Ted Kirkendall Guitar Lessons

My teaching approach:

I like to treat each student as an individual as each has his or her own goals and interests. There is no single way of most effectively teaching a student. What may be work well with one may not get positive results with another. Determining this of course does not happen immediately.

My influences are:

Stevie Ray and Jimmie Vaughan, George Harrison, Robben Ford, Pete Anderson, Jimi Hendrix, James Burton, Clarence White, Charlie Christian, Ronnie Earl, Mark Knopfler, and above all else The Beatles

My guitar lessons take place in:

The teacher's studio or the student's home

Guitar Lessons with me take place in the following areas:

My studio is in Broad Ripple but I've been known to drive twenty miles to a students house.

Guitar Techniques:

Lead guitar, Rhythm guitar, Open tuning, Fingerstyle, Slide Guitar, Performance, Improvisation, Jamming Skills, Reading Music, Music Theory, Scales and Exercises, Guidance In Equipment Selection

Your first guitar lesson with me might include the following:

The new student will learn proper technique so as to avoid any bad habits from the start and is given an assignment appropriate for her level. I make sure this assignment is understood completely. I have a student with prior experience play something she is comfortable which and watch for any bad habits that need to be addressed. Then I assess what would be a suitable approach to allow her to reach her goals.

A guitar lesson with me might entail the following:

I like to get children started reading from a book as it provides a clear goal each week. An older student might be against the idea of learning to read and would rather learn to play songs. I try to make sure he can play it from start to finish before moving to another one. Adult students vary as far as what they hope to achieve. Often they want to learn to read music and wish they hadn't quit when they were young.

The qualities I look for in an ideal guitar student might include the following:

The ideal student is enthusiastic about the guitar and music in general and comes prepared each week with a completed assignment.