Private electric and acoustic guitar lessons in York. All ages and skill levels. I don't have a cookie-cutter approach to teaching music.
Hi, I'm David, and I've been playing both the electric and acoustic guitars for a looong time now! Thirty years to be exact, and I've been tutoring for eight, including both private lessons and workshops. It's been a long and interesting journey, to say the least, and the guitar has taken me to some amazing places. I've played in bands as well as performing my own solo music on the local York folk
scene, though as I write this - October 2012 - my musical adventurings are lessons and home recording. My favourite guitarist is Carlos Santana, though I've been influenced by many great guitarists over the years: Eric Clapton, Jimi Hendrix, Jimmy Page, Jeff Beck, Eric Johnson, Peter Green, John Mclaughlin, Bert Jansch, Steve Howe and many others. As a teacher, I'm well aware of the frustrations that face the novice guitar player and remember all too well my own disappointing encounters with teachers that led me ultimately to find my own way and teach myself. I forged ahead by myself, though missing the support and encouragement that a good teacher can and should provide. Looking back on what I wanted in a teacher, I try to give that to my students today. This essentially boils down to supporting you to play the music that you love and that inspires you, and giving you the necessary guidance and information to be the guitar player you want to be. Everyone is different, will develop in at their own pace, and will find themselves drawn to different aspects of the instrument, be it composition, improvisation, or the modeling of unique sounds with effects. Or any kind of combination. As well as finding their own unique challenges on the instrument. I try to cover all aspects, so whether you're wanting to play the most complicated Joe Satriani solo or a simple folk song, I'm here to help take you where you want to go. It's a great joy to see a student get to that place we all want to get to where you loose yourself in the music and you don't have to worry anymore about technique or where-does-this-finger-go. Passing on that flame is the great pleasure and privilege of teaching music. Parents note that I hold an enhanced CRB check. References are available on request.
16/02/2025
One of the first fingerstyle pieces I learned. I believe he got the right hand pattern from Donovan when The Beatles were in India. And John Lennon used a variation on Dear Prudence
"One striking finding was that high-flow performances were associated with reduced activity in the brain’s frontal lobes, which are associated with executive function and cognitive control. This supports the idea that flow is a state of low cognitive control rather than hyperfocus."