Lesson Feesfrom $30.00 / 30 Minutes
Promotions Available
About
I've been a professional musician since the age of 14 having the good luck of being able to play all across America, Alaska, Europe, South America, Central America and Indonesia. I've played in big bands, latin bands, funk bands, classic rock bands, jazz bands, recording studios, TV, pit bands, and original bands.
I love teaching Sax, Trumpet, Guitar, Theory, and Improv. If you're interested in the altissimo range of the saxophone, your in the right place!
I received my teaching degree at the Conservatory of Music at The University Of Pacific in California and taught publicly for 25 years. I have toured worldwide with numerous bands numerous times. I have always taught privately, since age 13, wherever I travel to.
I've been on stage with Kenny Loggins, Aretha Franklin, Natalie Cole, Patti LaBelle, Hermeto Pasqual, Wayne Bergeron, to name a few.
I currently give lessons in Tyler, Texas and play in numerous funk and jazz bands.
My style revolves around giving you important basics, techniques, and refinements of playing your instrument wrapped up in FUN! "Fun" being the direction YOU want to go in. I discovered that if playing is fun, you're more inclined to practice. So whatever YOUR end goal is in music, we strive to get there.
Are you a beginner? I have had 5 year olds all the way to 60 year olds come to me as beginners. It doesn't matter what age you start at, it's all about the journey. We will make sure your embouchure, technique, air flow, and horn mechanics are all in working condition! And we'll have fun getting there. We can definitely help you pick out a horn and mouthpiece if you haven't acquired them already. They are definitely NOT all equal.
Experienced players usually come to me for altissimo, tone production, sight reading, improv, and technique. It doesn't matter how good we get, there is always something else to learn about. That's the journey and the fun of playing music.
Being a band director for 25 years makes it very comfortable for me to teach sax, trumpet, guitar, imrov, and theory also. You can check me out on youtube by searching "elifunkysax11." Most of those songs are me playing all instruments except drums.
In all cases we start with your personal goals for wanting to get better on your instrument and create a direct path to that place. Your only job is to create a regular time to practice every day. Even if it's just a few minutes a day, it's the regular time schedule that will help you the most.
Teaching degree from the Conservatory of Music at University of Pacific and a Teaching degree from the State of Texas
I teach by getting together with you and creating written music files or mp3s specifically for you. I find that practicing with background trax with specific instruction tailored to you is far more effective than you just playing in a room by yourself. I use Sibelius music writing software to write out personal lessons and email them to you during the lesson time. I also use Band In A Box and other software for creating personal mp3 tracks for you to practice to.