Instructors
INFO ON OUR OTHER INSTRUCTORS TO BE ADDED
Wesley Crider, Guitar Teacher
Wesley Crider's dad bought him a Play Along with Chet album when Wesley was 6, and Chet Atkins became his hero.
After learning many Chet tunes, Wesley then moved on to learn the picking style of Jerry Reed. At age 25 he became interested in Albert Lee, Ray Flack, & Brent Mason.
Wesley has performed on many Southern Gospel albums & with several Gospel groups including Day Star, The Trailblazers, The New Hinsons, and The Called Vocal Group.
Wes became a Featured Instructor at ChattaMusic in 2009
Wesley's Accomplishments Include...
*2004 Winner International Thumbpicking Championship @ Paradise Park in Muhlenberg, KY.
First Place in traditional style of Chet Atkins & Merle Travis and First Place in Contemporary Style.
Sponsors & Endorsements:
*Sponsored by Wallace Guitars in Niota, TN
*Signature Model Wallace Acoustic Guitar
*Signature Model Wallace Nylon String Classical Guitar
*Signature Model Wallace TL Light with Bender
Wesley Crider, Guitar TeacherWesley Crider's dad bought him a Play Along with Chet album when Wesley was 6, and Chet Atkins became his hero.
After learning many Chet tunes, Wesley then moved on to learn the picking style of Jerry Reed. At age 25 he became interested in Albert Lee, Ray Flack, & Brent Mason.
Wesley has performed on many Southern Gospel albums & with several Gospel groups including Day Star, The Trailblazers, The New Hinsons, and The Called Vocal Group.
Wes became a Featured Instructor at ChattaMusic in 2009
Wesley's Accomplishments Include...
*2004 Winner International Thumbpicking Championship @ Paradise Park in Muhlenberg, KY.
First Place in traditional style of Chet Atkins & Merle Travis and First Place in Contemporary Style.
Sponsors & Endorsements:
*Sponsored by Wallace Guitars in Niota, TN
*Signature Model Wallace Acoustic Guitar
*Signature Model Wallace Nylon String Classical Guitar
*Signature Model Wallace TL Light with Bender
Merrilee McCain, Violin TeacherI never planned on teaching violin but it "just happened." And it all started with a love affair with classical music.
At the age of six I began violin training the Suzuki method. At this young age I was very taken with the instrument after watching a national orchestra perform on television, and I have never lost my passion for strings. I found a teacher who had defected from Hungary while performing in the U.S. with the Hungarian National Orchestra. His name was Zsolt Bayor. I played in several youth orchestras and symphonic orchestras around the country within a few years (Loma Linda Youth Orchestra led by Zsolt Bayor, Loma Linda University Orchestra, Minneapolis Symphonic Orchestra, Lee College Symphonic Orchestra, East Tennessee Symphonic Orchestra) and have played for many special events (church services, weddings, funerals) and music projects (children's book narrative, music CD by Mitch McCain).
Teaching violin is a real joy for me personally. I teach several students both young and old. The Violin Book by Eden Van Rosen has been a wonderful curriculum. You can learn about it on their website: www.theviolinbook.com. It is a complete system of learning how to play the violin step by step and is comprehensive enough to serve as a conservatory course. Yet even the youngest musician can learn. My youngest student is 3 years old.
Music is one fast way to build IQ. There are studies that prove this fact. And classical music has been touted as a potent healer of the mind and soul. Well adapted to the student, it improves test scores, sleep quality, reduces stress, depression, and much more. Violin has been touted as a wonderful instrument for helping children with ADHD have more organized thinking and habits. What is really exciting is that college scholarships and grants are awaiting the avid violin student using The Violin Book method of learning. The Violin Book lesson plan persists in empowering most of its players with these rewards on a regular basis with few exceptions. My motto is, "Achieve your best with music."
www.angelicviolinstudio.blogspot.com
Lynda Fowler, Piano and Voice TeacherLynda Fowler started piano lessons at the age of 6. She began teaching piano to young children at 15.
After graduating from SAU with her music degree, she taught in a variety of Christian Schools throughout Southern California.
Lynda has been a children's choir director for several years, and has enjoyed trips to the recording studio (along with her students) where they recorded several CD's available for sale on the internet.
She was the music director for the "Castles and Crowns" DVD and CD (a Vacation Bible School production) and was writer, director and choreographer for several children's musicals.
Recently, her students performed for the Long Beach Aquarium, where they entertained a large audience of celebrities to rave reviews. Her students find her fun and enthusiastic, and this is evident in the background tunes made available to all on her website.
Jesse Blu - Bass Instructor
Jesse Blu... I was born a poor black child in Mississippi....
I've been making music since 1984, always working 'hand to mouth'- Teaching beginners as I learned myself all the way up to studying with virtuosso Regi 'The Teacha' Wooten in Nashville; Always studying every style, and technique I could- from playing 'Mustang Sally' in bars to time in various jazz combos, to classical orchestras; There is ONLY music, not labels; There's something to be learned from every musical situation one comes across.. Most of my time is spent building electric upright basses (www.ergoinstruments.com), and gigging/subing locally, but teaching has always been a great creative outlet for me as well.
Tom Johnson - guitar
DeAnn Fowler-Lowell - Piano, Singing, Marimba Instructor
At the age of two, DeAnn sang her first solo on stage. Since then she has continued to perform and record vocally, and instrumentally. After beginning piano lessons at six years old, DeAnn excelled in music, adding percussion and composition to her repertoire. Her professional experience includes a degree in music, teaching music privately and in classroom/group settings, managing and training children in performance in Hollywood, CA, and touring with bands and music ensembles.
