Jamie Balmer Guitar Studio
Best of 2020
1 employee
15 years in business
About this pro
I aim to empower guitarists of all abilities to make the best music they can.
I teach guitar lessons at my home studio in Dedham, MA, and at Music Maker Studios in Boston. I'm also on the music faculty at the Solomon Schechter School of Boston.
My students play classical, electric, and steel-string acoustic guitar.
All my students have the opportunity to perform in an annual recital, usually held in late-May or early-June.
Helping students deepen and broaden their relationship to music -- to discover new insights into their art and new capabilities as musicians, and to share their music with others -- this always makes for deeply gratifying and fulfilling work.
Read more about this pro
Credentials
Dedham, MA 02026
Email verified
Phone verified
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In beginning-to-intermediate classical guitar lessons over time, I've found Jamie to be skilled, patient, and good humored. With high expectations for technique development and musical expression, he chooses appealing studies from the repertoire that always keep lessons and practice fresh and exciting. I've been further inspired by getting to know him as an accomplished and committed performing and recording artist.
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Jamie is an outstanding music teacher - unfailingly kind, enthusiastic, and my daughter loves having lessons with him. She feels like Jamie helps her learn guitar at her pace and has nurtured her love of music.
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Jamie is the ideal music teacher. He provides warm, professional, organized & stress-free instruction. Our 9 year-old looks forward to his lessons and makes excellent progress.
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Jamie is, by far, the best guitar teacher our son has ever had. He stresses the fundamentals while at the same time introducing more complicated music to keep our son challenged. Our son wants to practice every night now and cannot wait to show Jamie how he's improved each week.
FAQs
What is your typical process for working with a new student?
The guitar is central to a vast variety of musical styles and traditions, and I want to help each student learn the music s/he's most interested in playing. With that object in mind, my lessons emphasize fundamentals of technique and musicianship: establishing a strong right & left hand technique, honing music-reading and ensemble-playing skills, gaining familiarity with music theory as it relates to the music at hand, and working on interpretation and overall musicality.
Each student will necessarily follow a different course of study based on their needs, goals, interests, and abilities.
What education and/or training do you have that relates to your work?
B.A. Music Performance, Hampshire College
Masterclasses with guitarists Phillip de Fremery, Sergio & Odair Assad, Eliot Fisk, Oscar Ghiglia, Elena Papandreou
Jazz studies with Yusef Lateef, Marty Ehrlich, Mark Dresser
Do you have a standard pricing system for your lessons? If so, please share the details here.
30 minute lesson: $40
45 minute lesson: $55
1 hour lesson: $70
What types of students have you worked with?
My students include: children, ages 5 and up; teens; undergraduate and graduate students; and adults of all ages.
I welcome: beginners; intermediate players looking for guidance and direction; and advanced or professional players seeking to expand their music-making.
My students play: nylon-string classical guitar, electric guitar, and steel-string acoustic guitar.
My students have gone on to study music at the conservatory level and pursue professional careers in music.
What questions should students think through before talking to teachers about their needs?
I encourage all students (and parents of younger students) to think about and express their musical interests and goals. What makes you excited about music? Is there a style of music you're most interested in? Or particular artists whose music you'd be thrilled to learn? Would you like to play music with others? How much practice time can you put toward your goals, whatever they may be?