Walt W
Instruments: Guitar, Bass Guitar
Styles: Pop, Rock, Blues, Folk, Country, Gospel, Soul
Walt W
Instruments: Guitar, Bass Guitar
Styles:
Pop, Rock, Blues, Folk, Country, Gospel, Soul
Where I Teach:
Ages Taught: 19-80
Associate in Liberal Arts, Richland Community College.
I am a passionate and motivated instructor who loves working with students and sharing my love of music. I have been teaching guitar to children and adults since I was 18 years old. I took private lessons to learn my guitar skills from a professional guitarist who played with Alice Cooper and many well-known bands at the time. Since then, I have performed with bands playing everything from blue grass to heavy metal on both guitar and bass. I have played in Denver, Colorado; Houston, Texas; and my home state, Illinois.
My experience is quite lengthy. I began learning at the age of 11. After I had tried a number of different instruments, I knew I wanted to play guitar. By the age of 15, I formed my first four piece band. We played a number of school functions. This consisted of school dances and half-time at basketball games. During these years, I also taught friends what little I knew about playing. Before I was 20, I had played in front of handles of people. Through this experience, I lost my stage fright and began to love performing. At 21, I moved to Denver Colorado. Even though I was working I just couldn't give up on playing. A new band was formed and my experience expanded in style and skills. With this band, I performed at countless bars, parties, and even recorded music. At around 27, I moved to Houston, Texas. This was a time of great experiences with different types of music - everything from country to classic, Flaminco Spanish influence. Also, I played in more bands and did some recording with them while teaching on the side. The next years brought more band experience and I moved back to Illinois. I am always teaching, always learning and growing in skills. Today, I enjoy playing with older people and family. I would like to say that I work in special education and I have a world of patience. I have reached out to the population and had the experience of teaching people with autism. Teaching has been a constant in life and also one of my greatest joys.
I like to take the time with a student to understand what he/she wants and needs. Some want to play just for enjoyment and some will go on to perform. I have performed with bands and I do understand that these are different skills. The ability to tune up quickly, change a string quickly, and adjust to problems during a performance, are not qualities that every teacher has. Once I understand what a students needs are, I can provide advice for books, techniques, advice that are rare to come by in a teacher. First, get the basics down, then step by step, grow in confidence and skills. I have learned that no matter how long we play and practice everyone can learn something new. Nothing comes over night and desire and skill take time. I love to teach so I take the time for my students.
My teaching style is very basic. Any student needs to first understand the names of the strings on a guitar followed by the first cords. Before this, we have the blessing of tuning online so that the student can hear and match the sounds. After these are mastered, learning a song - one that the student enjoys can be taught. It also helps to have a book that they can take home that has a six string diagram of these basic cords. I will work with this book and my own instructions for the fingering on the guitar. And, with these aides, most students should be able to use these books when they are at home practicing and be far more ready for our next practice. Along the way, I will constantly give encouragement to convince any beginner that he/she can do it with practice.
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