Guitar with Gregory D.

Over my 20 years of teaching, I have had Guitar, Bass and Mandolin students go on to continue their musical education at Berklee, then on to careers in music both in performance and production, as well as preparing students to go on to Julliard and MI and NEC. My goal as a teacher is always to help my students achieve their personal musical goals as directly and constructively as possible. I am an honors graduate from Berklee College of Music, and have taught all ages of students privately and students at Emerson College. I have found that most adult students have a “Horror Story” relating to some negative experience with a music teacher. This has reinforced how important a supportive environment is for younger students. Teachers who are indifferent to the student’s individual musical goals, or teachers who value the advancement of their own musical agenda over respect for the student’s musical aspirations, can do much greater harm than they realize. As a teacher, as opposed to a performer moonlighting as a teacher, I am able to offer my students a supportive learning environment, attentive to their individual goals. Every student learns best in their own way, so I tailor my teaching “Method” to the individual needs of my students. Students today have many more options to study guitar than ever before, so it is essential that music instructors are as flexible as possible, not only in teaching methods, but in styles they are comfortable teaching. My age has enabled me to study, perform and teach almost all major guitar styles. I am equally comfortable teaching Be-Bop Jazz, Shred Metal, pre- war acoustic blues, post- war electric blues, Classic, Progressive and Punk Rock, Country and Folk styles as well as simple campfire sing-a-long, Funk Slap and finger style Bass and singer / songwriter accompaniment. Feeling at home with these varying styles I am also equally versed in pick, finger style and Hybrid picking Guitar as well as slide and various open tuning technique. In addition to my experience and education, I bring to the table a large collection of teaching materials: books, software, videos and CDs, as well as large collection of guitar transcriptions covering all styles as well as a semi- professional pro tools home studio with a standing pro level drum kit, all of which are available to my students. *** Lesson Details *** I firmly believe that the surest way to rapid and confident musical development is through firm mastery of the basics including teaching students how to use a metronome to learn to play something slowly and perfectly before bringing it up to speed. I have always thought that traditional western teaching modalities have never done a very good job of addressing rhythmic development, so I encourage my students to work on their timing and rhythmic feel. *** Studio Equipment *** A specified music studio in the home, lots of guitars for students use, microphones and recording equipment *** Specialties *** I try to tailor my teaching methods to the individual students. I also teach and lecture in world music and I am able to use my knowledge of various musical cultures to help my students progress in a natural and enjoyable manner.