Thomson Kneeland
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My Teaching Philosophy

Every musician has different strengths and weaknesses, and my job as a teacher is to not simply hand out information, but to guide you to make the most of yourself and your talents. We will assess your musical goals and then formulate a plan of action to achieve them through incremental development. Achieving your potential is learning how to maximize your strengths while minimizing your weaknesses; this is a key factor that separates the "masters" from others. We'll take a comprehensive look at your practice and performance routine and discuss skills and approaches you can use in any discipline as well as exploring topics deeply.

Sample topics often covered:
  • Instrument technique
  • Time, groove, and feel
  • Bassline construction
  • Melodic phrasing and soloing
  • Music theory and harmony
  • Repertoire and memorization techniques
  • Sight reading and rhythmic skills
  • Counterpoint and composition
  • Styles and history
  • Ear training


 Though I am known primarily as a "jazz performer", I also integrate world music (Balkan, klezmer, etc), classical performance, and compositional analysis (counterpoint, Schenkerian analysis, etc) into our lessons, when suitable.

Private lessons are offered from my home studio near New York City as well as through Skype/Zoom


Transcriptions

a note on transcriptions: a transcription is not a sufficient substitute for listening to the recording; as phrasing and timing varies widely from player to player, sometimes I approximate complex rhythmic phrasing. And no transcription is truly complete without the accompaniment, as any good soloist relies on harmonic and rhythmic interaction with the rest of the band. I always view a written transcription as a supplement to deep listening, not a guide on "how to solo"; personally, I use transcriptions for theoretical study and as an eartraining exercise/tool. By examining an artist's musical language, we can gain greater insight into how to develop our own.
Oscar Pettiford - Tricotism
File Size: 61 kb
File Type: pdf
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Tricotism - bassline
File Size: 59 kb
File Type: pdf
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Tricotism - Pettiford Solo
File Size: 62 kb
File Type: pdf
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Freddie Hubbard solo on "Birdlike"
File Size: 135 kb
File Type: pdf
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Bill Evans solo on "We Will Meet Again"
File Size: 65 kb
File Type: pdf
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Eddie Gomez - "You Must Believe in Spring"
File Size: 86 kb
File Type: pdf
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New Milennium Cyanide Christ - Meshuggah
File Size: 93 kb
File Type: pdf
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Makhol - Thomson Kneeland
File Size: 76 kb
File Type: pdf
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Chick Corea solo on "Matrix"
File Size: 67 kb
File Type: pdf
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Lennie's Groove - Mark Turner
File Size: 83 kb
File Type: pdf
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Mark Turner solo on "Lennie's Groove"
File Size: 120 kb
File Type: pdf
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Jacky's Place - Kurt Rosenwinkel
File Size: 95 kb
File Type: pdf
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Rosenwinkel solo on "Jacky's Place"
File Size: 95 kb
File Type: pdf
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Larry Grenadier solo on "Ron's Place"
File Size: 97 kb
File Type: pdf
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Sanitarium - Kirk Hammett gtr solo
File Size: 64 kb
File Type: pdf
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Circularity - Thomson Kneeland
File Size: 49 kb
File Type: pdf
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Albert Stinson solo on "Forest Flower"
File Size: 68 kb
File Type: pdf
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Is What it is - Scott Colley
File Size: 60 kb
File Type: pdf
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S Colley on "What..Thing Called Love?"
File Size: 99 kb
File Type: pdf
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Allan Holdsworth solo on "0274"
File Size: 79 kb
File Type: pdf
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Duvivier solo on "Nica"
File Size: 71 kb
File Type: pdf
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Ragalaya - Kanyakamari
File Size: 60 kb
File Type: pdf
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Srivalli - Kanyakamari
File Size: 72 kb
File Type: pdf
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Corridor of Chameleons - Meshuggah
File Size: 73 kb
File Type: pdf
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Copyright (c) 2015 Thomson Kneeland
347.351.1891
[email protected]
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About
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