THIS SITE IS UNDER CONSTRUCTION
I have spent most of my working life as a carpenter, luthier and cabinet maker
here below is a link to my work as a woodworker
here below is a link to my work as a woodworker
and here some of the musical instruments I have built
MUSIC WORKSHOPS
There are four different workshops each one held once a month during the year in both English and French. Each workshop lasts three hours.
INTRODUCTION TO COMPUTER SOFTWARE DESIGNED TO HELP LEARN AND CREATE MUSIC
Regardless of the instrument being learnt there are numerous software’s, not expensive and often free, that will enhance and accelerate the learning process, plus allow extensive recording and sound manipulation possibilities. This workshop will teach you the basic music and acoustic theories necessary and introduce you to these software’s and how to use them. You will learn how to edit and optimise audio recordings for the Internet, YouTube and your own personal recordings. You will learn how you can teach yourself music and music theory using computer software.
LEARN TO IMPROVISE, FIND YOUR OWN MUSICAL VOICE
Many musicians have learnt their instruments classically, that is to say they learnt by reading music right at the beginning of their musical education, whilst this is a solid basis for interpreting music written by others, it can often be an impediment to developing the ear and learning to improvise, thus developing our own unique musical voice. I will teach you the underlying harmonic base, the melodic and improvisational possibilities inherent in the musical architecture, whether a simple folk tune or a more complex jazz composition. You will learn about chords, chord progressions, chord substitution and the different scales that are derived from these chords and their progressions.
SONG WRITING AND COMPOSITION
In this workshop we look at musical form in the Western tradition, the architecture of different music’s, the how and why of musical construction. You will learn basic rhythmic, harmonic and scale theories. When teaching this course I keep it simple and accessible; most folk, popular, rock and even much of the jazz repertoire keeps to one key. The American song writer Irving Berlin composed using only the white keys of the piano (he actually had a special piano made that allowed him to transpose, change keys) This system of understanding and analysis is the same used by theorists to study complex pieces of music
LEARN GUITAR OR KEYBOARDS
It has been said that even to just begin to master an instrument to become a ‘serious’ performer takes 10,000 hours of practice. I have certainly played well over this, but you can learn to have fun and a sense of achievement and satisfaction within hours if you learn to apply yourself in the right way. If you love music, have an ear for music and can remember a melody you can soon be making music that is rewarding. The guitar takes a little longer, as you must teach the fingers and muscles to make a good sound, but the piano or an electronic keyboard is much easier and a good sound is obtained immediately. I will show you how to have fun learning and how to ‘cheat’ using available recording techniques; much of today’s popular music is actually not played but created on a computer