Name: What's it like to learn from a Nashville touring and recording musician?
Uploaded: 2023-12-14T17:28:10.354Z
Duration: 2 min 14 s
Description: Learn about studying with me!

Guitar

Are you interested in being able to confidently play lead and rhythm parts in a band? Want to learn to write songs? Want to learn to just strum along to your favorite records by yourself? I will teach you or your child all of the knowledge and tools needed to do whatever your dream is on your instrument. My aim is to help every student achieve their personal goals on their instrument within the context of a relaxed and patient environment that promotes a love of music!  
 
  I achieve this by:

1) Individualizing lesson plans so that each student stays engaged and learns in the style that is best for them as learners.

2) Ensuring that students learn BOTH how to play their instrument as well as the theory behind what they are playing. This creates a more well-rounded musician that is capable of problem solving on their instrument and being able to play in a variety of settings. 
  
  I have been gigging professionally here in Nashville since 2015 and teaching private lessons since 2014. My main gig currently is touring with americana artist Amythyst Kiah, but for a lot of years I have gone out on the road as a lead player for blues, funk, and country artists, but I also play quartet gospel at church when I'm in town, do sessions for RnB, pop, and folk artists, and write a little bit of rock for a band I tour with called Safari Room.

The list of artists I have worked for includes:  Kylie Morgan, Amythyst Kiah, Doug McCormick, Brother Maven, Aberdeen, Cody Webb, Arlana,  The 12 South Band, the 8 South Band, Safari Room, Colleen Orender, Kiera Loveless, Natalie Johnson, Katie Davis, Chip Colon, Faith Jackson, Hopscotch Mafia, Julia Allen, and more. I've recorded lead guitar on records for Jaye Madison, Chip Colon, Monica Hutcheson, Safari Room, Miranda Powell, as well as others. I perform every week around Nashville, nearly every weekend in different states across the country, and once even had the opportunity to play in Scotland!

   I graduated from Belmont University in the Spring of 2018 with a  degree in Commercial Music, so I have had the "conservatory training" in regards to music theory and history, but before college I was largely a self taught player and am now a professionally performing musician here in Nashville.

What's it like to learn from a Nashville touring and recording musician?

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Country Guitar

Blues Guitar

Acoustic Guitar

Bass Guitar

Mandolin

Ear Training

Electric Guitar

Songwriting

Music Theory

Beginner

Intermediate

Advanced

I was the house guitarist for the world class hotel the Grand Hotel on Mackinac Island, Michigan this past summer. For seven nights a week I performed a 3 hour solo guitar set at a restaurant playing everything from pop to old jazz standards, and then spent 2 hours a night playing in the "Grand Hotel Orchestra", a 9-piece dance band that played everything from Stevie Wonder to Journey to Sinatra.

House Guitarist

I have voluntarily taught 2-3 students a week for the last few years at W.O. Smith Music school in Nashville, TN. The school provides music lessons for students from low income families in the Nashville area.

Guitar Instructor

I was a teacher at Hendersonville Music Academy in Hendersonville, Tennessee for two years before my private studio grew large enough to stop teaching there. I had guitar, bass, and mandolin students at this studio and developed individualized lesson plans for each student.

Music Teacher

I taught guitar, bass and mandolin at Sam Ash Music in Madison, Tennessee.

I tour as Amythyst Kiah's lead guitarist. Check her website to see if we are coming to a city near you!

Touring Guitarist

English

Are you interested in being able to confidently play lead and rhythm parts in a band? Want to learn to write songs? Want to learn to just strum along to your favorite records by yourself? 

I will teach you or your child all of the knowledge and tools needed to do whatever your dream is on your instrument. My aim is to help every student achieve their personal goals on their instrument within the context of a relaxed and patient environment that promotes a love of music!  
 
  I achieve this by:

1) Individualizing lesson plans so that each student stays engaged and learns in the style that is best for them as learners.

2) Ensuring that students learn BOTH how to play their instrument as well as the theory behind what they are playing. This creates a more well-rounded musician that is capable of thinking for themselves on their instrument and being able to play in a variety of settings. 
  
 I have been playing music for over 10 years and teaching private lessons since 2014. I go on tour around the U.S. and internationally playing lead guitar as a sideman for a variety of artists, play gigs every week in Nashville, and teach music lessons to a lot of wonderful humans.

