School children discount on guitar lessons in Salisbury
If you’re under 18 and in education and looking for guitar lessons in the Salisbury, Wiltshire area I’m offering a discount at the moment as I have some availability on weekday early evenings or Saturday lunchtimes. I could come to you or you to me. So email me to discuss.
I’m teaching a tremendously varied range of music at the moment. The last week has included working on a Bach lute prelude for someone’s Grade 8 classical guitar exam, while all the 11 and 12 year olds I teach seem to have got into Ed Sheeran, so I’ve been working his songs out for them. Plus System of a Down and a bit of the Grease soundtrack! And regular things like South American classical stuff, and some classic folk and country (Steve Earl and Woodie Guthrie of late).
One of my students just got a merit in his Grade 6 electric too. I was particularly pleased with the mark he got for his specialism, which was fingerpicking — we worked up an arrangement of House of the Rising Sun with “excellent dynamics and musicality”. Chuffed!
Kind of predictably as soon as the sun came out last week I started listening to Pet Sounds and The Byrds. This is a favourite at the moment: beautiful guitar, immense moustache work in this performance too.
Bass Oddyssey
There’s a good article about the bass guitar in the Feb 2012 issue of The Word magazine, in which they talk to various great bass players like Peter Hook and point out that while guitarists often have lessons, bass players tend to have to work it out for themselves. Which hadn’t occurred to me but I guess is true.
I’ve taught quite a few people to play bass though, some using the Registry of Guitar Tutors‘ bass syllabus, others in a more freeform way using the music they like to listen to — covering rock, a bit of country, blues and rudimentary jazz. So if you’d like to learn to play bass in any of these styles in the Wiltshire / Berkshire area email me, I’d be happy to discuss.
My favourite song this week is the opener from Lambchop‘s Nixon album from about 10 years ago, it has beautifully restrained guitar and bass:
Give Them a Guitar Lesson this Christmas!
If you would like to give someone in the Salisbury area a guitar lesson or two for Christmas please get in touch and I’ll be very happy to discuss prices and availability.
My lessons are completely tailored to what the individual guitarist wants to play — so things I’ve been playing in lessons recently include Moon River, Here Comes the Sun by the Beatles, Brown Sugar by the Rolling Stones, Use Somebody by Kings of Leon, Can’t Stop by the Red Hot Chili Peppers, Someone Like You by Adele, Wonderwall by Oasis and various Fernando Sor pieces from Frederick Noad’s excellent books.
So if you would like your son or daughter to learn to read music and play an instrument, or if your gran has always longed to play Purple Haze, I can help!
Now in Salisbury!
I’m now living and teaching in Salisbury, Wilts, and on the list of tutors at the very nice local music shop The Music Room. So if you’re looking for guitar lessons in the Salisbury area — or even a little further off, in the Newbury area, for example — email me at simonsheffield@googlemail.com and I’ll be delighted to answer any questions.
At the moment I’d particularly welcome anyone looking for daytime lessons during the week, as well as the after school / early evening lesson slots. I’m a member of the Registry of Guitar Tutors, and teach both classical guitar and pop / rock style (plus bass and music theory).
Salisbury guitar lessons
I now have a confirmed date for starting teaching the guitar in the Salisbury, Wiltshire area, so if you are looking for lessons from October 2011 email me and I’ll happily answer any questions you have. I’m a member of the Registry of Guitar Tutors, fully qualified in classical guitar and have many years’ teaching experience.
I look forward to hearing from you!
Salisbury guitar lessons
I’m hoping to move my guitar teaching base to Salisbury, Wiltshire in September 2011. Mail me if you’re interested in having lessons. I can probably come to you if you’re near Salisbury, or you could come to me. I offer special discounted rates to pensioners for daytime lessons, but also teach children after school and do evening lessons. Saturday lessons may be possible.
I’ve been teaching firstly in Newbury and more recently in London over the last 20 years. I teach classical guitar, beginners right up to grade 8 (I took all the Associated Boards of the Royal Schools of Music guitar exams in my teens, getting a distinction and a merit in 7 and 8). I’ve also been teaching theory of music. And I teach acoustic and electric guitar in a variety of styles — I get students playing music they like, essentially, by getting them to bring CDs or an MP3 player along and working out how to play what they listen to.
Every student I’ve put in for an exam has received an excellent pass grade.
Things I’ve been teaching recently include Bach and Ruiz Pipo’s Danza for the Grade 8 classical syllabus, plus the following wonderfully varied selection of songs:
21 Guns by Green Day
Lazy Song by Bruno Mars
I Predict a Riot by the Kaizer Chiefs
Hey Joe by Jimi Hendrix
Lucky Old Sun (by all sorts of people)
My Girl by The Temptations
Brown Eyed Girl by Van Morrison
Xanadu by Rush
Several Mumford & Sons songs
A Punk by Vampire Weekend
No One Knows by Queens of the Stone Age
Super Massive Black Hole by Muse
Ohio by Neil Young
Importance of Being Idle by Oasis
I Shot the Sheriff by Bob Marley
Folsom Prison Blues by Johnny Cash
Here Comes the Sun by The Beatles
So do get in touch, I’d love to hear from you!
Donkey Siesta out now
My album Donkey Siesta is out now on CD from Lona Records / Christine’s Tunes. You can buy it here on the Lona site (worldwide shipping $2).
Donkey Siesta contains 10 of my songs recorded over a 2 – 3 year period in South London — its a mix of south american folky guitar chill outs and wierd and wired electric wig outs. You can hear a couple of things off it on my myspace.
Can! Neu! etc
There was a tremendous programme about the experimental German bands of the late 60s and 70s on BBC4 at the weekend — it’s called Krautrock: The Rebirth of Germany (despite the fact that at least one of the bands featured point out what a horrible term Krautrock is).
Catch it on the BBC iPlayer at http://www.bbc.co.uk/i/nf10k/ while you can.
People’s Day 2010
I’ll be appearing at Lewisham People’s Day on Saturday, July 10th, at 5pm, on the Festival Folly Stage, which can be found in the Green area. It’s billed as an acoustic / singer songwriter / spoken word kinda vibe. I’ll be playing a couple of my songs, a couple of covers and a smattering of south american guitar stuff.
As ever People’s Day is free and packed with bars and food stalls. See you there!
Visit http://www.lewisham.gov.uk/NewsAndEvents/Events/PeoplesDay/ for further details.
