- 5-string banjo, 3-finger style
(bluegrass) or old-time (clawhammer)
- mandolin
- guitar, fingerstyle, flatpicking and
slide guitar
- dobro or squareneck resophonic
guitar, slide
- ukulele
Visit the rates and guidelines page for information about my lesson policies and cost.
My teaching method focuses on five areas:
- Learning songs by ear. Students learn songs by rote and transcribe from recordings on their own. Written music or tablature can easily become a crutch and stunt the development of a student's inner ear, so I use it only when it benefits a student's musicianship. Students learn the melody and bass line of all songs, on the instrument and with solfege. It's not enough to know when to play the chords, it's important to understand the meaning and function of chords within the context of a song. Students learn songs in major, minor, dorian, and mixolydian tonalities, and in duple, triple, and odd meters. For beginners, repertoire starts with simple folk music and progresses in difficulty.
- Improvisation. The importance of improvisation is often overlooked. Learning to improvise in music is like learning how to carry on a conversation with language. Why do a G chord and a D7 chord sound good together? Why do certain rhythms seem to call and respond to one another? These relationships are fundamental to Western music and best taught in the presence of improvisation. When a student can improvise with expression and musical fluency over a particular song, I know they have developed comprehension. I cannot teach students to express themselves--that comes naturally--but I can help them develop the skills that will enable them to express themselves with music.
- Composition. Even my beginning students write songs. I often give parameters to composition that reinforce certain rhythmic and harmonic ideas that I am teaching. The purpose of composition is similar to improvisation, but it allows students to revise their work. Composition is also a natural link to learning music notation, because many students will want to be able to write their songs out on sheet music.
- Physical technique. How to hold the instrument correctly, how to position your hands, and being sure to keep the body relaxed. I am very picky about student's technique (to their benefit, of course)! I also think it is important that students learn how to play on the entire neck of a fretted instrument. This doesn't happen through just memorization, it means developing a sense of how different positions on the neck relate musically.
- Enjoying music. Before TV and radio, sitting around plucking a banjo or guitar was a great way to pass the time. It still is. My goal for students is a rich understanding of music so that they can fully appreciate and enjoy it. I never want to work a student into a place where practicing isn't fun anymore.
If you have questions, visit the FAQ page for more information or contact me.