About Richard
I have been teaching a huge range of students for around 8 years or so. I tried various instruments as a teen and loved playing with other musicians. I decided to attend Cumberland County College for General Music (Guitar). I performed with a cover band as well as an original band called Sunset Rise. I have been lucky enough to record with my band for free at Rowan University while I was studying Classical Guitar Performance under Joseph Mayes. In addition to that experience at Rowan, I also taught at various music stores and privately part-time. I currently am the guitarist in a cover band called The Waiting Game. I set-up a home studio and spend time recording my own music, as well as for other musicians I know.
What is a musical obstacle that you remember overcoming? How did you overcome it?
I used to get horribly nervous when I first started playing in places besides my bedroom. I would say it was quite a bit more than just the normal nervous feeling. However, as with any fear, I just did it even though I was not thrilled about it at the time and it slowly went away. At least to the normal amount that anyone would feel when performing. There is nothing wrong with only playing in your bedroom but for anyone who may want to be in a band, you will have to get used to playing in front of other musicians, as well as potentially an audience. Once comfortable, it is an absolute blast.
What style(s) of music do you like to play the most? Why?
My favorite styles of music to play are reggae, rock, classical, alternative, and funk. I think when it comes to funk and reggae, it is all about the bass lines. So fun to play thick bass lines with some horns in a reggae or funk group. I also love playing blues guitar stuff. Playing any time with people is usually fun and rewarding. Classical guitar is always great, too. Very fun to read duets with another classical player.
What other instruments, aside from the ones you teach, have you played before?
I played tenor sax in middle school for 2 years. I also played violin for two classes with a fellow music major that was doing education. She needed to teach another student some easy violin stuff to play in class as a grade. It was pretty fun and I would love to experiment with some other instruments like sax again or cello.
When did you start playing music, what brought you to it?
My dad played drums when he was younger and my mom is a strong believer that learning an instrument is very beneficial to education and intelligence. For those reasons, my parents paid for me to have piano lessons when I was a kid, as well as saxophone lessons in school. I eventually stopped saxophone and started learning guitar, drums, and bass. I have to thank my parents because without them, I may not even be a musician. They were always very positive and never complained about any noise.
What are some musical goals you hope to achieve in the future?
I would say the biggest goal is to be able to do something that allows me to play music full-time. Whether that means teaching or playing in a wedding band/cover band or recording other musicians in my home studio. Whatever I need to do to financially support myself with music.
What are some of your favorite teaching moments?
I feel it is important to consistently use positive reinforcement (without over doing it, of course) and I really enjoy when students are proud of themselves. When students feel like they are actually accomplishing something during their lesson or practice time, they are way more likely to continue doing so. Also, younger students often react to positive criticism in funny ways, which is always fun. Big smiles, dances, etc.
What advice could you give to someone who has just begun learning music?
I think it depends on the age of the student to an extent. With an adult, I think some of the best advice, when it comes to learning an instrument, is that you get out of it that which you put into it. When it comes to kids, I tend to think that the best advice is just encouraging them to practice consistently. However, with both pieces of advice, the point is the same in that any musician has to practice to get better and the more you do, the better you will be and consequently, the more enjoyable and rewarding it will be.