Why learn with me?

I believe there are a number of reasons to learn the guitar with me. But I have 5 key principles which I think makes my approach unique, and effective. They are:

1. Personalized lessons

Every student is different, so every lesson is different. I believe the best way for someone to learn is to be inspired and motivated by the music they are making, and the best way to do this is for them to be learning what they like. So, before we even begin the first lesson, I get in touch with the student and have a chat about bands and songs they like, and what they want to learn. I then ‘do my homework’, and make sure that these songs and preferences feature heavily in the lessons.

 

2. Flexible structure

The way I teach guitar could be described as a course. I have a carefully created lesson plan which I work from, so I know exactly where I think we should be heading. But, following on from the personalized approach, I recognize that each student is different. What may take one student a week to learn may take another two weeks, and likewise some people may pick things up quicker than expected. This is absolutely fine, and it means that I take lessons at the students pace, making the lesson structure fit around the student, not the other way round.

 

3. I keep as up to date with your progress as you do

One of the main ways my ‘Flexible Structure’ approach works is because I know exactly what we’ve done, where we are, and what we’re going to do. Have you ever been to any kind of private lesson and the teacher has said something like ‘Now what was it we did last time?’. I have, and it strikes me that if the teacher can’t keep up to speed with what you’re learning, how can you be expected to? So, with the students permission, I keep a log of exactly what we’ve done in the lessons, how it went, and what we need to work on.
It’s easier to know where we are heading if we know where we have been.

 

4. Self-written, no-nonsense course material

I provide all the course materials, which includes a detailed, but very user-friendly guide book to Music and the Guitar, which I wrote myself, and was years in the making. Each lesson we cover, the relevant section of this book will be added to your Guitar Lessons folder, so you have a constantly growing resource which you can use to practice with at home, in-line with what you’re learning in the lessons.
This book has been written with the aim of being as easy to read and understand as possible (it’s got pictures in it and everything, very high tech I know!).

5. Easy-going and friendly lessons

I see this as fundamental to how I teach. I maintain an easy-going and comfortable atmosphere to the lessons, I find that this creates the most productive learning environment. The less-pressure you feel under, the quicker you learn things, but also the more fun it’ll be, and for most people that’s the whole reason for wanting to pick up the guitar in the first place.
In addition to that, I see myself as a very approachable and friendly chap. I don’t see my job as stopping just because your hours lesson is over, I see myself as your tutor, so I’ll always try to answer your e-mails, texts and calls. So for example, if you’re sat at home one evening and suddenly think to yourself ‘I wonder how this scale should be picked correctly’, just ring me up, and I’ll tell you! If you want to start playing live but feel you need some support, I’ll try my best to help you. If you want to come to one of my gigs to get a feel for what it’s like, we can try and arrange that. If you want to buy a guitar but aren’t sure which one, I’ll try to help with that. It’s more than the hour or so tuition you’re paying for.