Background:  
I am a professional musician and composer with a Bachelor degree of Music from the University of South Carolina where I studied music composition, guitar performance, music theory, music history and jazz. 

Skills and Expertise: 
I play several instruments at an extremely high level, including guitar, ukulele, bass and piano. I have a thorough knowledge of their respective techniques as well as a deep understanding of music theory, music composition, songwriting and music performance. I have a familiarity with most genres of music and seek to help students further learn, explore and discover more about music in whatever direction most inspires.  

Teaching Philosophy and Method:

My teaching philosophy and method is centered around giving the student freedom and control over their education and learning. As shown by the studies listed in my sources below, students and all humans are the happiest, the most motivated and do their best work, when they feel that they have control, freedom and responsibility over their own life and the work they do. 
Therefore, education is most effective when a teacher acts as a learning guide rather than a learning dictator. Knowledge needs to be intrinsically discovered by the student, coming from the inside out rather than being forced in from the outside in.  Teachers should help students determine and work towards goals, help students analyze their progress, support their success and help students to rethink their approach in areas they wish to improve. I believe that the goal and responsibility of an educator is to help their students find and develop an intrinsic motivation and passion for learning and self-improvement that lead to a happy, curious creative and critical thinking individual. 

Sources: 
"A Century of Grading Research: Meaning and Value in the Most Common Educational Measure" - Brookhart et al. 
“Children's Task Interest and Performance: Immediate Versus Subsequent Effects of Rewards" - Fabes et al. 
"Do Material Rewards Enhance the Performance of Lower-Class Children?" - Janet T. Spence ---
"The Effects of Contingent and Noncontingent Rewards and Controls on Intrinsic Motivation" - Edward L. Deci 
"The Impact of Anticipated Reward Upon Cross-age Tutoring" - James Garbarino 
"Motivation and Creativity: Effects of Motivational Orientation on Creative Writers" 
Teresa M. Amabile
"Problem Solving: Response Competition and the Influence of Drive" - Sam Glucksberg 
"Teaching More by Grading Less (or Differently)" - Schinske and Tanner *