Breaking Grounds in Music, Inc.

08/31/2026

Music reaches every single demographic. Regardless of age, ability, or playing level, there is an opportunity for everyone in music!

Find out what your opportunity is with us! Contact us today to enroll in lessons! Begin your new journey with Breaking Grounds in Music as we head into a new season!

08/29/2026

Excerpt 8 from our resource on Motivation.

DEMOTIVATING FACTOR. LACK OF PHYSICAL REST:

We have been examining demotivating factors; factors that are detrimental in reaching our goals. In our last excerpt, we examined how to overcome procrastination by devising a daily to-do list and prioritizing that list from what is hard and necessary (utmost importance) to fun and easy (least importance). Let’s examine another factor this weekend: the lack of physical rest. While it is recommended to get at least 7 hours of sleep, nearly 30 percent of Americans are getting less than this, and some within this percentage are significantly less! We all understand busyness, excessive schedules, time limitations, and the demands of life. Often times, things we need to do spill into the late evening hours, which deprive us from sleep! To be at optimum levels, we need to make sure we are getting at least 7 hours of sleep. Sleep deprivation produces all kinds of issues such as lethargy, irritability, impatience, and much more. This is all a nuisance to staying motivated as we won’t have the energy to press on. Regardless of how demanding your schedule is, take care of yourself and get the sufficient rest you need! If your mind is racing at night between what you have to do, write down a list of everything you have to do for the following day. This will diffuse the feeling of being overwhelmed.

We will continue our examination of demotivating factors next weekend!

08/27/2026

Check out Matt and his quartet in action!

A rendition of an original composition written by Matthew known as ...

08/27/2026

Our music teacher Matt and his talented quartet will be performing in Arlington Heights this Saturday evening! Check out the details👇!

Matt teaches bass guitar, electric guitar, drums, and more! He is a valuable asset to Breaking Grounds in Music, and we are very happy to have him!

The Cogstet is an experimental, jazz-rooted ensemble led by Chicago-based bassist, composer, educator, and vinyl DJ Matthew “Matt” Coglianese. Centered on collective improvisation, unique compositions and the individual voice, the music unfolds in real time—balancing groove, open form, and dee...

08/26/2026

Excerpt 10 from our Masterclass Series, “The Influences of Soul Music”.

ARETHA FRANKLIN. PART ONE:

Born in 1942, Aretha was known as The Queen of Soul. Growing up in the church, Aretha first sang many gospel songs where she released her first record in 1956 called Songs of Faith. Like Sam Cooke, Aretha wanted to widen her influence to the mainstream audience. She signed a contract with Columbia Records and released her first big hit called, “Today, I Sing The Blues”. Her career further advanced with songs like, “Mockingbird” and “I Never Loved A Man The Way I Loved You”. These songs all attributed to her growth and were a predecessor to the name she would make just a couple years later.

Stay tuned for our next excerpt as we will discuss the songs that propelled the career of Aretha Franklin and made her the international star she was!

08/24/2026

We are embarking on a new season! What better time to set new goals! Achieve those goals with us! Whether you aspire to learn an instrument or want to take your skills to the next level, we can help you!

Contact us today to set up a free complimentary lesson!

08/22/2026

Excerpt 7 from our resource on Motivation.

CREATIVE PROCRASTINATION:

In our last excerpt, we discussed how the majority of people first do what is fun and easy rather than what is hard and necessary. The issue with this approach is that their best is for tasks that really don’t matter and by the time they’re ready to do the hard and necessary tasks, they don’t have the energy to complete these tasks. So what is the solution to prevent this from happening? Write yourself a to-do list each morning you wake up. Write down everything that has to get it done in that given day. Once you have all your tasks written down, prioritize this list between what is most important to complete and what is least important. You can number each task with one being of highest priority and the last number of being the lowest priority. Ask yourself: If you didn’t have enough time to complete that task for the day, would it really matter? What tasks will make a difference in moving one step closer to your goal? What tasks may wait until you have less on your plate and that are not of great importance? These are very practical questions to ask that will enable you to be productive and successful each day, and not waste time on things that don’t contribute to much.

Stay tuned for our next excerpt as we will consider another demotivating factor!

08/20/2026

Enjoy this amazing duet performance from our students! These students have been taking lessons with us for just over 4 years and are the epitome of hard work, dedication, and consistency!

08/20/2026

Excerpt 9 from our Masterclass Series, “The Influences of Soul Music”.

JAMES BROWN. PART THREE:

As we learned, James Brown went from giving concerts to theater venues of hundreds of people to stadium venues of thousands of people in no time. In 1986, he was inducted in The Rock and Roll Hall of Fame during its first year of inception. He had a significant influence on the next generation of artists, including Michael Jackson, Prince, MC Hammer, and Jay-Z to name a few. He was called the Godfather of Soul, Founder of Funk, and Grandfather of Hip Hop!

Stay tuned next week as we will examine one more key influence of Soul music!

08/17/2026

Playing music with a group of other musicians is the best way to grow as a musician. This fall, we plan on reimplementing our band jam service where students will have the opportunity to play music in a band setting! Students not only apply the vocabulary they learn in the lessons, but also learn to share musical ideas in a team building environment!

Enjoy this clip with some of our teachers jamming together!