Rock U School of U Rock and Kids' Jams

Twice a year I host a Kids' Jam for my non-adult students (www.youtube.com/tlschafer). I always get someone who calls it a recital and that really makes my hair stand up, what little is left. When I was a kid, I used to hate recitals; going to them and being in them was always dreaded. They were stuffy, cramped affairs that only the parents and your siblings attended. Never much fun, never did anything to inspire me. Just had to do it.

I started doing Kids' Jams a while ago to have fun helping the kids learn a song they could perform in front of their peers. I also wanted to give them a taste of what performing was like, either alone or with others. I didn't dissapoint myself, I have loads of fun doing it!

So. what is the difference between my Kids' Jams and recitals? Hey, it's obvious. So much so that I won't even discuss it. A better question is how are my Kids' Jams different from what the latest local music store's School U of Rock You etc, does? They have popped up all over the place. They gave me a night's worth of concern for my business. And then I witnessed one for myself.

The idea is the same as my Jams, get kids together, work on songs, then perform. That's what they want to do and it's a lot of fun. They spend 8 to 12 weeks working on a song. The school sets a night, rounds them up and they all go over to a local restaurant or sports bar. The kids get up on stage and start to wail. When they are done sombody applauds. The same thing happens with my Jams, but not at a sports restaurant.

At the school performances I've seen, mostly at restaurants, they usually have a small audience. The performers parents and the other performers. Unless you have a lot of them, the audience is usually small about 20 or 30 people. And you might have the clang of people eating dinner or drinking or just not paying attention.

I hold my Jams at larger venues, usually a local church. There is a full sized theater, a good PA system and plenty of seating. In fact, the last four Jams had a total attendace of over 150 people each! One of the Jams was SRO at around 200 people. While these are mostly students and their families, there are enough of them to give the kids a feel of a real concert; no dodging waiters trying to rush to your parents table for a big tip. And when the audience applauds, it is never just the polite clapping of the other kids' parents!

I try to  make sure everyone gets to perform on stage if they want to do so. I usually put the more advanced kids up first; this gives the younger kids a chance to be inspired and see what can happen with practice and hard work. From the last Jam alone, I've had to teach Blackbird to more than 10 of my students because they saw Kyle play it!

Dude, you can always play for your parents and friends in your garage. But get up and play for every one else at one of my Jams!  Check out Kyle Tiltges playing Blackbird/Day Tripper medley. http://youtu.be/y-o0HBGzrLs

Guitar Lessons as Presents

Over the years I have been someone's birthday present, christmas present, valentine's day present, anniversary present , graduation present,  just-because present, mother's day present and now, once again, a father's day present. While I've never jumped out of a guitar-shaped cake, I've had the opportunity to join in on the fun of the surprise, usually the birthdays. It's great fun. Sometimes it can go a little off-plan.

I was paid in advance for a month of lessons for a woman's husband. She said they were driving down the road when Wanted Dead or Alive started playing. He said, "Man, I wish I could play guitar like that!"! Well, fishing for a birthday present after 30+ years of marriage, she thought guitar lessons would be a great idea! She wanted me to come to the house and help surprise him. I was there at the agreed upon time , she opened the door and yelled surprise as I stood there with my guitar in hand. He said "Wow, that's great, honey. Thanks! Where's my guitar?"

Note: I had a spare in the car that I rented to him. That was years ago, I now know to ask!

It's also important to make sure that the spouse really wants to learn to play and not just excited about a song. Or maybe they do well at Guitar Hero/Rock Band and think they can play guitar by default. A good indication is when they buy a guitar and try really hard to learn on their own but can't seem to get it. If they put the guitar down and never touch it again, they probably shouldn't take lessons. Lessons won't perform miracles, they'll just show the path, you have to take the steps. If they don't have 20-30 minutes a day to practice, they aren't ready to take lessons.

How to learn guitar quickly!

Are you a recent HS grad with a burning desire to learn to play guitar?

Do you dread facing college without being able to play guitar?

Do you think you can meet new friends by playing guitar?

Did you recently get a new guitar , wasted most of your time trying to learn from YT?

Are you able to spend at least one hour or more per day practicing?

If your answer to any of the above was yes (it should be yes to ALL of the above!) then you've come to the right place. I can help you learn to play guitar!

With TWO one hour lessons one week apart , and daily practice, I'll give you the foundation to continue to learn and play guitar. As long as you practice daily and apply the techniques I show you, you will be playing songs on the guitar before the end of the summer.

Here are some of the things you'll learn:

1. How to play chords.

2. What are the most important chords.

3. How to strum.

4. The "Secret Strum"

5. How to read chord / lyric charts.

6. How to read TAB

7. Basic rock and roll / blues style

8. Oh yeah,  and learn to play some songs!

I have a couple of Saturday slots open at my house in Naperville and a few daytime slots open for possible in-home lessons.

Call Terry at 630-696-0783 and visit my website at www.NapervilleGuitarLessons.com    also    www.facebook.com/napervilleguitarlessons.com