in the most efficient way possible. By celebrating each milestone the student achieves, a positive feedback-loop is created, in which the student's accomplishments start to drive their desire to set even more goals.
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