Close the gaps in your skills and transform your musicianship, whether you’re a student, amateur, or elite performer.
Show up once per week with your instrument ready to play along. Or choose premium for a more intensive experience.
Gain clear structure to deepen your foundation of improvisation, harmony, & rhythm in various styles, so you can collaborate confidently with other musicians or share your own creative works. For amateurs, mature students, and elite performers.
Teach skills relevant to your students’ interests. Increase student engagement, promote diversity, encourage independent learning, and meet national standards related to improvisation, composition, arranging, and eclectic styles.
Attract a more consistent stream of better projects and income
I help musicians solve these problems:
You’ll learn in 7 weeks what it took me decades of trial and error to figure out on my own.
When I was 16 my friends started a band.
I remember thinking, “I’m not creative like them”. That thought crushed me.
I wondered, “What if I could learn to be Creative”?
I had nothing to lose. Playing violin in a rock band was novel in 1988. I could play anything and audiences would be impressed.
Except I didn’t want to just be a novelty. I wanted to feel on par with the other members of the band. They spoke a different language and I felt somehow on the outside.
As I tried to fit in with my friends in the rock band I realized that there were so many skills and topics I had never received via classical training- like groove, chord progressions, scales, licks, arranging, composition (when to play and when not to play), & how to play amplified.
I learned what I could from rock musicians and kept joining bands, from R&B and Gospel to Bluegrass, Latin, Jazz, and more…
Each time I met a new community of musicians I felt locked on the outside, doubting whether I had what it takes as a musician to gain their respect.
While I could impress audiences with novelty, chops, or tone, the musicians saw through me. Since I lacked experience and knowledge of their musical culture, I’d bulldoze ahead, oblivious to mistakes I was making that were pushing me further away from the very musicians I wanted to be accepted by.
I was
Mocked by musicians who made faces onstage behind my back
Told to “do a two-step and hit a cowbell” (not allowed to play violin!).
Made to sit through jam sessions for hours without being invited up.
Cursed, insulted, even threatened..
Many of these “misunderstandings” could have been avoided if I simply asked the right questions, but I didn’t know what I didn’t know.
Luckily I met mentors along the way. Their help combined with time spent in a wide range of musical situations led me to develop skills, a personal voice, and most importantly, self-acceptance. I finally realized that I am creative, and that I am enough, regardless of my limits.
I eventually built a method to help other string players save decades of painful trial and error.
Show up with your instrument and play along to my prompts. You’ll play 90% of every class ( 90+ minutes).
Like a Yoga or Fitness class, modifications are provided in every exercise to suit your level of advancement.
You’ll be muted, with the ability to ask questions anytime.
At the end of 90-minutes of playing to my prompts, you’ll have the opportunity to get (or observe) 1-1 coaching from me in front of the group.
We provide additional 1-1 coaching times for:
-teachers looking to save time by “flipping the classroom”,
-freelancers seeking to attract more income or opportunities
Classes meet twice weekly Thursdays @ 12 pm & Saturdays @ 7:30 pm Eastern (US). The course is structured so you can show up once a week, but you won’t be bored if you come to both.
Gain the ability to compose, arrange, and improvise over tonal chord progressions in any style. Apply the skills to your own projects, like arranging your own covers, writing your own parts in a band, or accompanying your students.
Includes:
Start creating your own music immediately-no theory necessary. Includes:
After spending ten minutes with this module, you will be improvising freely. Guaranteed. Many members record 5-20 improvisations every day using this module alone.
Record composed or improvised performances to backing tracks in various styles. These are great “mini projects” for you or your students.
1. Music Styles
How to use bebop scales to play fast, burning lines over jazz and other styles.
Dive into melodic minor for a Gypsy Jazz or modern sound.
Master blending pentatonic scales together to make your lines sound richer in Blues and related styles.
Perform beautiful melodies in these gentle, accessible, Brazilian styles.
Internalize rhythms, scales, forms, and a few key secrets that no one else will teach you.
Master the anatomy of rock licks and style. Jam out to piees like “Little Wing” by Jimi Hendrix
2. Fiddle
Learn tunes by ear or by sheet music. Learn how to apply stylistic bowings or how to accompany, solo, and chop if you want.
3. Modal Improv
Learn to improve using modes. Useful for rock, blues, fiddle styles, jazz and more..
4. Efficient Practice
Learn how to incorporate harmony, rhythm, and improv into your technical warm-ups for increased gains in less time.
5. Rhythmic Internalization
Develop your sense of groove in styles beyond classical
Most teachers are working harder teaching online. It doesn’t have to be that way.
Learn the exact online teaching strategies I’ve used for 12 years by restructuring your teaching to
You will learn (amongst other things):
How to make a single piece of content to attract new students, leverage existing students, & create recurring revenue if you’re self-employed.
How to create an engaged student community in minutes, increasing value & saving time.
How to effectively run and sell group classes, 1-1 lessons, online courses and more.
5 easy steps to “Flip Your Classroom”. Instead of teaching lessons live and giving homework, students learn the lesson at home, from a piece of media, and then you help them refine and improve live
The Ripple Effects of Flipping the Classroom
There are 5 steps, which when combined, make flipping your classroom or studio optimal, using only free technologies that everyone knows.
When you do these things, you will:
If teaching online feels hard, you should not miss this opportunity to flip your classroom or studio.
Entrepreneurs: I’ll show you the tactics and strategies I use to
You’ll have access to extensive cutting edge curriculum related to musical skills, teaching online, and entrepreneurship. While you can access some of this curriculum by purchasing our DIY courses, the structure, personal attention, and community of this guided bootcamp is set up to ensure you finally get it done.
Create the outcomes you want.
Whether you’re a hobbyist, freelancer, or teacher, focus on only the actions that are highest-yielding for what you want to accomplish.
You’ll be supported by a structured curriculum, personal feedback, community, and accountability.
Compare to a semester of conservatory, where the most affordable programs are priced at a few thousand dollars
Schools like Berklee, where I used to teach, cost tens of thousands.
Consider whether other options can offer you:
When I dared to join a band 35 years ago it put me in a position to become:
–Top call violinist in NYC
-Associate Professor at Berklee College of Music
-An online teaching pioneer
-A recording artist on hundreds of albums and films, touring, producing festivals, founding a non-profit, and more.
When you decide that your professional and personal development is worth investing in, you’ll be able to:
-Connect with a wider range of musicians
-Share your music and teaching with confidence
-Attract more opportunities
Don’t have the full amount on hand? Click below to pay in installments.
For teachers who want to use Creative Strings materials in their classroom or studio.
$1,195.00
$1,395.00
$1,595.00
Read our testimonials or click on a video to hear participants in their own voice!