Information About Neil - Putney teacher

Personal Description:

Hi, my name is Neil. I have 18 years musical experience, 15 of which as a Guitarist and Bassist. As a professional guitarist and bassist I have played in a variety of musical settings including function bands, pit bands, big bands, jazz duets, trios and quartets, blues and funk bands and as a soloist, all of these across London and England. The venues in which I have performed range from small clubs/pubs to festivals. I have studied music performance and music teaching at a university level.

Tutoring Experience:

I have eight years teaching experience. Over the course of this time as a private Guitar/Bass tutor I have gained invaluable experience in teaching all levels of student (Beginner to advanced) and a wide range of ages (8-68). My teaching has and continues to cover a wide range of styles, but my specialist teaching lies in Jazz and Blues. I have taught both in one-one and group scenarios and have experience helping students towards obtaining Rock School grades, Music Theory grades, auditions and professional performances.

Tutoring Approach:

My aim as a teacher is to tailor my lessons to the personal goals of each individual student, or group of students. I actively encourage students to have fun and enjoy themselves, whilst also teaching technical aspects of music and instrument technique. I have a particular personal ethos of involving improvisation into my lessons. I believe encouraging improvisation helps students to express themselves more imaginatively and freely, a crucial part of music and being a musician. I also encourage students in self directed learning as I feel this provides them with more drive and focus in achieving their goals. Also using various teaching tools including Youtube, Sibelius, Logic and Guitar-pro is something I like to do as it allows an interactive element that students can really get involved in as well as being very accessible for practicing in between lessons.