Hi, my name is Ryan and I graduated Summa Cum Laude from the Catholic University of America in Washington, DC, in 2006 with a B.A. in Anthropology. I was inducted into the national scholastic honor society Phi Eta Sigma in 2003, my sophomore year. I have always had a love and talent for prose and composition. I am a capable tutor in English and writing for many reasons. I direct a non-profit organization in Washington, DC, and I have helped many inner-city kids with their English for standardized tests, writing samples, and entrance essays. In high school, I wrote extensively for my school newspaper, earned a National Merit Scholarship, and scored a 720 in the Verbal portion of my SATs.
In addition, I am a musician with 15 years of experience playing in rock and roll bands and as a Church accompanist. I can play and teach a variety of musical styles including Rock, Folk, Blues, Gospel, and Christian music. Students frequently bring me the songs they want to learn from many different genres and we work through them together. I was trained and play mainly by ear, but I think it is important to teach students the fundamentals of the instrument and music theory in addition. My lessons are typically an hour long and include exercises, scales, theory, and working on a popular song that showcases the particular skill we are covering that week. Since I play guitar, bass guitar, keyboard, and percussion, I can accompany a student on a different instrument once he has mastered a song. I have found that learning to jam is the most desired skill among my students, and I love to teach it to them. The thrill a student feels when playing along with his teacher is the reward for his more tedious work of learning the basics. I work to get my students to this point because this is when they develop a real love for music.
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