Always looking forward
...and we're halfway through April.
It has been an exciting month filled with adventure and realizations of new goals. The main focus this month was the finalization of my students' recital material as well as organizing the repertoire and lineup. I'm happy to say that much of the songs have been finalized and it's going to be an exciting and diverse set of music chock-full of ensemble work, classical, jazz, pop, rock, musicals, as well as original material. I am lucky to have a group of students so individualistic and unique in their own goals. Showcasing their hard work is always a treat for me.
Potential new projects
After some brainstorming during the month of March, I have come up with this crazy idea to start a web series that will play out like a talk show. It will be structured as such, with each episode featuring an artist, whether it is music, spoken word, art, or even cooking. The purpose of this video series is to highlight local talent by showcasing their work, introduce people to their background via interview, and unveiling a different side of them as they participate in a jam session with me. The aim is to have legitimate production and quality, which I have gotten a better grasp of due to consultation from Michael Ochnicki. Now with all that said, I have decided to put this project on hold, due to the logistics of taking on such a huge endeavor. I am hoping to lay the groundwork for this series, but have decided to put it aside for another project.
One of the discussions that I often have with my guitar teaching colleagues at the music school I work at is that no guitar method book is perfect in terms of introducing concepts, teaching at a reasonable pace, and introducing different repertoire. Though it may seem like a huge endeavor, I feel the lack of perfect material opens the opportunity to write a method book geared towards my teaching style and philosophy. Now I'm not looking to sell or publish this on a large scale yet, but at the very least, I can assign it to my students and they can purchase it from me. This project will take some considerable work because it will require that I explore every method book available as well as needing consultation from teachers and writers alike. As the pieces of this project come together, I will start releasing more information. More on that later.
What do I write about?
I want to make these updates and blog posts more exciting, incorporating reader participation in conjunction with my own updates. In order to better involve readers, I am asking that everybody/anybody message me with topics that would interesting for me to discuss. This could regard the topic of music theory, composition, practicing, opinions of songs or anything music related. Beyond that, I would also be more than happy to discuss other topics, such as hobbies, travels, or anything else that would pique interest. I am open to any prompt. Please message me through facebook or through my website regarding topics to discuss.
Also, please go to the lesson section and check out my Featured Student.
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Branden