GUITAR & BASS LESSONS

Our guitar program includes lessons in acoustic, electric and bass guitar for students ages 7 through adult. Lessons are conducted weekly in either 30 or 60 minute classes at all three of our Lehigh Valley studios. In addition to private instruction, and once student and teacher are comfortable and feel confident in their guitar playing, they will also be given the opportunity to perform at various free recitals conducted througout the year. Older students (11-18) may also opt to take part in Band Coaching, where they will learn the skills necessary to put their private lessons into practice with full 4-6 piece rock, blues, or jazz bands. Our guitar teachers have college or university music degrees and/or have extensive professional experience, so they know the proper theory and technique from classical to metal and everything in between. No matter what type of guitar lessons you are interested in, we have the teachers to help you. Typically a student would be 7 before starting guitar lessons, due to their hand size, but some younger students start with a junior sized guitar. ARE YOU A GROWN UP? No problem! Our teachers love their adult students. You're never too old to start learning new tricks. Interested in finding out more about available dates, instructors, etc.? Fill out this INQUIRY FORM and a Lesson Coordinator will contact you to discuss your lesson options. Lesson Rates $100 month - Four (30 min/weekly) sessions. $200 month - Four (60 min/weekly) sessions.

GUITAR/BASS STAFF JEFF ROBERTS Prior to opening The Lesson Center, Jeff divided his time between performing as a local and touring blues guitarist and teaching privately for over 14 years. He traveled the US as a guitarist for Lonnie Shields (Rooster Records), Blues Night Out and his own Jeff Roberts Band and has shared the stage with Joe Bonamasa, Fiona Boyes, and the Nighthawks. He continues performing today as half of the acoustic duo, Donovan Roberts, and along with his partner Lori Donovan, has been named a two-time, semi-finalist in the International Blues Challenge competition in Memphis, TN. In 2003, he established The Lesson Center in Bethlehem, PA and has since added a second location in Coopersburg, PA. GUITAR/ BAND COACH Bethlehem: Monday, Tuesday Coopersburg: Thursday GINA BALDUCCI As a professional musician in the tri-state region for the past 20 plus years, Gina has offered her talents to such artists as Gary King (New age artist and composer for Warner Bros). Singer-Songwriter Sheryl Skye (Soma River Records) and various variety bands. As a producer Gina has worked with some great musicians, local and regional. I.E. Vini Banchi (Saxophone in the NYC-Pocono area) and Jamie Haddad (Percussionist-Paul Simon). As a full time private music instructor, Gina is now bringing her experiences and knowledge to students of all ages. Most of all Gina loves and lives music of all varieties. BASS/GUITAR/ MANDOLIN Coopersburg: Monday GEORGE BARTHOLOMEW Bio coming shortly. GUITAR Bethlehem: Wednesday, Thursday, Saturday GEOFF BLACK You may be surprised to know Geoff's first professional performance took place at the age of ten, leading a group in a festive singalong of favored Christmas carols. He was paid well, even though he admits it did not outweigh the satisfaction of bringing a group together with music. Music has been a constant source of inspiration since even younger still. After graduating in 2003, with a musical performance award from PHS, he spent his late teens studying with the National Guitar Workshop. Geoff can be seen performing with signed and independent touring acts, and is creatively involved in several recording projects. A lifelong student of music, he has studied guitar and/or bass with Stefon Pizzuto, Gary Wherkamp, Tom Kozic, Frank Flandorffer, Pat Metheny and others. Geoff has had a wide variety of musical encounters, however the journey has just begun. The vast selection of resources available to his students will aide them greatly along their musical journey. GUITAR/BASS Bethlehem: Monday, Tuesday Coopersburg: Wednesday BRIAN BORTZ Brian has been playing bass and guitar professionally for over 30 years. His professional credits include: orchestra bassist for George Burns, Don Rickles, Joan Rivers, Regis Philbin, Jay Leno, Jerry Seinfeld, Dennis Miller, the Broadway touring cast of Grease, and a host of others. He toured the US, Canada and Caribbean in the early 1980's, honing his skills as a versatile and energetic player. Brian has played most musical styles, from Rock to Reggae, Funk to Fusion, Country to Classical, Broadway, Jazz, Latin and a few other ethnic styles thrown in (including Polkas!). He has numerous recording credits and currently can be heard around the Lehigh Valley playing in Fusion Jazz Trio, and also all around the Delaware Valley in the 11-piece dance band, James Gerard Orchestra. BASS Workshops Only JON BRAUN Jon has toured nationally with the band he co-founded, The Insidious Rays, and released four studio albums, one of which was produced by Andrew Weiss (Ween, Rollins Band, Butthole Surfers.) He has performed at some of the country's most prestigious