Simon P
Instruments: Saxophone, Flute, Clarinet
Styles: Rock, Blues, R&B, Musical Theater, Funk
Simon P
Instruments: Saxophone, Flute, Clarinet
Styles:
Rock, Blues, R&B, Musical Theater, Funk
Where I Teach:
Ages Taught: 10-80
BFA, Berklee College of Music
A Berklee College of Music Alumni, Simon has studied with an array of professors including Dino Govoni, Dennis Montgomery, Walter Beasley and Kenwood Dennard. His aggressive funky style has made him a mainstay in groups like the Brian Rigby Band and SlackTide both of which tour regularly up and down the east coast. In addition to these groups Simon has worked with groups such as SoulPax, and Jon O’neal and the Bayou Boys. Simon is also a founding member of The Railyard Horns a group of multi instrumentalist horn players, who record and collaborate with various artists.
My teaching experience goes all the way back to my senior year of high school teaching not only my students at the Chatham school of rock but also my peers in high school as well as college. My philosophy is simple, music is taught best through experience. Technique books, and etudes have their place for the basics but I believe there is no substitute for putting on a backing track and getting to playing. The sooner practical use of the basics can be applied, the more fun the instrument becomes. I encourage my students to explore multiple genre's and musicians even outside of their primary instrument because I believe that theres something to learn from everyone. I'm always looking for new students and can't wait to get started.
For beginner students young and old I start out with Rubank Elementary Method for saxophone. This book provided a solid foundation in basic theory and reading that lead to musical literacy. From there I go towards the basics of improvisation in the blues while continuing with technique books on the side. Once this foundation is in place I begin to encourage the student to explore music they're passionate about and start with the basics of solo transcription and more advanced improvisation. My goal is to get a student to the point where rather than playing the same tired etudes over and over again they can take part of their practice time to open up and actually express themselves with their instrument.
I believe each student is different and because of that every student needs to be taught differently and at their own pace. Learning a new skill can be frustrating and because of that my goal is to acknowledge accomplishments, and to give students more creative freedom as their skills on the instrument grow. I believe it is this formula that pushes students into practicing. With each skill mastered the student can directly see the application of the lesson they just learned in an everyday musical situation. I believe if a student can see that all their hard work in the books is actually a useful skill and not just busy work every etude, and technical exercise takes on a more significant meaning.
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