Gabe W.

General Info

• Certified Music Teacher

  Certified Music Teacher

  Our rigorous hiring process requires a completed application; an interview with our professional recruiting specialists; personal and professional reference checks; and annual criminal background checks for the duration of each teacher's employment with us.

  
• Background Check Complete

  Criminal Background Check

  In order to ensure the safety of our students, all teachers undergo a thorough criminal background check, which includes: Social Security number trace, multi-state criminal search and a nationwide sex offender registry search.

  
• Levels: Beginner to Advanced

• In-Home Lessons: No
• In-Studio Lessons: Yes
• Ages: 5 & up

Subjects Taught

Guitar, Music Theory

Education

Muhlenberg College - Music - Theory & Composition/Guitar Performance - 1997-2001
DePaul University - Jazz Studies - Guitar - 2001-2003
University of Southern California - Musicology/Ethnomusicology/Jazz Studies - 2003-Present

Specialties

Music, Guitar, Music Theory
Jazz, Blues, Funk, Folk, Rock, Punk, Metal, Acoustic, Classical, Jam Band, Improvisation, Shred, history, ear training, sight reading, transcribing

Lesson Details

Gabe has been teaching privately for over 14 years to students of all ages and backgrounds. He is well versed in most styles: jazz, blues, rock, funk, punk, metal, acoustic, shred, etc. So he is capable of playing anything. Often his students bring in songs that he's never heard or played before, and is able to teach them how to play them within minutes upon hearing them. Gabe prides himself on being versatile and enabling each student to achieve their own goals.

During the lessons, Gabe ... cover topics ranging from learning how to play starting from the basics, strumming patterns, chords, scales, modes, sweep picking, tapping, alternate and economy picking, bending, harmonics, hybrid and fingerpicking, how to create bass lines, songwriting, improving your technical chops, your ear, sight-reading, theoretical knowledge, and improvisation, as well as guitar maintenance, amplifiers, and effects. He has plenty of handouts and sheet music to aid your progress.

Gabe feels it is important to get out of the lessons what you want. So he doesn’t have a set curriculum, and tailors each lesson to the student. Gabe is a very patient teacher and presents material in an easily digestible manner, so that you will progress at your pace. Gabe loves working with beginners and getting them off to a good start, just as much as he enjoys taking advanced students to the next level.

The one thing that sets Gabe apart from other teachers is his extensive knowledge about the history of music, the guitar, and music theory. He is able to relate whatever you are doing to the core fundamentals of playing the guitar and music in general. He feels it is essential to understand what you are playing not just how to play it.

Gabe has an incredible amount of info to share, so please get in touch with us to set something up. Our rates are reasonable for the kind of expertise Gabe can provide.

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About

Originally from Maryland, in the Washington, D.C. suburbs, guitarist and composer Gabriel began his musical explorations on the piano as a child, before teaching himself guitar as a teenager. While attending Muhlenberg College in Allentown, PA Gabe began formal lessons in jazz guitar. During his education, Gabe was a member of several jazz improvisational groups, a big band orchestra, and he also played in the pit orchestra for musical productions. After graduating cum laude with a degree in ... Music, Gabe made his way to Chicago to work on a Masters in Jazz Studies at DePaul University. While at DePaul Gabe continued to play and record in several jazz combos and big bands, while also finding the time to jam at some of the great blues bars in the city.

Leaving Chicago behind in 2003, Gabe traveled to Los Angeles to pursue my Doctorate in Musicology at the University of Southern California, where he studied Indian classical music, Jazz History, and 20th century Western art music, receiving a Masters in Musicology along the way and becoming a Doctoral Candidate. For his Ethnomusicology studies, he learned to play the tabla, a set of hand drums from India. He learned even more about Indian culture and music while he was abroad in India for 6 months in the fall/winter of 2006/2007, researching for his dissertation. His fascination with Indian music has influenced not only his compositional writing and improvisational style, but also his teaching approach. In 2010, Gabe decided to leave his academic studies to pursue his performance and teaching career full time.

Aside from his academic studies, Gabe has performed throughout Southern California with several local bands and artists, including his own project, the progressive rock inspired jam band, Quactus.

Some of Gabe's favorite guitar players/influences include: Joe Satriani, Steve Vai, John Petrucci, Steve Morse, Eric Clapton, Scott Henderson, Jimmy Herring, Trey Anastasio, Carlos Santana, Jerry Garcia, Al Di Meola, Pat Martino, Joe Pass, Grant Green, Mike Stern, John Scofield, Marty Friedman, Yngwie Malmsteem, Rusty Cooley, Jimi Hendrix, Stevie Ray Vaughan, and B.B. King.

As for non guitarists, Gabe enjoys the music of: John Coltrane, Miles Davis, McCoy Tyner, Oscar Peterson, Michael Brecker, Chick Corea, Ravi Shankar, Ali Akbar Khan, and Zakir Hussain.

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