Tailored guitar lessons from an experienced tutor & session musician based in East London

Find out more about Conor

• 1) When did you first develop a passion for music and your favourite instrument?

  Music has been in my life for as long as I can remember. Some of my earliest memories are singing along to Johnny Cash, The Beatles and Greenday during car journeys. My Dad started to learn the guitar when I was 7 years old and as soon as I saw him playing I apparently said 'I want to do that!' My parents immediately put me in for school lessons and I have been playing, practicing and collaborating ever since.

• 2) Is there a particular type of music or artist that you listen to on a loop without it driving you crazy?

  There are plenty! I always look forward to my Spotify Wrapped recap to expose the songs I listen to on repeat. Last year my top artist was Stevie Wonder, with a guilty pleasure of Chaka Khan in there somewhere.

• 3) Explain to us the most difficult or riveting course you could personally give to a student of music.

  I'm always looking to the needs and interests of the student when planning lessons. When I really want to challenge a student, I like to give them a tough guitar solo to learn. One of my students has recently nailed the solo from Bohemian Rhapsody. Watching him play it in full was a proud moment!

• 4) What do you think is the most complicated instrument to master and why?

  I know a lot of musicians and trumpet players seem to complain the most so I'll go with that. It takes a long time to even get a pleasant sound out of the instrument, as well as a lot of work on breath control so it seems like a bit of a headache. I'll stick to guitar!

• 5) What are your keys to success?

  1: Know and follow your passions without shame. What you like is the most important thing to your process and will determine what & how you should learn.
  2: Practice consistently, even if it's just for 5 minutes. Playing an instrument relies so heavily on muscle memory so the only way we can improve is through repetition. Keep things fresh in your fingers by getting in a short session whenever possible.
  3: Be aware that it's a long term process. I've always had a tendency to beat myself up if I can't get an instant result in my playing but, through realising that consistent work always gets me to where I want to be, I've learnt to trust the process.
  4: Enjoy yourself! Goes back to point 1 really, but allow yourself to follow your curiosity, play the songs that you like and get creative. Music is a way of expressing ourselves and we never want to lose that creativity.

• 6) Name three musicians you dream of meeting in your favourite bar in the early hours of the morning. Explain why.

  Tough to pick only three! Firstly, Jimi Hendrix. He was my idol when I was getting serious about the guitar around age 16 and I have so many questions on how he developed his sound. Next I'll go with Marvin Gaye. I love that he started off churning out hits & love songs and then went on to create one of the most important socio-political albums in 'What's Going On'. Finally, we want a little bit of chaos if we're talking late night at a bar so I'd invite Liam Gallagher, purely so I can sit back and watch the carnage unfold!

• 7) Provide a valuable anecdote related to music or your days at music school.

  Just after finishing my set at Love Supreme festival for artist August Charles, I bumped into one of my private students. He told me that he saw us playing as he was walking through the festival and stuck around for the show. After playing to 1000+ people in a field on the other side of the country, I felt just as fulfilled to be able to chat to a dedicated, inspiring student and hear about his aspirations and talk through how we'll get him there in our future sessions. Was a really crazy coincidence and an amazing moment of realisation of where music has taken me.

• 8) What are the little touches that make you a Superprof in music?

  I live & breathe music! Every day for me is a day of working on my musical career, improving and working in the industry.
  I have endless time for my students. Sharing my passion is just as important to me as pursuing it and I encourage my students to message me any time with any questions, songs they'd like to learn etc. and I will always respond in the most helpful way that I can.
  I have accumulated lots of music gear over the years and am always keen to facilitate my students to explore different sounds, amps and effects.
  My lessons are derived around the music you love. Technical exercises and theory are always derived from the goals we are trying to achieve, meaning the lessons are always tailored to the guitarist you're trying to be.