Paying a Little Extra for an Instructor

Paying a little extra for an experienced, dedicated instructor can make all the difference in whether a student will be successful.

I was inspired to write this after a new student told me she went to a guitar teacher who kept looking at his watch throughout the lesson. She felt like he did not really want her there. She tried two others but both were not at her level of playing and couldn’t play the songs she wanted to learn.

Identifying a Seasoned Committed Teacher

There are so many amazing teachers out there who can inspire their students. It is easy to tell the difference between a seasoned, committed teacher verses someone who just needs the money.

Tools

One of the first things you will notice from an experienced teacher are the tools they use. On top of being organized, they will know how to get the student started on the right track at the first session using those tools. After each lesson, they will track your progress and know what the next step is. After years of taking lessons, you will be able to go back and see how far you have come.

Another very important indication that you have a great teacher is that he/she will have a library of fun material that students enjoy. This can only come from years of trial and error. After a while, an instructor knows which songs and exercises students really like and will use those in their sessions.

Rates

Another factor that separates an instructor who has made teaching a career from a new or inexperienced teacher are usually the rates. Someone who is new and not sure of themselves will often set their prices lower than everyone else. When I first started in 1998, the music store set the rates but my wage was probably the lowest in the industry. I had not invested anything into my career yet and did not have any teaching experience, so it made sense. My strongest asset was having the passion and excitement to teach.

Teaching is such an amazing career. Being inexperienced absolutely does not mean the person is a bad teacher. However, as the case when I first started, my wage reflected the fact that I was new.

Does the Instructor Take Advantage of Technology?

Back before Windows and the internet, we would manually write out all the changes, chords, and lyrics to the songs. Unless you bought the book or sheet music, you may be waiting a while for the transcription. This could sometimes easily take a few lessons. Today there are still instructors who do this. Not that this is necessarily a bad approach, but it is very time consuming. This can limit the amount of actual learning that takes place in the lesson.

These days, having a laptop with a separate monitor for the student is a huge benefit. Using a computer makes it quick and easy to download almost any song. This is also a great benefit for people who struggle with the small font that books offer. By having a large screen, the music can be blown up making it easier to read.

Another advantage of technology is the use of backing tracks. These can be pulled up on YouTube and are so much fun to play along with. I believe this is the reason that students today are so far ahead of my generation. Having a full band without a guitar track allows the student to experiment with endless techniques and ideas.

Music Programs

There are so many programs that can help a student master a part that they are struggling with. Having software and computer programs which slow down and speed up a song section, such as Guitar Pro, is vitally important. Not only that, these programs have the ability to isolate certain lead or rhythm tracks and loop them. Subscribing to a variety of programs will help with so many areas and styles that the teacher can focus on instruction and technique.

When the lesson is done, comments can be written in the music using a digital pen right on the computer screen. The music itself can then be saved to a file and printed for the student. This way, the student will have a digital one to refer to whenever they would like.

Final Words on Paying a Little Extra

If possible, try a few instructors and see what the difference is between cost and quality. Chances are, if you spend a little more, you may have a much better experience in the end.

If you have any questions or comments, please contact me, I look forward to hearing from you!

Creating a Set List for Your Band

One of the many mistakes I made in my first band was creating the wrong set list for the club. We thought we picked some amazing tunes, but they were either too slow or not meant to dance to. Needless to say, we were looking for the chicken wire by the end of the first set. I remember one drunk guy walking up to the stage after our first song and said “I waited 2 hours for this?!?” I can still hear his voice today. So, to help all my friends who are getting started, I thought I’d share what I’ve learned about creating a set list.

Add Danceable Songs for a Club

A great way to start is by putting together a list of popular danceable songs. You may want to go to Google or YouTube and type in top songs of your band’s genre. Then rifle through the list and pick out the tunes you like. Our band has always done this individually. Then during practice, we picked a couple to add. This way each person can put in songs they like to play.

Rock Songs that Work

As with any band, there are certain songs that seem to get people out on the floor for each genre. Here are some examples of classic rock songs that would always get people dancing. The downside is that they are overplayed. It can be tough to get excited about them sometimes, but a full dance floor can change that.

• Sweet Home Alabama
• Keep Your hands to Yourself
• La Grange
• House is Rockin’
• Brick House
• Summer of ‘69
• What I like About You
• Long Train Runnin’
• I Want You to Want Me
• Livin’ On a Prayer
• Play That Funky Music
• Get Down Tonight
• Rocky Mountain Way
• Pride and Joy
• La Bamba
• Rocky Mountain Way
• Jump

Slower Songs in a Set List

One killer for any band is to put too many slow songs in a set list. A good rule of thumb is to limit the slow tunes to 1 or 2 per set for a dance club. These can be a very powerful tool to fill the dance floor, but can also lull your crowd to sleep if you overdo it.

A great idea for slower tunes may be to add a good crossover song. Even if you are a rock band, having a few country or blues tunes in your repertoire can be a great way to win a few dancers. Especially those who like music other than what you are playing.

Slow songs that always brought the crowd out for us were:

• Wonderful Tonight
• Turn The Page
• Live Like You Are Dying
• When A Man Loves a Woman

And believe it or not, Free Bird was a song that almost always went over well. Just make sure to nail the solo on it.

The best place to put the slow songs in a set are usually somewhere around song 4, 5, or 6. This way you could always end with one and it won’t slow the night down.

How to Add Medium Songs

Songs like Sultans of Swing and anthem songs like Stairway to Heaven can be a great set ender, but be careful with too many of those as well. One thing I have discovered is that people love to hear them, but don’t tend to dance to them. Sometimes those are best left to close a night out.

You will begin to tell the medium (not so danceable songs) from the drivin’ tunes pretty quickly on.

Bottom line

When the floor is full, it usually doesn’t matter how much you dislike a song, it tends to be a lot of fun to play. If people are having fun, then time flies!

A final thought is to keep a list of songs that get people out consistently. Also, put together a list of duds. Each band has songs that work for them but may not go over well for other bands. Give each song at least 4-5 gigs to tighten them up before shelving them. This way, you will know you played well but the song just doesn’t get a response. A song that we took out of the rotation was Down by the Waterline by Dire Straits. After the drunk guys comments, we watched it for a few more gigs and then it ended up in the graveyard.

Hope this helps. If you are interested in lesson, please contact me to set up a time either virtually or in person.

Saying Goodbye to Students

I just left the studio and said goodbye to another student who has been with me for almost a decade. It is so sad when you meet someone at the age of 6 or 7 and then all of a sudden, they are 18 and leaving for college. Sometimes you see them again when they stop back to visit. But after that, they are on the road to starting their next new adventure.

Unique Profession 

Teaching music is one of the very few careers where someone can get together with another person to create music on a weekly basis. Sometimes this can be an hour each week for over a decade. It is a lot of fun to hear about the big events that happen to them. After several years, those students are like family. It is so nice to get the graduation announcements in the mail and watch them as they grab that diploma. I always hope they will pursue music in college, but of course I understand that a degree in music is not for everyone.

What I Hope They Remember

My hope is that every student who leaves has amazing memories of their time in the studio. My goal is not only to teach them how to play, but to pass along the passion for making music as well. I want them to look back when they are my age and smile when they remember their lessons. Then, I hope they pass along the same gift of music to their kids. Music is one of the things that really brings people together.

I am always happy for the student as they enter their next phase of life and grateful for the time I had with them.

If you are interested in lessons, please contact me. I teach in-person lessons and online as well. For in-person lessons, I have a studio at Boomer Music in Fort Collins, Colorado, and here in Greeley.