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       About Your Tutor

Hi, my name is David Stodel. ​

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I have been playing guitar for over 30 years and after also teaching informally for much of that time I decided to become a full-time guitar tutor a few years ago.  Since then I have helped many beginners and intermediate players to master the art of playing this wonderful instrument.

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I am currently the resident guitar teacher at a Private School and I also conduct private lessons from my studio in Claremont, CapeTown.  Lessons are one-on-one, thereby ensuring that the student has my full and undivided attention for the duration of every session.  In certain cases I also conduct ''joint'' or ''group'' lessons with two or more students, as long as the students are siblings, parent-and-child or partners / spouses.

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I have played in a number of bands and am an active member of the Cape Town School of Songwriting.

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Thank you for visiting my website.  

I would welcome hearing from you if you are interested in learning to play, or in taking your present playing skills to the next level. 

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   General Lesson Content

* Easy-to-understand basic theory

   to reinforce and speed up the

   learning curve

* Tuning - using a tuner and

    tuning by ear

* Major, minor and dominant 7th

    basic ''open'' chords

* Barre chords and other advanced

   forms of movable chords​

* Fretboard logic and the

   CAGED system of chord control

* Strumming, rhythm and timing

* Ear training and identifying chord

    changes in a song

* Play along with actual songs

* Interactive audio-visual

   exercises

* Transposing into different keys -

    with and without using a Capo

* Chord construction and the chord

    numbering system

* Expanding the chord vocabulary

   and song repertoire to include

   major7th, minor7th, 

   augmented and diminished 

   chords

* Tips, tricks and shortcuts to

   improved playing proficiency and

   fretboard navigation

* Relaxed teaching environment​

* Emphasis on having fun as you

   learn

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  Lesson Approach

Beginner​​​​

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No prior knowledge is required. Beginners start from ''scratch'' and follow a logical path under my personal hands-on guidance, learning basic chords and then playing songs using these chords.  As more chords are learned, new songs are added to the student's repertoire.​​ The songs taught cover a spectrum of gendres - rock, pop, blues and ballads.

 

Intermediate

 

An initial assessment of the student's​ current ability​ is made and lessons then build on from there.  Any ''bad habits'' and incorrect techniques are identified and corrected in the process.​

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Lesson Support​

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​Comprehensive notes and supporting documentation are provided after a lesson, including play-along mp3 song files and accompanying lyric / chord sheets to assist with home practice.       ​

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   Contact Me

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