I believe the single most important thing is that I teach the person in front of me. This means being extremely flexible in my approach because my students vary a great deal.

It’s important for me to understand your prior musical experience. So, my first step is to ask you about your musical journey so far.

A very different approach is needed to teach an experienced musician, who is just aiming to add to the range of instruments they play, rather than teaching someone who has absolutely no musical experience at all.

It’s also important to me to understand your musical aspirations. A teenager who wants to work towards the goal of being a pro musician needs to follow a very different path  to a retired person who just wants to play a few tunes for their own enjoyment.

When it comes to learning ability, I always like to take time to work out what suits you best. Some students work best by learning songs one after another, with little or no explanation of the music theory that helps make sense of how and why music works the way it does. Others like to explore the subject of music to a greater depth.

There is never any judgement on my part as to which approach is ‘right’ or ‘wrong’. I see it as very much a case of individual preference.

In general, my approach is to work with a student’s natural strengths.

Similarly, I like to consult the students own musical taste when it comes to the choice of material we work on. If you love Death metal, I probably won’t try and persuade you to play Jazz… and vice versa 🙂