Posted by Joseph Felton on September 12, 2001 at 17:34:43:
In Reply to: A question for Tuba teachers posted by bruce h on September 06, 2001 at 15:13:35:
Hi Bruce! :)
I'm very reticent to toot my own horn(pun intended) in a forum such as this but I would be more than happy to help you out with as many lessons as you like. I live near you, my rates are very reasonable, and I'm very generous with my time. Just drop me an email.
For others in the area just a little info:
I've studied for varying periods of time with the following(some of them may not remember me- others may wish to forget ;b) :
Velvet Brown
Mark Mordue
Fred Marzan
Dan Perantoni
Scott Watson
Michael Sanders
Brian Bowman
Jeff Gershman
Andrew Oppenhiem
I've also attended *numerous* masterclasses and lectures by other notable professionals and am very familiar with the concepts put forth in such books as Inner Game of Tennis, and Song and Wind.
All of these people have had a tremendous influence on my playing and I draw upon all of them in my teaching. If one approach doesn't work I draw upon my bag of tricks from another teacher. I don't expect my students to all be aspiring pros and I make a real point of adjusting my teaching style and what I emphasize according to what I think the student needs at the time. In other words, the concepts and approaches that I bring to you in lessons are the same ones that are used by musicians with proven track records(only I'm cheaper). I make no claims that I play on a par with those I've listed above(you will have to take a lesson and decide how much that matters to you and how big or little that difference is) but hopefully what I lack in refined technique I can make up in inspiration from my work ethic and musicality.
When appropriate I make use of the many breathing gizmos I keep at hand to work out more specific issues although I think most teachers prefer spending their time talking about music. I have very high quality recording equipment that I use to give students immediate feedback on their progress and what they really sound like. And I'm also very fond of ending lessons with a listening session from my very large collection of solo tuba and orchestral recordings. This is a great opportunity to discuss what it is we are working towards and refine student's sound concepts hopefully providing motivation during practice until the next lesson.
finding it difficult to sound as humble and easy going as I really am and sell myself to potential students at the same time,
Thanks for your time,
Joseph 'best bang for your buck in KC' Felton
p.s. I'm willing to reduce my fee on an initial lesson as incentive to get folks to give me a try. Regardless feel free to drop me a line just to talk shop.