“I'm ready to get started! What now?”
Ready to make your dream of music come true? Rank beginners, and anyone else unable to play by ear, should begin with our book Get Started. This book will demystify the essence of playing by ear—The Five Commandments—and show you everything you need to know to get started with playing by ear. Use the book's step-by-step instructions along with the CD to learn to sing, pick, and play ten common traditional songs.
Once you get some experience (or if you have some already) you'll want to continue with our book, the Songbook and Toneway Music Method. This book covers everything taught in Get Started (albeit at a quicker pace) and much, much more. Playing with others and listening to the Song Clips and our other CDs will ensure steady progress thereafter.
In-person Instruction Opportunities
- We offer a beginner's group class, both privately and through the Santa Cruz Parks and Recreation program. Upon completion of this six-week course (with one 90-minute class each week) folks will have a solid foundation in what they need to continue playing music.
- We offer folks who complete the six-week course Guided Group Jams held in a workshops setting. Here we begin the process of helping folks form their own small bands. The social energy and feedback the 'band' model offers works wonders musically speaking, even if the 'band' never plays in public.
- We also offer personal or small group private lessons to those who want to go this route.
- Finally, we offer short 'one-shot' intensive festival workshops which many festival-goers find surprisingly helpful, considering that the workshop only lasts about an hour.
Please contact us for more information about any of these deals.