As a private instructor, I do my very best to make the proficiency material as clear, concise and as interesting to the student as possible. I personally write out all the material for each student so as to personally connect with the student and to slowly and clearly explain all they need to know for their final exam in their level of proficiency. I also make sure to not only pass on information but to help them to understand the material in depth and to also learn how to apply the material to their own playing style. I make sure that they have a good grasp of the proficiency material early on in the semester before going on to anything else and then I spot check the student throughout the semester to ensure progress in their learning of the material. Another very important focus of my teaching style is to play songs with the students, whether it is my original compositions, my own personal transcriptions, or just playing tunes from the Real Book. Having been a student in College myself, I know how difficult it is to get the time to play with other musicians. I always enjoyed playing music with Jon Damian has I witnessed him clearly apply the techniques he taught me within musical pieces. I believe it is a powerful part of private instruction, again not just passing on information, but making it come alive through demonstration, interaction and discussion. Another teaching technique that I have developed from my training in ministry and also studying with Charlie Banacos is in sharing with my students my own personal life stories as related to the music industry and my experience as a professional musician. I find the students very eager to learn not only proficiency material and how it’s applied to musical situations, but also how it all relates to their future career in music.

  What I believe makes me a valuable asset to the College is my level of experience and my versatility in musical styles. Whether my student is bent toward the genres of Jazz, Rock or Classical, I can meet their needs and inspire them to growth. I have been very pleased to witness the many students who have returned to me in later semesters to continue their studies with me. I have had students return to me for several more semesters to be their private instructor. I have also been very pleased with the high level of grades that have returned to me through the years from the professors who gave my student their proficiency exams. A very high percentage of my students do very, very well in their level of proficiency.

  I very much enjoy teaching classes. Some of my most memorable times as a teacher have been in a classroom setting. Labs can be very challenging yet powerful if done correctly. My focus is to work as a team of guitar players and musicians as we encourage and inspire each other, but to also have the balance between group and individual. I always present the material using handouts and personal demonstration. Then I work with the group bouncing between group and individual performances. In my Style Labs I frequently use play along CD’s and notation for instruction to make the class come alive. One book and CD that I frequently use is the Mike Stern Play Along that demonstrates several different musical styles with greats like John Patitucci, and Dave Weckl as back up musicians on the CD.

  Again, I am very strong in making sure that we apply the techniques we learn to real pieces of music. The different styles that we explore in my Styles lab is, Eighth-note grooves, Sixteenth-note grooves, Reggae Shuffles, Shuffle Blues, Rock ballads, Heavy Metal, Funk, Jazz Blues, Rhythm Changes, Swing using walking bass lines, Hip-Hop and others. In Styles and Performance labs I always include a section on Overall Performance with a detailed explanation of Melody, Comping, Solo Improvisation and Visible Performance. I let the class teach themselves by asking them questions like: What makes a great instrumental solo? Why is the execution of a melody so important to the overall performance? And what makes an execution of a melody great? Why is the guitar so important as an accompanying instrument? And what does it take to be a great accompanist? What are some of the aspects that make a visible performance great? And we proceed to make a long list of student generated answers on the board and I proceed in conducting discussions about the different aspects we come up with. Whether it is about dynamics, time feel, sound, image, or any other aspect, it is always a thought provoking and a very relevant learning experience. I always make sure to include mid-term and final exams that cover the material learned and I also include in the exams, a section where the student performs in front of their peers on the song material that we worked on together during the course of the semester.