James Reily

Hello,

I've been teaching guitar in the South Bay for over 25 years. I teach all levels from beginning to advanced/professional, and cover many styles with emphasis on rock, jazz, and blues. I've taught at many stores and several music schools, including Stevens Music, Union Grove, Music Village, Gelb Music, South Bay School of Music Arts, and Showcase Music Institute.

Currently I'm on staff at "The Los Gatos School of Music" in downtown Los Gatos.

I teach what you want to learn, as well as what you need to learn to become a well-rounded musician, an excellent player, or to just have fun if that's you're preference. I've encountered many types of learners over the years, and I am confident that my approach will help you progress and break through any musical roadblocks you encounter along the way. Many of my students have come to me as beginners and developed into "monster" professional players. A few of my students are guitar teachers as well.

My expertise includes theory of improvisation, modern approaches, advanced chord voicing and chord substitutions, composition and arranging, harmony, rhythms, sight-reading, transcribing, finger picking, slide guitar, tapping, sweeping, use of harmonics and more. Some students want to learn it all, and others prefer to focus on their areas of interest. I use tablature, grid, and traditional notation, again depending on the student's preference. For readers, I prefer Alfred's Modern Guitar Method books one through seven. Mel Bay Method is fine too. I also bring in random charts so that you're not only reading from a workbook.