Paul Battles

 

"I think that it's very important to assess each student's age, skill level, personality and interests to come up with a curriculum that will work best for him/her.  I believe in teaching a solid base of fundamentals, but in a way that keeps the student hungry to learn more, instead of a rigid book-based system."

 

Paul is a guitarist/songwriter/educator from Branford, CT with 20 years of private and group instruction experience. He began playing the guitar at age 13 with a strong background in piano.  He performed and recorded with bands in high school, during which time he was influenced by a wide variety of musical artists and styles, including Eric Clapton, Jimi Hendrix, The Red Hot Chili Peppers, and Pink Floyd.

 

Paul enrolled at Boston's Berklee College of Music in the fall of 1994 and discovered a love for jazz, particularly guitarists such as Joe Pass and Tal Farlow and arrangers Nelson Riddle and Gil Evans. At Berklee, Paul continued to study the guitar while working toward a Bachelor of Music degree in Contemporary Writing and Production, which he received in 1998.

 

After graduating, Paul remained in Boston for several years performing and teaching private guitar lessons.  He developed a hands-on, practical instruction method that teaches music fundamentals, theory and improvisation through playing and analyzing popular songs.  Now back in Connecticut, he continues to teach privately in Branford and the surrounding area.  He also performs regularly with his bands, The Syndicate and Debacle on the shoreline and in New York City.