Rick Rossi Saxophone Lessons

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Ability to read music

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Introduction: Rick has 3 grammy nominations and has played as a saxophone and woodwind player all over the world and on the major late night TV shows. He not only has a lot of experience with the real world of music but he has taught music in several colleges and universities and has a real love of teaching. He developed a method for taking complete beginners on the saxophone or any instrument and has proven to train the majority of the students to become jazz improvisers in an average time of 4 months. Take a look at the videos that are posted of complete beginners. As you'll see, they aren't reading, they're improvising and this video shows the development you can expect. Check out the reviews from his students on video as well as the many written reviews. Nothing but praise for his method and his ability to move students through what usually takes many years, to improvise at a high level in just 4 months time. I love teaching my method of how to play and improvise because I love watching my students light up as they experience the fast progress they can make following my method. There's a lot of mental barriers that we all set up for ourselves when learning how to improvise. With my method I cut through all of that and turn what usually takes years in to a few months.

Overview

Hired 6 times

Background checked

5 employees

10 years in business

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This pro accepts payments via Cash, Credit card, PayPal, Square cash app, and Venmo.

Featured Projects

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Specialties

Interested musical styles

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Reviews

Customers rated this pro highly for work quality, professionalism, and responsiveness.

Excellent 4.9

13 reviews

92%

Yulia C.

Nov 17, 2015

Hired on Thumbtack

Saxophone Lessons (for children or teenagers)

Jeff H.

Apr 5, 2018

Hired on Thumbtack

Details: 45 - 64 years old • Yes, the student can read music • 0 - 2 yrs of formal training • Blues • Jazz • What the teacher recommends • Once a week • 60 minutes • Tuesday • Thursday • Saturday • Sunday • Evening (after 6pm) • On an ongoing basis • As soon as possible • Need some more information before hiring • I travel to the saxophone teacher

Saxophone Lessons (for adults)

Manoela W.

Aug 8, 2015

I'm a classically trained violinist and I perform many different styles of music as a freelancer in LA, however I wasn't a very confident improviser until I started studying with Rick. It always felt like I was shooting in the dark because I had no idea how to play within the chord changes, I was just relying on my ears. I had already studied improvisation with other teachers but without much success. Rick has an amazing system that is so simple it surprised me how fast I was able to start improvising and know exactly what I was doing. It's so natural and it takes you step by step, simplifying everything that I was having trouble with. It made sense from the very beginning and I started improvising with more control and confidence right away by applying his method to my solos. Rick is a world class musician and his knowledge of improvisation and jazz/blues is inspiring and very impressive. He has also played with so many huge acts and done virtually every kind of gig, he taught me a lot of practical advice that's helped me get work and get hired again. I owe a lot of my success to Rick and I cannot recommend him enough as a teacher and mentor!

Alex L.

Aug 10, 2015

I first started taking saxophone lessons with Rick Rossi at the age of 12. I came in knowing little about music but Rick was a great teacher. He used easily absorbable methods about things that other musicians have trouble explaining. It was soon very clear to me that Rick Rossi was an exceptional musician. He could play funky jazz lines, and transition to beautiful classical melodies and play them with such ease and fluidity. It wasn't until that I had taken some lessons with other teachers that I knew what I had in my life. Rick is a masterful jazz improviser, and I had learned the secrets of a pro's pro. His methods gave me an edge over the other musicians in my school jazz band. I was soon able to play chord changes shortly after. The teachers noticed it and gave me lots of solos.The 'Rick Rossi' method breaks down a lot of the questions people have about what types of techniques saxophonists use when they solo. Using Rick's method has opened lots of doors for me musically. As a result I have played in numerous bands and as soon as Rick thought I was ready he hired me to play in his bands. He is an exceptional musician with tons of experience under his belt. He has played with numerous big-name musicians in the industry. Not only does he teach and play music, he runs his own music agency called Rossi Music that books some of the best musicians in the Los Angeles music scene. His teaching has helped me to become more aware of what it takes to be a professional musician in the real world of the Los Angeles music scene.

Kyle W.

Aug 18, 2015

I started taking saxophone lessons with Rick at the end of my last year of high school and I am studying with him during my summer break from college. I worked with him for 4 months before I left to college and as soon as I got there, I was able to start playing in a band and play songs and take solos with a drummer and guitar player. We are just playing for fun but I'm having a great time being able to really play. One of the best things about Rick's method of teaching is how fast you can learn to do what I thought were really difficult things on the saxophone. He has some great drills and warmups to get you to learn correct form and teach you how to play musically in very early stages. I wanted to learn how to improvise jazz so I started learning his system which simplified everything about improvising and I found was so easy and effective in learning how to improvise by ear. He also teaches you how to mix 8th, 16th and triplet rhythms and incorporate these rhythms into your solos. After a while, I began to be able to play things without thinking about what I was doing which was kind of amazing! I also know how to use bluesy concepts, articulations, dynamics and we're working on putting it all together and learn how to play more songs this summer. Learning from Rick's method was so easy. I was afraid at first that it would be too challenging to grasp and it would be an uphill battle, but I was so happy with how fast I was able to play at a good level. If you want a good saxophone teacher that you can really learn how to play real music in a very short amount of time, I highly recommend Rick.

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Richard Rossi

FAQs

What should the customer know about your pricing (e.g., discounts, fees)?
Basically my pricing is $35 for a half an hour, $40 for 45 minutes and $55 dollars for 60 minutes. I do give deals for packages and if the student has financial problems I will work with them to help them make it work.
What is your typical process for working with a new customer?
I start by finding out what level the student is and also what is the main objective for taking lessons and I base everything on the students needs.
What education and/or training do you have that relates to your work?
I have a Bachelors Degree in Music and the Masters Degree in Woodwinds Performance. I also have a degree from Grove school of music in Los Angeles for composing and arranging. I studied all around the country with the best saxophone teachers including Joe Viola at Berklee College of music, Joe Allard at Manhattan school of music and Gary Keller at University of Miami. These and my many woodwinds teachers helped me to be able to put together very effective system of teaching. After 30 years of teaching I haven't come across any problem that I can't solve for my students. Every student learns a different way and it's my job to figure out how the student learns best and what inspires them to practice. Getting them to practice is my most important job. The rest is easy and fun. I love teaching because I've learned so many ways to tackle the same problems then suddenly it clicks for the student and they reach a new plateau.

Rick Rossi Saxophone Lessons

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