First Strum

Specialties

First Strum is designed to help young children learn guitar and develop early music skills in a fun and enjoyable environment.

History

Established in 2014.

During my time in Germany as a guitar instructor, I was fortunate enough to be employed at a guitar school that focused primarily on the Suzuki Method. I immediately began to notice the rapid rate in which children learned to play guitar, read/​write music, sing and develop the sense of rhythm and timing. I learned that Suzuki instruction requires a dynamic partnership among child, parent, and teacher. Once this condition is fulfilled, learning an instrument stops becoming tedious and starts becoming enjoyable for not only the pupil but the parents and teacher as well.

Meet the Business Owner

Christopher D.

Business Owner

Having arrived late to the world of music and performance, Christopher quickly built a firm foundation of musical principles and music theory while earning a Bachelor of Fine Arts at the University of California — Santa Cruz. There, under the diligent instruction of Bill Coulter and Mesut Özgen, he cultivated his newfound love for the nylon-​string guitar, quickly embracing the art for its expressiveness.

More than ten years after touching his first guitar, Christopher returned to the United States in late 2013, where helped to introduce his students to the rewarding, exciting world of acoustic guitar, blending elements from his travels and classical training to deliver lessons that are compelling, relevant, and tailored to the needs of the learner.

Whether working with students or sharing his sound with an audience, Christopher combines a classical education in music theory with years of stage and studio experience, making for a soulful blend of precision and passion.