I have been involved in music all of my life. As a child I played trumpet in band and sang in school and church choirs. My favorite movies were musicals and they still are my favorite. Music was my major in college, which included singing, dancing, acting and playing musical instruments. I like all types of music. As a school teacher, I taught 3rd. grade through high school, everything from band and choir to musical theater. I also taught private students, of all ages, piano, guitar, voice and most of the wind instruments.

Hi!
My name is Brett F. I have been playing guitar for 35 years and teaching for 15 years.
I am an award winning songwriter and I have been playing professionally for 25 years.
I teach all styles, including Blues, Jazz, Folk, Rock and Country. My approach to lessons is to keep it fun while progressing at a steady pace. I am dedicated to developing your proficiency in scales,chords and improvisation. I like to introduce theory and the rudiments of music in the context of popular songs. That way you can learn what YOU want to learn and I can fulfill my obligation as a teacher.My home studio is light and comfortable or I can travel to your home.

I have been in many performing groups, from rock to metal to folk to jazz. I have background in original composition; I sing backup vocals and have experience with production. I have recorded with a number of groups in different genres. I am currently recording an album with The Artificial Gentleman (indie/rock); I also perform with a European Cafe band, Due Zighi Baci, and with a folk trio, the Jen Tucker Band.

My background: I began studying orchestral percussion at age 7 and received my first drum set at age 8. I then studied drums with Mike Brennan, learning the fundamentals of reading, coordination and independence, rhythmic ear training, etc, and continued to work with him until age 16, when he told me it was time to take the next step as he had taught me everything he knew. I went on to study with Tom Hayashi, focusing on funk and jazz. In 2004, I was accepted to the University of California at Santa Cruz and began taking private lessons with George Marsh (who played with...

I have been playing guitar and performing for over 30 years. I have played in many bands playing rock, pop, country and blues. I was on the road for many years and opened for Elvin Bishop, Marty Balin (Jefferson Airplane) and Canned Heat. I have a Certificate of Completion from the Guitar Institute of Technology in Hollywood, CA, and am a Certified Operator of Pro Tools. I want to share my knowledge and experience of the guitar and performing with my students in a way that they not only learn to play the guitar well but also develop the passion for music that will last them a lifetime. So whether you just want to play in your living room or play on a professional level and perform, I would love to help you get there.

I love to sing, I love to act and I love to teach! I have been teaching for over 10 years and sincerely value bringing music and theater into people’s lives. My teaching philosophy is simple; anyone can sing, each person has something wonderful to offer and everyone deserves a chance to shine.

With that in mind, here is a little background on me and my journey to becoming a teacher.
I graduated from California State University, Northridge in 2005 with a Bachelor’s degree in Music Education with an emphasis on voice and choral conducting. At the age of 15, I was accepted into the California State Summer School for the Arts on a full merit scholarship in the field of Theater. There, I studied acting, directing, singing, writing, stage combat, voice, set design, lighting and sound. I performed as a member of the Masanga Marimba Ensemble for ten years, singing and playing music from Zimbabwe, South Africa, Central and South America. As a group, we have toured all throughout...

I’ve played keyboards and sang professionally for the last 25 years. During that time my home has been in the San Francisco Bay Area but I have performed all over the country and have toured several times in Germany, Switzerland, and Japan. I’m a two time winner of the West Coast Songwriters “Song Of The Year Award” and I write music and lyrics as well as record and produce songs for myself and others.

Over those years I’ve developed a wealth of knowledge and experience that I’m very excited to share with my students. I want you to tell me what your musical dreams are and we will develop a plan to reach them and I will be honored to guide you there.

After graduating California Institute of the Arts with a multi-focus on several aspects of music including African dance, Indonesian gamelan, songwriting, recording, classical voice and piano, folk guitar, and more, Liz had the excellent opportunity to teach theater to a local musical theater summer youth program. All summer, she taught class sizes ranging from 10 to 26 students of the ages 5-10. Her initiative later led to being hired at this local community theater. Along with this theater teaching experience, she has been teaching piano and voice lessons for over six years. Her students have gone from knowing nothing about music to learning and performing entire pieces on their own. Liz knows that it is her place in the world to teach music and would love nothing more than make learning music a positive and fun experience for everyone.