Composition (Music)

As a composer, I've written music for commercials and documentaries nationally and internationally, and have worked for clients such as Motorola, Scion, State Farm Insurance, Hyundai, Maserati, Herman Miller, and NASCAR. In addition, I've scored numerous short films, comedies and dramas, and used the latest software to create this music. Examples of programs that I use include Pro Tools, Cubase, and Digital Performer. At both Harvard and Berklee College of Music, I took courses in music composition and received A grades for all such courses. I'm currently an instructor at an LA university, and tutor a student in composition there.

Piano

As a freelance teacher working in the Boston area, as well as here in Los Angeles, I've taught students how to play the piano, with most of my experience in beginning child players. I've also taught adults beginning or intermediate piano, and have covered various genres, from classical to jazz, as well as piano rock featuring those ubiquitous two piano rock legends, Billy Joel and Elton John! I've always tried to cater to the specific musical likes or dislikes of my students, simply because it's much easier to get them motivated to practice, practice, practice!! I teach simple five-finger melodies first, and slowly work in two-handed pieces of music when the student is ready, and has developed a workable sense of rhythm and tempo. For all students, I've made the sometimes monotonous study of scales and arpeggios a part of each and every lesson. Although these exercises are designed for classical music, being able to play arpeggios and scales easily and with facility also helps the student improve their ability to improvise, both in a jazz context, but also as a musician playing in any genre, and also possibly as a future composer as well! In terms of the classical approach, I've hued closely to the development of sight-reading ability, which can be a slow and arduous process. I've also tried to vary up my lessons, and also teach my students the basics of reading lead sheet notation, namely a simple melody to be played in the right hand, and the chords associated with the left, represented on paper by those many letters and symbols: Cmin, Bdim7, G7(#9)! Being able to teach a system of playing songs, as the lead-sheet approach does, has helped to give my students the ability to, truly, play any song they can find in a "fake book"! This has always been a wonderful realization, I remember when I learned to do this, and it was a transformative moment in my musica education, the thought that you can play anything, and thus have the entire musical world open for your discovery. It's a powerful feeling inde

Piano

As a freelance teacher working in the Boston area, as well as here in Los Angeles, I've taught students how to play the piano, with most of my experience in beginning child players. I've also taught adults beginning or intermediate piano, and have covered various genres, from classical to jazz, as well as piano rock featuring those ubiquitous two piano rock legends, Billy Joel and Elton John! I've always tried to cater to the specific musical likes or dislikes of my students, simply because it's much easier to get them motivated to practice, practice, practice!! I teach simple five-finger melodies first, and slowly work in two-handed pieces of music when the student is ready, and has developed a workable sense of rhythm and tempo. For all students, I've made the sometimes monotonous study of scales and arpeggios a part of each and every lesson. Although these exercises are designed for classical music, being able to play arpeggios and scales easily and with facility also helps the student improve their ability to improvise, both in a jazz context, but also as a musician playing in any genre, and also possibly as a future composer as well! In terms of the classical approach, I've hued closely to the development of sight-reading ability, which can be a slow and arduous process. I've also tried to vary up my lessons, and also teach my students the basics of reading lead sheet notation, namely a simple melody to be played in the right hand, and the chords associated with the left, represented on paper by those many letters and symbols: Cmin, Bdim7, G7(#9)! Being able to teach a system of playing songs, as the lead-sheet approach does, has helped to give my students the ability to, truly, play any song they can find in a "fake book"! This has always been a wonderful realization, I remember when I learned to do this, and it was a transformative moment in my musica education, the thought that you can play anything, and thus have the entire musical world open for your discovery. It's a powerful feeling inde

Composition (Music)

As a composer, I've written music for commercials and documentaries nationally and internationally, and have worked for clients such as Motorola, Scion, State Farm Insurance, Hyundai, Maserati, Herman Miller, and NASCAR. In addition, I've scored numerous short films, comedies and dramas, and used the latest software to create this music. Examples of programs that I use include Pro Tools, Cubase, and Digital Performer. At both Harvard and Berklee College of Music, I took courses in music composition and received A grades for all such courses. I'm currently an instructor at an LA university, and tutor a student in composition there.

