Teaching

On top of actually writing and making music, one of my other greatest passions in life is teaching it. One of the things I love most about playing in so many different settings is being able to share the culmination of those experiences with others, and teaching has been an amazing opportunity to do exactly that. 

I’ve been teaching bass privately for about seven years now, at every level from total beginners to university music majors, and every age from 5 to 65. I first started teaching towards the end of high school at the Carmel Youth Center, which I helped run for three years, before moving my practice to Inspire Music in San Francisco’s Sunset District, where I’ve taught for the past four. 

In addition to private tuition, I’ve also had the opportunity to teach in a number of different group settings. This summer, I co-founded & facilitated Inspire Music’s “Rock The Sunset” Summer Camp - a two-week workshop for middle & high schoolers in which we covered the in’s and out’s of what it takes to create and play in a working rock band. I’ve also done a fair amount of work for the Monterey Jazz Festival, helping with both their annual Summer Jazz Camp as the Assistant Bass Clinician to the incredible Scott Steed, and several of their middle & high school Beginning Jazz Workshops, as assistant to legendary jazz educator Paul Contos. 

I think the key to a successful education relationship, at any level, is clear and open communication between teacher and student, and this is something I always strive for in my practice. Having played in such a vast variety of musical environments, I not only know what basic tools and information are necessary to become a working musician, but also fully appreciate how different each student’s musical needs/wants will be and do my best to offer specific, pointed, and first-hand information to each of my students. I’ve taught students in nearly every possible style, and always work with the student to plan out a unique curriculum that’ll serve them best.

If you’re interested in studying privately with me, feel free to get in touch and I’d love to work something out. I generally teach weekly lessons at Inspire Music at a rate of $35/hour, but if you’d like me to come to you, or do something a little more intense or a little less regular, get in touch and I’d be more than happy to work something out!!