I am excited to announce I am now offering online finger-style guitar lessons via Skype to students anywhere in the world. Lessons are tailored to each student’s needs with a special emphasis on beginning finger-style guitar and the repertoire published by Stropes Editions, Ltd. (www.stropes.com). Lesson plans are flexible and are supplemented with specifically designed pedagogical materials to accompany the repertoire being studied.
I have extensive experience performing and teaching the music of Leo Kottke, Michael Hedges, Billy McLaughlin, and many other great finger-style guitar players. For the past 15 years I’ve worked closely with leading finger-style guitar authority John Stropes while completing both a B.F.A. in Music degree and a M.M. in Guitar Performance degree in finger-style guitar at the University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee. Along with setting new standards in the accurate transcription and typesetting of finger-style repertoire, we are also prototyping the next generation of pedagogical materials. We are very excited to offer this knowledge and experience to students around the world.
Lessons are $45 per hour payable through Paypal. For more information please contact me by email at ben@benkammin.com. Lessons are offered using Skype, a free, web-based, real-time video conferencing program. To download Skype, visit www.skype.com.
Feedback from current students...
"I started trying to seriously learn fingerstyle guitar about 4 years ago. I have had a number of local teachers and tried a variety of instructional books but could not get to where I really wanted to be. I happened across Ben Kammin as a guitar teacher through the stropes.com website and I can honestly say that he is the best discovery I have ever made. Working through Skype is so easy, Ben can easily demonstrate a point, watch my technique as I play and talk me through bar by bar. He has guided me in directions and to levels that I thought I would never achieve, in a very short time and with supreme patience. Every lesson is money well spent and I look forward to my future improvement with his guidance."
-Ian Haigh, Pittsburgh, PA
"My ability to play complex fingerstyle pieces has improved exponentially since I found Ben Kammin just over a year ago. Ben is that rare blend of guitarist who is both an exceptional player and effective teacher. His lessons satisfy my sensibility as a player and address my needs as a student while offering practical solutions to technical challenges. He brings a wealth of experience and a true sense of integrity to his teaching practice. Ben is musically adept, articulate, personable and sagacious."
-Michael Cervone, Pearl River, NY
"John Stropes,
I just wanted to drop you a note to say thanks. A few months back we talked via email and later on the phone about my interest in finding someone local to me for fingerstyle guitar lessons. You encouraged me to consider the lessons you and some of your students offer via Skype. Based on your recommendation I decided to contact one of your students Ben Kammin. Ben and I have been working together for several months now and I am very pleased with the way things are going. Ben is top notch and I consider it a privilege to be working with him. I'm finally getting the guidance I need to improve my fingerstyle playing - and it is already starting to show! I know I have a lot of hard work ahead but I am extremely motivated and know I'm getting great instruction now. So in closing, thank you from the bottom of my heart for the work that you do. Your exceptionally accurate publications in combination with this fine instruction puts my dreams of playing the music I love within reach."
-Mark Dropkin, New York, NY