The list of artists I have worked for includes: EMI Record’s Artist Kylie Morgan, Roundr Record’s Artist Amythyst Kiah, Doug McCormick, Aberdeen, Cody Webb, The 12 South Band, the 8 South Band, Safari Room, Colleen Orender, Kiera Loveless, Natalie Johnson, Katie Davis, Chip Colon, Faith Jackson, and more. I've recorded lead guitar on records for Aberdeen, Jaye Madison, Chip Colon, Monica Hutcheson, Safari Room, Miranda Powell, as well as others. I perform every week around Nashville, nearly every weekend in different states across the country, and once even had the opportunity to play in Scotland!

I graduated from Belmont University in the Spring of 2018 with a degree in Commercial Music, so I have had the "conservatory training" in regards to music theory and history, but before college I was largely a self-taught player and am now a full-time professional musician based out of Nashville, TN.


Chris is a great teacher. I'm learning a lot, and the lessons are great.

Chris is very patient and has good techniques to help me on my journey. 

We have been working on theory and focused on the blues with the goal of expanding into different styles.  Chris is building my foundation after years I've spent playing songs from Ultimate and plugging leads by ear.  He's a great teacher I would highly recommend.

Chris is a great teacher. Very patient, and very knowledgeable. I am very happy with my lessons. 

Chris is great. I started lessons with him to learn some theory and the songwriting aspect of guitar so I can come up with my own tunes and have them actually sound good. I've had 3 lessons and I've learned a ton already. He's good at pushing you to get better without being overbearing. I've been playing for a year (mostly self taught) so I know a few things but I'm far from a good guitar player. He provides material that's near your level so you don't get buried in information that's too advanced for you. He's patient, friendly, and very knowledgeable. Highly recommend!

First lesson was well paced and very informative. Looking forward t o many more! 

He took what I have already learned and added to it.  I look forward to next week!

Chris is great, very knowledgeable and patient overall I highly recommend

Chris is an outstanding guitar teacher. I can feel that I am the center of his attention. He takes into account my musical objectives, helps me in my compositions, and at the same time leads me through the "must learn" technical steps, ensuring my constant progress.
In only 6 months he helped me to make huge progress. Taking lessons with Chris is rewarding and makes learning guitar a pleasure.

Chris has been an amazing teacher so far, he has worked with me to create a curriculum tailored to my exact interests in music. I was hesitant to start online lessons, but he has been nothing but kind, patient, and flexible with me and I would highly recommend him to anyone wanting to learn how to jam with friends, gig, or just improve musically.

Chris is a great teacher and is very knowledgeable. His lessons are always great.

Chris is very very knowledgeable on the guitar and bass instruments.  He is fun and very patient teacher.  Highly recommend him!

Chris is great to work with. He's patient and very knowledgeable. I like that he focuses on music theory as well as playing. His approach to teaching makes for a well-rounded learning experience. I feel more confident learning songs on my own and understanding the structure behind them.

Chris is an excellent guitar instructor. After picking up the guitar after a 40 year hiatus, he has quickly got me going again.  Chris has been really good at customizing instruction to meet individual needs. For me, I wanted to get beyond just strumming chords. After just a few lessons, I feel we are well on our way to meeting that objective.

Chris is awesome. I took a 20 year break from the guitar and picked it back up at the beginning of the pandemic. Chris worked with me to figure out my skill level and tailored his approach to the type of music I want to learn and play. He breaks down the 'why' behind what we're doing, which is critical to actually learning the instrument rather than just memorizing notes and patterns. Strongly recommend him to anyone wanting to play!

Here I am playing an improvised intro with Amythyst Kiah when we were on tour opening for Jason Isbell. This is at the Andrew J Brady Music Center. Maybe 2 - 3 thousand in attendance?

Want to learn from a touring pro? Let's work together!

Chris C.

What's it like to learn from a Nashville touring and recording musician?

Chris's Guitar videos

What's it like to learn from a Nashville touring and recording musician?

Soulful Improvised Live Intro for Thousands in Cincinnati

Want to learn to groove to RnB? Neo-Soul? Funk?

Taking a solo in Canada! Calgary Folk Festival with Amythyst Kiah

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