Zachary J.

Students will need to have some working knowledge of their select instrument. We will work on synthesizing harmony and melody. How to spice up and expand upon ideas. Lyric writing. How to write auxiliary parts. Coming up with leads and instrumental parts. Arranging instruments and parts. Parts of songs. Popular song formats. Chord substitutions, and theoretical knowledge is a useful tool for these lessons, and we will, at times, work to fill in any holes in theoretical knowledge. I really enjoy helping students develop ideas they are already working on, but I also will help them synthesize songs if required.

I can handle the basics and some more advanced skills, as a former upright bass player. Beginners lessons how to hold the bass/ergonomics, note placement, reading tab and staff, etc to intermediate playing more advanced theory, and techniques like walking, how to work well with a drummer in a band, arpeggios, etc.

I teach students who are just starting out, all the way to experienced students who are looking to sharpen specific parts of their skill set--such as: soloing, advanced harmony, genre/playing style primers, modal playing, Nashville Number System, etc. For beginners, we start with the basics, how to hold the instrument, how to tune it, and fret notes. From there, we diverge based on the students needs and interests. I really try to focus on ear training with all my students--at any level--because I believe it is such a fundamental skill for students regardless of instrument.