Jason Kuykendall
About
I teach pedal steel guitar, lap steel, dobro, and guitar by Zoom — one-on-one, 45-minute sessions designed for adult beginners and intermediate players who are serious about learning real music.
Most of my students fall into two groups: people who've wanted to play lap steel or dobro for years and finally decided to go for it, and guitarists who've started experimenting with slide or steel and want to stop guessing.
My lessons focus on the practical fundamentals that most people miss: tuning and intonation, bar technique, right-hand patterns, understanding the fretboard in open tunings, and building songs from the ground up. We work on music you actually want to play — country, Hawaiian, blues, jazz, or whatever brought you to the instrument.
I perform publicly with several groups on Bainbridge Island, Washington, playing pedal steel, lap steel, dobro, and guitar. I've studied at Berklee Online. I teach the way I learned: through music, not exercises. Most students start hearing real improvement within a few sessions.
Sessions are 45 minutes via Zoom. Rate: $75/session. I keep a small roster — no more than 8 weekly students — so every student gets real attention.
Teaching Style
My lessons are practical and song-based from day one. I don't teach scales and exercises in the abstract — we work on real music that means something to you. I'll show you what you need technically, but always in service of playing songs you actually want to play.
I'm direct and patient. If something isn't working, we'll figure out why and fix it. I keep things simple and focused — we don't move on until a concept is solid. Most students find things start clicking faster than they expected once the technique is tied to real music.
Curriculum
In the first few lessons we establish the basics: bar technique, getting clean tone, and understanding the tuning. From there we build a working repertoire of songs in your chosen style — country, Hawaiian, blues, or jazz.
Lessons focus on right-hand patterns, open tuning positions, phrasing, and tone control. I don't rely on published method books — most materials for lap steel and dobro are limited or out of date. I work from transcriptions, recordings, and material developed from years of playing these instruments in live settings.
I recommend students have a working instrument and a quiet place to practice. No prior music reading ability is required.
Credentials & Affiliations
I perform publicly with several groups on Bainbridge Island, Washington, playing pedal steel guitar, lap steel, dobro, and guitar in country, Americana, Hawaiian, and blues settings. Groups include Western Arrow, Wildwood Angels, the South Seas, and the Grifting Cowboys.
Berklee Online — advanced professional certification in music theory and performance. professionaln certification in jazz guitar
Northwest Country Music Association — active member and performer.