Teaching Philosophy

My Teaching Philosophy and What I Believe!

With over thirty years of touring all over the US in professional A-Circuit road bands from PA to the upper Midwest to the desert southwest and the Pacific Northwest, I have worked in nearly every conceivable aspect of the music industry including, but not limited to:

Lead Guitarist, Bassist, Lead Vocalist and front man, Booking Agent, Band Manager, Front of House Sound Engineer

Monitor Mix Sound Engineer, Lighting Director, Tour Manager (for other international touring bands), Director of Promotions (InsideOut Music America), Production Manager (RoSfest and 3RP), Guitar and bass technician (NEARfest),

Music Store Manager, Festival co-organizer (3RP 2008 and 3RP 2009), Production Assistant--Shadow 3 Video Productions

and currently guitarist/singer/FOH/booking agent for GumBand(www.thegumband.com), as well as guitar, bass, keyboard,

trumpet, ukulele and voice instructor (and math/science tutor) at 808 Music Haus

About fifteen years ago, I began teaching guitar and bass again in the western suburban Pittsburgh area and have enjoyed it greatly. While my teaching methods are a bit less than conventional, I believe that results speak for themselves. This is to say, that rather than overwhelm or frontload a student with a bunch of theory, I try to get them interested in playing and practicing right out of the gates—to WANT to practice rather than feeling like they HAVE to practice, since in reality, this really isn’t something that you HAVE to do. The way that I’m able to get someone to want to practice is by teaching them songs in which they actually have a genuine interest. Then once we’ve established strong practice habits, the rest is gravy, so to speak. Then, as we learn the songs, I teach the theory and application as we go along--so reverse engineering, if you will. In addition, once a student understands the basics, I tend to let the guitar experience take on a life of its own by allowing the student to go in the direction in which they would like to go. So the upshot of all this is that the lessons are not very formulaic or “cookie cutter”, but rather unique to the person taking instruction. In my mind at least, this is how it should be. Also, my versatility and experience enable me to instruct people on many levels—playing and composition, performance, incorporating of vocals into repertoire, stage presence, how to present one’s self at a gig, what to do (and as importantly what “not” to do) at a show, packaging and managing of one’s own band—and the list goes on. At the end of the day, I’m just trying to help people get to where they’d like to go musically, and I’m glad to play a part in it. And both Dave (my drum instructor) and I are full time working musicians, not hobbyists and still play nearly every weekend--so music has always been the driving force in our lives, not a sideline. And since this isn't a classroom full of people, but rather "one on one", I'm able to tailor your lessons to your specifications. Initially, we cover the foundational information (notes, scales, basic chords)--but afterward, I like to see people perform the songs from memory. After all, if you’re playing in a band, you typically aren’t working off sheet music and a music stand. Opinions vary in this regard, but it is my feeling that music is more internal than external and this enables one to let the inner music out, so to speak--or, it's much easier to channel the music from your brain to your fingers than to add another link to the chain. That being said, I'm also happy to teach you using traditional musical notation and sheet music as well. Give us a call or stop by sometime, and we'll show you the difference!!