Magdalen Angjelovski

Hello! I've been exploring, experiencing and practicing the art of music since I was a child. At the age of 8 the guitar became the first conscious link to music for me. I've been playing it for almost 20 years now, and as time goes on, I realize that there really is no limit to the possibilities that this instrument can offer! I started playing it on my own as a self-taught guitarist and after I met with my guitar teacher who had been teaching me for a year or so. After I got the basics, I started playing more and more by ear and exploring the fretboard. Apart from the guitar, I also play ukulele, bass guitar, piano and percussion instruments (cajon; shakers; darbouka...).

As I fell in love with the guitar, I also fell in love with choir singing and harmonizing, which led me to satisfy my need for music knowledge by attending "Ilija Nikolovski Luj" - the music and ballet high school in Skopje where I started very actively and passionately learning about music theory, specifically classical music theory, playing classical music on piano and singing in choirs, one of which was the youth church choir in my hometown called "Ss. Cyril and Methodius" with whom I performed in the " 10th International Festival of Orthodox Music "St. Bogoroditsa – Dostoino Est" in Pomorie, Bulgaria. After 4 wonderful years of studying the theory of music, I went to the "Ss. Cyril and Methodius University - Faculty of Music" in Skopje. There I sharpened my skills and knowledge of music theory, sang in the professional mixed choir "Dragan Shuplevski" and performed in choir festivals like the “Chernomorski zvutsi” International Choir Festival" 2018 in Balchik, Bulgaria; the jazz and classical music - "Festival des Tourelles" 2018 in Belfort, France; as well as in the Philharmonic Hall of the Republic of North Macedonia. I was a student on the faculty for 6 years. Apart from being in choirs and singing during my university studies, I also performed as a guitarist and a bassist in Munich, Germany 2021 and Birstonas, Lithuania 2022. As I was studying, I was also exploring pop and rock music in my country. 2 other friends and I formed a band and attended a band competition in 2017 where we got awareded the second place. After that, we got more active in the pop and rock scene in Skopje where we played cover songs acoustically. After getting some experience myself as a guitarist, I was aaccompanying more and more artists (bands and singers) with whom I performed in small venues around my country, and I had the honor of being the opening act for the concert of "Riblja Čorba" in 2023 in Bitola. Studying music theory and playing pop and rock music on the guitar led me to intertwine the two and find my way to understand music more. I've used the theory to understand the songs better, and I've played songs that made me understand the theory even more! It really felt like magic, and I'd love to share that magic with whoever wants to hear about it. During my 10 years of professional music education, I've been attending competitions regarding music theory, music harmony, musical forms and piano.

After graduating and getting my bachelor's degree in Music Theory and Pedagogy, I went on to learn more about the field of non-formal education in Luxembourg where I facilitated Youth Exchange projects in the field of music, theater and dance through the NGO called "ReAct" during 2021 - 2024. I had the opportunity to hold workshops about rhythm and improvisation (using the book"Rhythm with signs handbook" by Santiago Vazquez). Teaching music through non-formal education is definitely a thing that I'd like to get more into.

Since finishing my studies and non-formal teaching opportunities, I have been traveling around Europe where I met a lot of people that were interested in learning how to play the guitar, which made me want to play the guitar together with them and teach them along the way. This is how I started doing 1 on 1 lessons in Switzerland in the community of Schloss Glarisegg through experiencing, playing, observing and practice! As I continued my travels I met people that became my students in Portugal, France and Italy.

I believe that the best way to learn is by doing. It doesn't matter if you grab a guitar for the first time or if you already have experience with it, I'm here to meet you where you are and walk together with you. In my opinion, it's very important for the student to learn what they're interested in, keeping in mind that sometimes in order to do that there might be a curve on the road. Whatever the case is I find that having fun and enjoying the process is very necessary for achieving progress. Another necessity I find is creating a safe space and a slow (enough) pace during the lessons. I acknowledge that every student is different (both in interests and levels), some might prefer a personalized lesson plan, some might prefer an already existing lesson plan and I am here for both options. 

I can confidently say that the acoustic western guitar is my strongest suit, specifically rhythm guitar (I'd also call my playing style percussion guitar). I play both fingerstyle and pick, and I play both rhythm (harmony) and melody. I can teach you basic chords, basic rhythm patterns, basic improvisation as well as advanced chords and rhythm patterns. I don't teach a specific genre of music because I believe that everything is playable on the acoustic guitar (from folk to Dubstep). I'm sharing this from my own experience.

I am more than happy to sprinkle some knowledge of musical forms and music theory (and harmony) if you'd like while teaching you how to play the guitar.