venues, including BB King's in NYC and The Electric Factory in Philadelphia. Jon has studied sax and drums privately for more than 15 years. He has performed or worked with artists like Ike Willis and Napoleon Murphy Brock (Frank Zappa), Bernie Worrell (P-Funk, The Talking Heads) and members of Ween. Recently Jon founded Start Making Sense: Talking Heads Tribute, which has received rave reviews, and sometimes features Bernie Worrell. GUITAR Bethlehem: Tuesday Coopersburg: Monday RYAN BUECHLE Ryan has been a guitar player for almost 17 years. At first teaching himself and eventually taking private lessons from Joe Mixon ( music professor at Lebanon Valley College ) and later Greg Howe ( a world renowned recording artist and guitar virtuoso ) Ryan studied music theory in high school and at Northampton Community College before enrolling in Full Sail media school for an Associates Degree in Recording Engineering. He has over 10 years of experience playing in clubs with bands and has opened for many national acts. Ryan teaches many styles of music on the guitar but specializes in heavy rock and metal. He has taught students who were once beginners to play guitar solos from bands such as Metallica, Megadeth, Trivium, Kansas, Led Zeppelin and several others. GUITAR Bethlehem: Friday JON FADEM Jon Fadem has been playing guitar since he was 13, and went on to study music at Oberlin College and Conservatory in Oberlin, OH. His primary musical inspirations are Miles Davis, Jerry Garcia, Sly and the Family Stone, Parliament/Funkadelic, John Coltrane, Frank Zappa, and Jimi Hendrix. His band Post Junction is a funk/rock/soul/jam band who has received a great amount of praise in the Lehigh Valley. He has played guitar with George Clinton & Parliament/Funkadelic, Buddy Miles, Bernie Worrell, Ike Wills and Napoleon Murphy Brock from Frank Zappa's band, Steve Kimock, George Porter, Jr. of The Meters, Juma Sultan and Jerry Velez from Jimi Hendrix's Woodstock band, Robert Randolph & The Family Band, Start Making Sense, The Insidious Rays, and Project Object, among others. GUITAR/BASS/ BAND COACH Bethlehem: Thursday ERIN JIVIDEN Erin Jividen has just recently moved to the area after spending twelve years in New York City working as an actress, songwriter, singer and playwright. She has four fully recorded albums to date, has toured around the country with her band and most recently wrote and starred in her own one woman musical, Down The Rabbit Hole, which toured in Los Angeles, Las Vegas and last summer opened Off Broadway. She has a Bachelor of Arts from Hunter College with a double major in music and theater and is also a certified K-8 Teacher with a specialty in music in the state of New Jersey. GUITAR Coopersburg: Thursday DEB LEAHEY Over the past thirty years I have dedicated my time and passion to all aspects of the art of music. Coming from a musical family I began flute studies at the age of eight and shortly thereafter I began guitar, leading to piano. Throughout the years I have continued learning and playing all three instruments, finally leading to vocal studies. By the time I was eighteen, I was well versed in composition, improvisation and theory and an active member of my schools concert band and marching band and was inspired forward onto my path of becoming a music teacher. I believe in enriching and furthering my musical knowledge and technique, as well as developing aspiring students who feel they need to make music an integral part of their lives. I can say that there is no style or genre that I have not explored in both my personal and teaching journeys. GUITAR/BASS Bethlehem: Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday NICK MERENA Nick Merena’s lifelong passion for music started at age 7 when he discovered Van Halen’s “1984”. During high school he participated in orchestra, choir, musicals, percussion ensemble, marching band, jazz band, and excelled. After high school, Nick traveled the country in a troubadour manner, learning, sharing, and playing in bands. A deep and longstanding connection to music led him to a degree in Music Therapy. Nick’s Bachelor of Arts from Mansfield University was received in 2006, with a concentration on Saxophone, Guitar, and Voice. He is a key component of the four-piece DIY jam/funk band, The Big Dirty, and has played tenor sax onstage with New Mastersounds, Matt Butler’s Everyone Orchestra, and Dr. Didg, to name a few. GUITAR Bethlehem: Thursday Coopersburg: TBA     ANDREW PORTZ Andrew Portz has played guitar for more than 25 years. He has taught private lessons for over 15 years. He graduated with a B.A. in music performance from The University of the Arts in 1997. As a singer/songwriter he released his debut album Blue Lake California(2008) which received airplay on over 150 college stations nationwide. Andrew teaches all styles of guitar including jazz, funk, finger-style, country and folk. He also offers beginner lessons on banjo, mandolin and piano. Andrew has been a member of the Philadelphia Funk Authority since 1998 and has performed at Rockefeller Center, The Hammerstein Ballroom, NYC, and Musikfest. GUITAR/BANJO/ MANDOLIN/ UKULELE Coopersburg: Tuesday