Training

I was trained on the Suzuki Method starting at age 3 on violin.   This Method is a heavy ear-training method as oppossed to a heavy sight-reading method.    During Middle School I refined my sight reading, kept taking lessons, and in High School I started playing viola and started playing in many orchestras.   I left Kansas City and went down to Wichita for college.    I received my B.A. in Music Education from Wichita State University.   During my degree I started venturing out into Jazz, Rock, Country, and others and writing my own music.   After I graduated I conducted the Hutchinson Youth Symphony for a couple years and now I'm in Kansas City again starting my own private studio.

Philosophy

I was trained in a traditional Classical method.   Traditional classical training promotes good technique, respect for your composer, and a high standard of excellence.  All of these things I agree with.   Traditional Classical music and the training is an big part of my teaching.  I train the students to be able to sight-read music, and to play by ear.   The student will practice on their own during the week outside of the lessons.   I teach the student important practice techniques that can increase their productiveness when practicing.   This is the only way to improve your skills as a musician.   I have played many different types of music and I feel that there is validity and unique attributes that can only be learned when you study certain kinds of music.  Just like in school, we don't send our kids to only 7 math classes everyday, we want a well rounded education with the student dabbling in all subjects.   The same applies to music.   

I also believe there is a special empowerment that a person feels when they create their own music.   You can "write" music in a number of different ways;  playing a solo in a rock or jazz band, writing a full song, or improvising on the spot.   This is one of the aspects of music that is missed in our present day classical world and it is impossible to work on in orchestra with 80 other kids there.    You connect to the music in a different deeper way.   I think writing is an extremely important part of music that builds self-confidence in a more internal way.   

The last thing I find that is my job as a teacher is training as a person.  I find that many of the musical concepts I work on with students are linked to life skills like self-confidence, self-discipline, or knowing when to listen and not talk.   These are some of the life lessons that are not neccessarily music related, but they dramatically effect a music lesson and the students playing ability.   We talk about things like that too.