Elaine - Teaching

Something Different

It is fairly easy to find lessons in guitar or singing and Elaine is more than happy to teach beginner level guitar (on the understanding she is self taught and does not provide teaching for grade exams).

Elaine has been a singing facilitator with  "Thula Mama Richmond" following the teaching philosophy of the Natural Voice Practitioners Network and can help with choir teaching and individual singing.

Elaine is also  experienced in the (less easy to find lessons for) skills of performing and songwriting; both from years of performing her own songs as well as teaching these skills at festivals and for special courses in the past. The most recent Songwriting Workshop was in January 2015. She was also commissioned to write a special series of articles about the secrets of songwriting for a music magazine (read more in the "Experience" section below) and she has developed a way of unlocking the creativity flow in people and showing them how to craft that flow into a beautiful work of art.

Elaine's songs, and the way she puts them across, directly resulted in getting her booked to play at Glastonbury Festival and being featured on HTV. (Hear the song, which drew attention to her).

She wants to draw on all of this knowledge and experience and offer some unique lessons.



Find Out More About:-

 

Elaine's Experience and Qualifications

 

Song-writing Lessons

 

Performance Skills Lessons

 

Contacting Elaine

 

 

Elaine's Experience and Qualifications

 

Performance Experience

To see Elaine's performance experience, have a look at her track record.

 

Features on Television

On the strength of her song-writing and performing skill she was:-

     - Invited to play at Glastonbury Festival in 1995

     - Asked to perform her own songs on television twice (Wire TV and HTV)

     - Came second in a televised original song contest at Leicesters Y Theatre.

 

Workshops / Events Elaine has Organised and Run


Heckling (Broadstairs Festival 93)

Song-writing (Broadstairs Festival 93)

Performance Skills (Windsor Guitar Festival - 90s)

Song-writing (Windsor Guitar Festival - 90s)

Performance Skills (+ Dan Evans, 94)

Song-writing (+ Dan Evans, Luton College 94)

Mystic Journey show (Windsor Arts Centre 2003)

Song-writer Festival (Windsor Arts Centre 2004, 2005 - organiser/ leader)

Creative Music WE, song-writing tutor (Lower Shaw Farm, Swindon 2008)

West London Song Contest (Castle PH, Isleworth, 2008)

Open Mic Nights (monthly, from 2009) - include song-writing competitions

Ailsa Festival (July 2013) - included a talent contest

 

 

 

Article Series on Song-writing

Elaine was commissioned to write a six-part series of articles (see the picture, right) especially for Music Maker Magazine in 2005 called "Song Craft", dealing with song-writing right from how to get ideas, how to train your mind, how to turn your inspiration into songs and then fine-tune them into masterpieces.

 

Teacher Training Elaine has received


Scout Leader Training - Elaine achieved the highest training award, the "Wood Badge", which involved several years of residential courses and training in both practical skills as well as learning how to cope with engaging and teaching groups of young people. She  followed through with being an Assistant Scout Leader for around five years.


Canoe Instructor Training -  Elaine undertook classes, practical training and expeditions for several years which enabled her to augment her Scouting work with young people and examine them for canoe awards at "Water Activities Camps", which she helped to organise and run.

 

Songwriting Workshops at ASCAP

Elaine has attended song-writing workshops organised by ASCAP the American Society for Composers, Authors and Publishers, at their London HQ, as part of her work on the core team of Girls With Guitars, where she performed a regular monthly showcase at the Porterhouse, Covent Garden (June 2004 - December 2005).

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

       

 

        
        Elaine being filmed for TV at Kingston's Bentalls Centre

 

 

 

 

 

Song-writing Lessons

 

Depending on the skill level of the pupil, Elaine will be teaching song-writing by explaining:-

 

1. How to get inspiration and gather ideas using training exercises

2. How to get started with writing words and melody and helping with a project

3. What makes a song great with examples including detailed analyses of songs

4. How to fine tune a song to make it great.

 

If you would like to go on a Songwriting Workshop and learn with a group, find out more
 

Elaine running a song-writing workshop at Windsor Guitar Festival

 

The Song which got Elaine booked at Glastonbury and on HTV

 

Elaine sent a demo tape to a contact connected with Glastonbury Festivals and it was the first song on that demo tape, "Blue Skies", which captured both the interest of the contact and HTV. You can here the demo tape version of the song and see Elaine performing it as filmed by the camera crew for HTV below.

 

cd1.gif Blue Skies

April 94 – HTV’s “The Weekly Eco” (filmed on March 25th on top of Glastonbury Tor)


 

 

 

 


Performance Skills Lessons

 

Elaine will:-

 - teach you microphone technique

 - teach you how to gain confidence

 - teach you how to prepare for a performance

 - teach you how to engage an audience

 

In order to achieve this, Elaine has:-

 - amplifiers and mics for work on performing with a mic.

 - her own Open Mic Night in Twickenham, where you can practice for real

Below - Elaine at her Open Mic


Elaine performing at Richmond May Fair 2013

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

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