Acoustic Guitar with Dan C.

I have been playing guitar for 31 years, starting with Rock and Blues before studying both Classical and Jazz guitar in college. I received my Bachelor of Music degree from Berklee College of Music in Boston in 1995. I am currently a guitar teacher in the NW Chicago suburbs and in Chicago currently with 45+ students, teaching all ages, all levels and all styles. I have been teaching guitar and music off and on for the past 20+ years but in 2007 I decided to devote myself to teaching full time (yes, teaching guitar is my primary job!)...one of the best decisions I have ever made! To me, playing music is an incredibly rewarding experience. It's also a lot of fun! But no matter what your goals are in music, I have found, through many years of playing and teaching, that every musician needs a basic understanding of their instrument and of music in general. Whether you are learning piano, saxophone, violin, flute or guitar all music students will need to know about the basics of music, how it works and where the notes are on their instrument. My goal as a guitar and music instructor is to *teach people how to teach themselves*. I would love to have you study with me for years and years, but a good instructor should be able to show people what they need to know so that they can be their own primary music educator for the rest of their lives. Not only is it more economically friendly for the student, I see it as simply the right thing to do. My lessons are designed to make the absolute most of a student's motivation and to keep them motivated to maximize their learning experience! *** Lesson Details *** Whether you are an absolute beginner or more experienced guitar player, I see it as my mission to prepare all of my students to be *musicians*, not just people who can move their fingers on a guitar. I believe that all musicians should think of music as a language: if you don't understand the basics of any language how can you expect to communicate well in that language? Beginners can expect to learn the foundations of guitar and music: good finger and pick technique, familiarity with basic notes, simple chords, basic musical concepts, easy and fun songs. More advanced students can expect to improve in many aspects of guitar playing in most styles and in their understanding and appreciation of music- advanced playing techniques (pick and finger style), scales, arpeggios, advanced chord forms and chord progressions, melodic improvisation in any style, music theory, ear training, etc. I teach beginning and intermediate Classical guitar as well. I request that Classical guitar students already have some prior guitar experience (knowledge of basic notes and chords). In my years as a guitar student and as a teacher, I have learned that communication is the key to good, productive lessons and as much as possible I cater lessons to what each student is interested in, while having fun! At this time I am offering lessons on Friday afternoons and evenings at my Inverness teaching studio. Due to my weekly teaching schedule, I am not currently available to offer in-home lessons at student's homes. *** Studio Equipment *** My teaching studio is equipped with: amplifier, cords, music stand, guitar stand, laptop PC, printer, play-along programs for practice, hundreds of self-authored exercises for all levels. I also have a huge library of guitar books, songs and other materials available for lesson material as well. Method books to use for lessons available to purchase from me ($8-$10 generally). Just bring yourself, a guitar (acoustic or electric), a pick or two and we'll be ready to roll!