Learning to play an instrument can be one of the most frustrating, most challenging and yet, ultimately, most rewarding endeavors on earth.
For all the stereotypes about rock stars being lazy or a little on the dense side, the instruments they play demand a massive degree of physical and mental stamina. There are chords to learn, progressions that must become second nature, and musical theory running behind it all that taxes even the sharpest minds.
That’s to say nothing of physically muscling through lessons. For guitarists, this means straining tendons as fingers stretch to cover an F Major chord and burying fingertips under mountains of callouses. For drummers, it means building up the cardio and stamina to stay in rhythm even when your arms have turned to jelly.
But when you master the instrument, you are joining into the divine orchestra of rock and roll’s oldest and most revered demigods. Each of them, from the Beatles to Led Zeppelin to the Black Keys, started where you are. Each had the same breakthrough moment you’re having as you finally start to feel your instrument of choice tamed.
Meet the Team at John’s Music – (clockwise from top left) Jon Bruner, Rhett Tanner, Scott Evans, David Kimbell and Nick Primiano .
“I like to see the light bulb go off in someone’s head. For me, that’s my reward, when I can take something that a student says is unachievable and gradually figure out a way to achieve it,” said local musician Jon Bruner, who has been teaching private guitar lessons at John’s Music for the past five years.
He is just one of the faculty members you see here, instructors at one of the quietly most prestigious institutions of higher education on the island.
“We’ve been offering lessons since we started,” said John Sturm, founder of the eponymous John’s Music. “We started out with just Jevon Daly and Rich Vuillemot, but Scott has really expanded it.”
That would be Scott Evans, who bought John’s Music in June 2010. Keeping Sturm on as a “consultant, mentor, and general gadabout,” Evans began recruiting new blood almost immediately, eventually creating the dream team you see here.
“Between all the guys we have now, we have everything covered, string-wise and percussion-wise,” Evans said. “Dave Kimball can play any instrument with strings. Nick Primiano is primarily our beginning teacher. Rhett Tanner is our shredder guy. And Jon Bruner is our percussion teacher. He’s the odd man out. And these guys are all fantastic at what they do.”
Pull up a stool, make sure you’re tuned up, and meet the faculty at John’s Music.
“This is really the dream team,” said Evans. “They’re each an integral part of the success of John’s Music.”
Dave Kimbell: Multi Instrumental Studies
each member of the teaching staff brings their own pedigree to the classroom, Kimbell has brought an entirely different dimension to the classes on offer. A sought-after musician, arranger, and director, he has taught in environments ranging from public school to the Hilton Head Youth Orchestra.
“Dave came to us to buy something and mentioned that he’d be interested in teaching. We immediately grabbed him because he can play anything,” Evans said. “He’s the MVP. He does genres from classical to rock, and every string instrument you can think of from violin to guitar and bass.”
From the sound of it, Kimbell can teach on a few instruments you might not have even heard of. “I just finished teaching a dobro lesson. It’s a bluegrass instrument, sort of a cross between a guitar and a slide guitar,” he said. “But people have brought in all kinds of things – balalaikas, banduras. … I had a student who brought in a mandocello.”
A part of the family for the last 14 years, what has drawn Kimbell to teaching at John’s Music is the never-ending change of pace. “I love the fact that I’m doing a lot of different things. Every lesson is totally different, and I love it,” he said. “There’s a pretty good amount of psychology involved, too. You really have to be in touch with your student and who they are.”
Jon Bruner: Advanced Vibes and Positivity
While he might be the odd man out as a percussion teacher, Bruner is the infectiously upbeat heart and soul of the faculty. But then, a drummer’s job is to be the glue holding everything together.
“Bruner and I had been friends for years before I realized what a good teacher he could be,” Evans said. “He gets people pretty excited. He’s super encouraging and keeps a really positive attitude, so he gets kids excited.”
At John’s Music, Bruner not only teaches drums, but also beginner guitar, bass, and ukulele for students ages 12 and up.
“A lot of people start with an instrument, but then after a few lessons realize how hard it is, so they don’t come back,” Bruner said. “That’s why I try to make everything as fun and enjoyable as possible. … I try to avoid all the things I didn’t like from my instructors, and sneak learning into the fun.”
Nick Primiano: Shredding 101
For most students at John’s Music, Primiano is their first introduction to the wide world of music that awaits with each lesson they take.
“He’s a great introduction to get people in here,” Evans said. “We give him a lot of the beginners.”
As a retired New York City school teacher, working with younger students suits Primiano just fine. “I’m teaching the basics. I don’t mind if my students don’t know anything because it lets me feel superior,” he said with a laugh. “When someone finally makes an A chord, I’m usually more excited than they are. When I was in the classroom, I didn’t get to find out how well I was doing as a teacher until they’d come back years later. This is immediate.”
A longtime friend of Sturm’s (“if anyone can be friends with that curmudgeon,” Primiano teased), Primiano began taking on students as a way to keep busy during retirement. “I’m mostly self-taught, and I’m trying not to get too crazy with students because then it gets to be a real job,” he said. “For now, this keeps me off the streets.”
Rhett Tanner: Advanced Face Melting
If there is one instructor at John’s Music who offers a PhD-level course in rock and roll, it’s Tanner. As a Pulse Artist with Paul Reed Smith Guitars, he has been recognized by the venerable guitar brand as someone making waves in their local scene. It’s a level of expertise he brings to each lesson.
“If you ever get really serious, if you want to be an artist, you go to Rhett,” Evans said. As the newest instructor at John’s Music, he has brought a fresh perspective to go along with that prestigious CV.
“They had a gap that needed filled for more advanced instruction of kids who had broken out of the beginner classes,” Tanner said. “It’s really been awesome getting in to teach some of the more niche things like fretboard fundamentals and music theory. I had a student recently who didn’t want to learn songs, he just wanted to know how the fretboard works. I told him he had come to the right place.”
Providing the final exam gives Tanner an even greater appreciation for his fellow instructors. “You have some really good people teaching here,” he said. “They definitely won’t say it, but their passion is definitely there and it inspires me.”
