Lucking into Greatness (the right teacher)

Miscellaneous and Personal Stuff I Must Share
1

I can’t share this on Facebook. He’d be embarrassed. But it’s sort of washing over me.

Some of you may know I’ve played in bands. Mostly guitar but some other things. But back in May 2000 I stopped playing altogether. Curiously, May 2000 is when my first child arrived and I just didn’t have time. I still have my old gear but haven’t played much since.

But my 15 year old - kid mark two - signed up for guitar lessons locally last year. Good for her. She was getting lessons from a guy at her gym - she was a gymnast - and seemed to be enjoying it. But it stopped over the summer and that seemed to be that.

This fall I suggest she start again and offer to take class with her. I could get my chops back and we could do something together to bond with. Her oldest sister is off at college and it’s just her and I. She agrees and we enjoy it.

Her teacher - I tracked him down - is an elderly African-American man giving lessons now in his studio over his garage about ten miles from here. Getting a guitar lesson from him is astonishing. His studio is crammed with instruments of all types. Piano, keyboard, brass of all sorts, guitars, basses and what-have-you. Even at his age he moves around the room and suddenly says, “No, sound like this!” and plays something on a trombone that we try to emulate.

Or slide whistle. Or piano. Or whatever comes to mind.

I won’t give his name. But over the last few months I’ve discovered that he is in his late 70s, his father had him late and HIS father had him late. His grandfather was born enslaved. Wow.

Then he mentions he served in the Army and was serving in Germany at the Fulda Gap during the Cuban Missle Crisis. And he has a purple heart he picked up the hard way during Vietnam.

And tonight, idly googling him I discovered that he’s not some itinerant musician teaching kids for extra folding money - he claims he’s the fourth in his line to teach music - but that he’s played and recorded with Count Basie, Miles Davis, Duke Ellington and others. In December he asked if we could skip lessons as he had to go somewhere. Turns out he did a Christmas stint with a jazz band in New Orleans. They asked for him specifically to fill out their roster.

I am, simply put, astonished at the guy who’s been reteaching me scales and progressions. Sitting in that studio I’m in the presence of greatness. I’m incredibly lucky.

2

Wow, thanks for sharing that with us. I’m always amazed to find true greatness hiding away among the rest of us.

3

This is wonderful! Thanks!

4

The three things I admire most – the things I would be most proud of if I could do – are being a (good) musician, warrior, and author. He’s got two out of three ticked. Has he written a book?

Also, because I’m here, my kid is studying with a guy who’s band won the national award (2 years ago)

Best in the World music catagory

– which is not a big thing, but at least he’s competent with beginners. Which is more than a lot of people are.

5

I admire this teacher!

‘Francis Elive deserves a bonus. The 55-year-old maths teacher recently helped his entire class of 30 year 11 students at the Fitzalan high school in Leckwith, Cardiff, to achieve A* grades in their GCSE maths exam – six months early.’

See All hail the Cardiff ‘maths whisperer’ – and other life-changing teachers | Schools | The Guardian

(Here in the UK, GCSE exams are taken at 15/16 years old and A* is the highest possible grade.)

6

Really great that you found someone like that. A brilliant teacher should be humble and encouraging, which is why I’ve stuck with the young man that teaches me.