Marysville, WA Guitar Lessons

Award-Winning Teacher - Networked/played with various members of Heart & Bad Company & Former Queensryche. Learn Your Favorite Songs Quickly & Accurately.

Guitar Is My Specialty.. Been Playing & Performing Guitar For close to 30 years now!

The main thing that I like to remind students of, when they take lessons with me, is that music is FUN! A lot of hard work goes into it, but the end result is always rewarding! I am a pretty laid back teacher, yet I still work to inspire my students to try their hardest and to be the best that they can be at what they do. It is very important to me that my students get their musical wants AND needs fulfilled.

In my lessons we will work on a variety of topics, including:

-Gaining a feel and command for your own instrument.

-Finding your SOUND: Helping you to produce the right tones on your instrument.

-EXERCISES: Scales, Etudes, etc. to strengthen the muscles being utilized while playing, and also to build up muscle memory and accuracy.

-Music Theory and Ear-Training

-Building your repertoire, which is necessary for performance.

-Arranging and Communication with your accompanying musicians.

-Exercising variation and creativity through improvisation.

-How to ...

Guitar is my main instrument, I have been studying music by way of the guitar for fourteen years. I am well versed in many different styles but make my living playing jazz funk, and musical theater.

I've been a guitarist since I was eight, an arts tutor since I was 17, and now I'm a professional live musician for several artists signed/affiliated with major record labels. I also self-record my own pop music and gig around Seattle. I teach all ages and a variety of styles--classical, rock, pop, acoustic, bossa nova. I will help train your ear to tap into your body's natural musicality by using a variety of media and exercises. Being a good musician takes time and work, but art is an emotional expression--so we must have fun, no matter what!

I teach beginner all the way advanced students who are looking to improve as musicians or learn the guitar from square one. What's most important to me as a teacher is helping you achieve your goals in music. I have a decades plus worth of experience teaching and playing guitar and am currently an active member on the Seattle music scene performing at various venues around town; As an educator, I have 8 years of experience teaching students of all levels and styles and my focus for the student is tailoring lessons to best meet students' goals and putting them in the best possible scenario to achieve them.

I am a patient, professional teacher with over 20 years of experience. If you are a beginner, I will get you off to a great start and you be surprised at how much you wil be able to play after only one lesson. If you've already been playing for a while, I can make suggestions that will immediately improve your playing. I customize your lessons to match your learning style, so you can learn faster. The lessons are enjoyable and challenging enough to move you to the next level of your playing.

I customize my students curriculum based on their specific goals. I feel teaching students to play and transcribe songs and solos is my most important job. Most students come to me looking for structure so I try and provide a clear path for them to reach their goals. Although I love teaching music theory I understand that it is not for everyone, so I only offer theoretical principles when it is appropriate or asked for. I rarely use textbooks, but I do employ a lot of exercises and educational material when it applies to a lesson.  

For students with no prior music experience I use text books, and exercises to strengthen their technique, expose them to musical ideas, and give them a foundation of basic music theory.  After that is accomplished I move into a curriculum that is more personal to their specific goals.

A major priority of my guitar teaching is to have students making expressive music every time they touch the instrument.

I begin by working on tone production on the open strings of the guitar, so that students are able to produce a full, beautiful tone on the first day. From there, we study left- and right- hand techniques in the context of real pieces of music, giving students the chance to apply the mechanics of guitar playing to the expression of musical ideas. At the same time, I work with students through progressive studies and warm-up exercises that have built-in expressive goals, so that they can learn to rely on their own ears to further refine their playing.

As I believe that a good guitarist is, first and foremost, a strong musician, I fold a number of diverse activities into weekly lessons, developing skills in music theory, ear training, sight reading, composition, and improvisation, all of which reinforce the acquisition of strong technique.

I've been playing guitar for twenty years and teaching it for the past seven to kids and adults of all ages. When I’m teaching all my musical experience comes into play to create an fun, creative, and immersive experience. Both my formal musical training and history of playing in bands helps me incorporate the power of creativity and improvisation into every lesson. My degree in Music Composition has allowed me to create engaging theory/ear-training games and exercises to sharpen a student's ear and musical understanding. My experience in bands over the years ensures a focus on being able to play with others, harmony, and keeping consistent rhythm. It also helps out when learning the chords to the latest pop single! Overall, I make sure learning the instrument is fun, no matter what age or skill level you are. After all, fun is what kept me playing music consistently all these years!

Want to start/improve your guitar-playing by playing your favorite songs? I'm Jack and with 7 years of playing experience using what I like to call "Song-based learning", I'd like to help you improve by playing your favorite songs! My goal is for you to both enjoy playing music and be making progress at the same time!