Saxophone Lessons
Matt teaches saxophone lessons online and in person in the greater NYC area. He maintains a private studio in Inwood, Manhattan where he teaches saxophone lessons at his apartment or travels to his students homes. He also offers saxophone lessons online, allowing his students to take lessons from anywhere in the world. Matt has taught students from ages 10-70, and of all experience levels.
Online Saxophone Lessons
Matt is able to bring saxophone lessons to your home through zoom, facetime, skype, google meets, or your own favorite video conferencing platform! Online lessons are a great alternative to in-person lessons while social distancing or if you don’t have a saxophone teacher in your neighborhood. Matt is able to work with the student through verbal instruction, demonstration on his own instrument, and discussion- giving students all the benefits of in-person saxophone lessons from the comfort of your home.
Pedagogy
Matt believes in building a healthy technique from the start, so that his students can play anything they want the way that they want without fear of injury. His technique comes from the lineage of Joe Allard, as taught to him by Dave Liebman. He tailors each lesson to the individual needs of his students and is comfortable teaching almost any style to all ages, from young children to adults. Matt makes sure to give each of his students the space to improvise and compose as well as teaching them the fundamentals of music theory, ear training, and the repertoire they wish to master. He emphasizes fun and creativity during saxophone lessons while making sure his students come out of each saxophone lesson feeling they’ve learned something new. Matt easily adapts to the teaching style that his students need, and based on their interests and goals, he can provider a stricter environment or keep lessons laid-back.
Why saxophone lessons?
Numerous studies show that listening to music effects the brain like no other activity, firing up every part. Actually producing the music yourself by playing an instrument multiplies this activity tenfold. In children, it is indicated that cultivating these musical skills strengthens the bond between the left and right hemispheres of the brain. Learning to make music at any age can help you excel in any field, far beyond the instrument itself.
In addition to this, learning how to play an instrument develops self-discipline, focus, emotional intelligence, analytical processing, confidence, and self-reflection in musicians of all ages. The saxophone is particularly unique, as the physical connection fostered by relying on breath to make every note is intense. The saxophonist can quickly create a strong relationship with their instrument.
To further explore the science of how listening to and playing music effects our brain, check out these videos from Ted-Ed and Wired.
My Studio
34 Hillside Ave
New York, NY 10040
Phone
(443) 510-7010
Student Testimonials
“I've been playing the saxophone for 10 years, and I have never sounded as good or felt as confident since taking lessons with Matt. Matt plans lessons around achieving my goals as a musician, specifically improving my improvisation. Matt explains ideas I have struggled to comprehend in a way that makes me feel like I could have discovered these musical ideas myself. We work on everything from fundamentals, sound, technique, and theory, and Matt provides fun exercises that allow me to put ideas into practice. Contemplating concepts like voice leading, chord progressions, and substitutions have given me a plethora of material to keep me busy, and makes me excited to pick up the saxophone and continue working on my musical journey. I highly recommend lessons with Matt for any level player.”
- Chad N.
“Matthew is a great music teacher. My son absolutely loves him. Matthew helped my son improve his sound, low notes, rhythm and sight reading. Highly recommend!”
- Marianna M., student’s mom
Matthew was patient, while offering clarity and a deep understanding of every step of our lesson. I learned more in one lesson than I have any other lessons I have taken. It’s now a regular lesson I will attend with Mathew, looking forward to expanding my knowledge with his detailed instruction , and natural ability to educate. Finally I found the instructor that will help me guide and nurture my talent 🙏🎷
- Gilberto A.
%100 recommend Matt was the only reason I passed my Berklee theory class. If you have any music theory needs he is the person to go to!
- Ethan F.
Extremely knowledgeable, patient and focused. I picked up my saxophone after 20 years. Matt is an amazing instructor. I highly recommend him from the novice to highly trained. I look forward to long standing relationship for years to come.
- Kirk D.
My son Tom was a first-year public school band student (saxophone) in fourth grade. I wanted to keep him playing during the summer, and Matt really came through with challenging and engaging practice sessions. Tom said it was harder than band practice, and pretty soon I found that he was opening the case and practicing on his own without any prompting from me.
Matt helped him pick some music to work on, set some goals, and they consistently worked and advanced, and worked and advanced. Tom did his lessons over Zoom and it was ideal. I could hear in the tone in my son's voice that he really liked Matt and felt relaxed. And then I would hear this organized, structured practice session, and I was amazed at how Tom improved.
This fall a buddy of Tom's from another school asked the Band teacher if he know my son. The Band teacher said yes he did, and that Tom was the best saxophone player in the fifth grade! I'm grateful to Matt for working with my kid, and I'm looking forward to hiring him again.
- Eric B., student’s dad
“I used to play alto sax when I was in Middle and High School and stopped playing after my freshman year. I always regretted that. I started lessons again after COVID. I have been taking saxophone lessons from Matt for about 10 months now and I can say that have experienced consistent improvement. In 10 months I have a better understanding of music and music theory than I had in all my years that I played earlier. Matt is extremely patient and understanding. I totally recommend him to instruct you or your child!”
- Cedric R.
“I am working with Matt for about 6 months now and it is a great experience. An important aspect is the way he tailors the lessons according to my goals and level of absorption of knowledge without rushing … Very positive build up and pleasant learning environment.”
- Armand B.
Matt is an engaging teacher who is insightful and accomodating. I'm glad I found him. He is going to help me learn my favorite song, and for now we're doing a lot basic learning and exercises. He's very versatile, seems
to make up teaching methods on the spot as my needs arise. My kind of guy.
- Justin D.
Matt is a wonderful musician and an engaging tutor
- Astrid O.
I received a lot of help with sight singing in just a few months before a competition and my skills improved significantly! I barely had any prior knowledge but he taught me a lot about notes, rhythms, tempos, dynamics, and key signatures. He was very patient and explained things very clearly, and created many examples I could practice with! He gave me a lot of tips on sight reading and singing, and taught at a good pace!
- Paris Z.
I really enjoyed Matthews lesson content and adaptable teaching style.
- Allison G.
Matt is an excellent saxophonist and teacher. He is very fun to be around and is great at helping me understand music. I like how he makes me slow everything down to gain a complete understanding of what I'm playing. He is a very fun person and knows a LOT about music. Matt is a super supportive instructor!
- Piper K.
I am learning more about how to solo and read chord changes and am learning how to wrap my head around how they work and function in the context of a chart. He explains things very thoroughly and meets me at my level.
- Taylor C.
