Guitar Teacher based in Parker Colorado.

I’ve been playing the guitar since I was eleven, and teaching

since fifteen. Prior to that, I studied  Classical piano, beginning

at age six.

 

I started my “professional” career while still in my

teens, playing with “grown-up” bands, teaching at the local

music store, and performing on the radio.

 

As a young guitar player I was impressed by the "fingerstyle"

playing of Chet Atkins, and it became my “trademark.” 

Later I applied fingerstyle to Blues and Classical; a little

light Jazz and Pop works for me too.

 

While fingerstyle is my favorite, I'm no stranger to a "flatpick".

You can hear my flatpick work, on the audio clips and video clip

down below, playing backup on the Intermediate audio clips on the Home page, and on the "What my Students are Playing" page.

During College, I performed regionally, and taught, both privately and in the classroom through a variety of Continuing Education programs. (YMCA, YWCA, and local high schools.) After graduation, I continued performing and teaching into my late twenties, touring the Midwestern and Southern states with several bands, playing Pop, Country, Bluegrass, and Rock.

My music career eventually led me into broadcasting, PBS at first, and then to other opportunities, and I’ve enjoyed a long and successful career in Television. I moved to Colorado in 1976, and locally, I’ve worked at KMGH Channel 7, KTVD UPN20, and ran the TV department at United-Norwest-Wells Fargo Banks for many years. More recently, with Burst Inc., I designed and installed television systems in places like Red Rocks Amphitheatre, Coors Field, Mile High Stadium, the Pepsi Center, and the Denver Coliseum. Throughout my TV career I stayed active musically, writing and performing “themes” and "background" tracks for numerous television programs, promotions, and commercials.

Retiring from Broadcasting in 2013, I wanted to return to teaching, as it was one of the most rewarding experiences in my life. I enjoy helping students discover music and learn skills they will have for “life".

I know music theory, and I’m a firm believer in “practical” music theory. I teach relevant stuff like, “What makes a chord a chord?” “How do I play this in another key?” “Is there a different chord that will work here?”  I work primarily with “TAB’s”, and use standard music "notation" as a guide to melody and timing. And, I teach with my own original materials, my own "book" produced in Adobe Photoshop, InDesign, and special music writing software.

Music, is one of the most important things in my life, and it changed my life. Watching my students discover music, and the guitar, is my passion.

 

Gary Cooper