Brian Johns - Guitar, Bass and Ukulele

Brian Johns has been a professional musician in the Indianapolis area for over 40 years. He has been a part-time faculty member at Marian University in addition to teaching private lessons.  Since studying at Butler University, Johns has enjoyed an eclectic career as a solo and ensemble performer.  He also arranges and composes for the guitar; creates and utilizes numerous tutorial materials in a wide variety of styles.  Centrally, he regards teaching as his vocation, and has worked to hone a skill set to share with students.  So, drawing from a long engagement with a diverse musical world, Brian strives to create targeted, student-centered instructional and performance materials spanning the broad spectrum of musical styles.

 “…I strive to be both a musical mentor and coach guiding and focusing skills for enrichment and/or musical pursuit. My primary objective is to instill an understanding of music through music making and have a lot of fun along the way. This process begins with good or proper fundamentals. Great technique never goes out of style but the individual and unique goals of the student are always considered as well. Nurturing a passion towards music, I develop lesson plans in consideration of individual preferences and goals in music of all students.  I’m quite patient, attempt to have a flexible schedule and have a relaxed yet focused style as a teacher. Overall, it is my hope to make this a fun, enriching and fulfilling experience.”

All ages are welcome including youngsters, budding rockers or adult hobbyists, 5 to retired.  And, certainly, no previous experience is necessary but some students are well advanced.  In terms of style or genre, interests can and do change and so, flexibility is a core tenet within the overall plan.  Some students have eclectic tastes from the onset and wish to pursue or least seek an introduction to a variety of styles including rock, popular, country or folk.  On the other hand, some students really don’t have a particular stylistic aspiration in mind but are equally welcome too.

 Here’s a brief outline:

• The Acoustic Steel String or Nylon String Guitar.

• The Electric Guitar – Current or Classic Lead Guitar.

• The Electric Bass Guitar, Fretted or Fretless - How to Create Walking Lines, Playing with   a Drummer and Slap/Pop Technique.

• Fingerstyle or Plectrum (Pick).

• Classical - Study of the Standard Repertoire.

• Rock or Popular, Current or Classic – Vocal Accompaniment.  This is a huge portion of   the professional guitarist’s activity.

• Blues - Acoustic, Electric or Fingerstyle.

• Jazz - Solo or Ensemble.

• Music Literacy - including Tablature, Standard Notation and Chord Frames as suited.

• Music Theory - including Harmony, Rhythm, Scales or Modes and Improvisation in a   variety of settings (jazz or popular)

• The Ukulele.

• Audition Preparation.

For other "Music Services," see below:

Lessons are scheduled by appointment.  The teaching hours are generally 2:00 until 9:00 PM or later, Monday through Thursday and 8:00 AM until 4:00 PM, Saturday.  

Lesson rates are as follows:

30 minutes - $25.00

45 minutes - $35.00

60 minutes - $45.00

Being highly proficient with software like “Finale” and others, there are a number of things we can do update old scores or sheet music.  Here are a few options:

• Pencil  or ink originals converted into a clean and professional-looking digital format.  This makes any future editing like for transposition, additional instruments or other changes quite simple.  Audio playback or conversion to a sound file - in a variety of formats - becomes an option as well.
• If there is a score, the individual Instrument parts can be easily extracted.      
• Adding instruments, harmony or accompaniment to an existing solo piece, quickly.
• For the Guitarist or Bassist, “cleaning up” tablature or adding notation and rhythm. 

   How  it works:

• You  can simply send me a pdf or just a picture of what you have and briefly explain  what  your needs are all about and I’ll give you an estimate of the time that might be involved.  I charge $20.00 (USD) an hour.