Guitar

As a freelance teacher working in Boston, I taught students how to play the guitar, both in terms of single-note "fingerpicking" playing, as well as open chords and barre chords. I've trained students to play both acoustic guitar, as well as electric guitar, and have trained them to utilize amplifiers and computer software in order to allow them to take their skills to the stage, or the recording studio! Included in my lessons have been instruction on how to read tablature, as well as notated notes on the staff. Also, I've taught my students how to read and interpret chord symbols, frequently seen on lead sheets for songs that range from jazz standards to uptempo metal rock. Central to my teaching style is to find my students' area of musical interest, whatever genre that might be, and craft a custom lesson plan that will allow them to achieve the greatest result in a relatively short amount of time. It's in this way that I hope to instill the interest and excitement in my students, to carry them forward and give them motivation to continue their guitar-playing into adulthood!

Piano

As a freelance teacher working in the Boston area, as well as here in Los Angeles, I've taught students how to play the piano, with most of my experience in beginning child players. I've also taught adults beginning or intermediate piano, and have covered various genres, from classical to jazz, as well as piano rock featuring those ubiquitous two piano rock legends, Billy Joel and Elton John! I've always tried to cater to the specific musical likes or dislikes of my students, simply because it's much easier to get them motivated to practice, practice, practice!! I teach simple five-finger melodies first, and slowly work in two-handed pieces of music when the student is ready, and has developed a workable sense of rhythm and tempo. For all students, I've made the sometimes monotonous study of scales and arpeggios a part of each and every lesson. Although these exercises are designed for classical music, being able to play arpeggios and scales easily and with facility also helps the student improve their ability to improvise, both in a jazz context, but also as a musician playing in any genre, and also possibly as a future composer as well! In terms of the classical approach, I've hued closely to the development of sight-reading ability, which can be a slow and arduous process. I've also tried to vary up my lessons, and also teach my students the basics of reading lead sheet notation, namely a simple melody to be played in the right hand, and the chords associated with the left, represented on paper by those many letters and symbols: Cmin, Bdim7, G7(#9)! Being able to teach a system of playing songs, as the lead-sheet approach does, has helped to give my students the ability to, truly, play any song they can find in a "fake book"! This has always been a wonderful realization, I remember when I learned to do this, and it was a transformative moment in my musica education, the thought that you can play anything, and thus have the entire musical world open for your discovery. It's a powerful feeling inde

Saxophone

I'm an active saxophonist playing in Los Angeles, and I arrange for saxophones and other wind instruments as the Lead Arranger for the Hasty Pudding Theatricals at Harvard University. I can create custom sheet music for students, so they can be able to play the songs that interest them most, while making the music both fun and achievable given their current skill level. My expertise includes how to form a correct embouchure, correct fingering, as well as teaching the transpositions that saxophonists need to know in order to take music written in concert key and transpose it to the correct key of their given sax. I look forward to helping you or your student achieve the goals you've set to help them be independent musicians with a lifelong love of making music on the saxophone!

Piano

As a freelance teacher working in the Boston area, as well as here in Los Angeles, I've taught students how to play the piano, with most of my experience in beginning child players. I've also taught adults beginning or intermediate piano, and have covered various genres, from classical to jazz, as well as piano rock featuring those ubiquitous two piano rock legends, Billy Joel and Elton John! I've always tried to cater to the specific musical likes or dislikes of my students, simply because it's much easier to get them motivated to practice, practice, practice!! I teach simple five-finger melodies first, and slowly work in two-handed pieces of music when the student is ready, and has developed a workable sense of rhythm and tempo. For all students, I've made the sometimes monotonous study of scales and arpeggios a part of each and every lesson. Although these exercises are designed for classical music, being able to play arpeggios and scales easily and with facility also helps the student improve their ability to improvise, both in a jazz context, but also as a musician playing in any genre, and also possibly as a future composer as well! In terms of the classical approach, I've hued closely to the development of sight-reading ability, which can be a slow and arduous process. I've also tried to vary up my lessons, and also teach my students the basics of reading lead sheet notation, namely a simple melody to be played in the right hand, and the chords associated with the left, represented on paper by those many letters and symbols: Cmin, Bdim7, G7(#9)! Being able to teach a system of playing songs, as the lead-sheet approach does, has helped to give my students the ability to, truly, play any song they can find in a "fake book"! This has always been a wonderful realization, I remember when I learned to do this, and it was a transformative moment in my musica education, the thought that you can play anything, and thus have the entire musical world open for your discovery. It's a powerful feeling inde