John Simon

I have taught music since I was a teenager. Over the years, I've learned how important it is to listen to you, the student. Everyone has a different history and relationship with music, with so many varieties of experience. So teaching is like improvising - never the same way twice!

I start out by asking you about yourself, and tuning in to your individual dreams and intentions as a musician. What direction do you want to go in? What have you already learned?

If you are a seasoned player, we'll take your playing and improvising up to the next level, filling in any gaps in your knowledge and working on strategies for jamming and improvising.

If you wonder where middle C is, we'll lay down a smooth, solid foundation of the basics for you to become a great musician.

We do performance coaching, and with my Masters Degree in Composition, I often assist people with their song and lyric writing and other compositional work.

For slightly more advanced students, I like to talk about jazz harmony, and different ways to play the chords that you would encounter in a fake book, or on the bandstand in the real world. Click below to download some learning materials and get an idea of what I mean.

 

Contact me and let's talk about you and what the next step is!

This highly successful 4-session program, is a hands-on practicum on CD recording - a perfect class in which to learn recording studio technique. This learning could save you time and money when you are ready to record a full-length CD. And at the end of this 4-week session you will walk away with a 2-song mixed demo CD for voice, piano, bass and (optionally) drums.

If you have never worked in a studio or made a studio recording, this might be the perfect thing for you.  If you already recorded a CD or a demo in a studio, perhaps you want to record a few new songs that you have recently added to your repertoire; songs that show a different side of your work or material for audition or demo purposes.

Limited to 4 participants. November 29, December 6, 13 and 20 from 7:00 - 10:00 pm. The cost is $325 for these four sessions, including a bass player. Click below for more information!