Blair
Linthicum-Instructor
Blair
specializes in teaching beginner to intermediate players and is also fantastic
with kids. His primary client base consists of Elementary, Middle and High School
aged students but Blair also counts many adult players among his students.
He also holds the position "Director of Contemporary Youth Worship" at Edenton Street United Methodist Church in downtown Raleigh.
As an
experienced professional performer on guitar and vocals Blair has enjoyed the
support accompaniment of players the caliber of Audley Freed (Sheryl Crow, Black Crowes,
Dixie Chicks, Jakob Dylan) and Robert Kearns (Sheryl Crow, Lynyrd Skynyrd, Chris Duarte,
Alvin Youngblood Hart) among others.
Blair has
an extremely low attrition rate with younger students due to the fact that they
are very comfortable with his teaching style and parents feel that their
children progress rapidly and maintain a high level of enthusiasm while under
his tutelage. Blair is a parent himself and relates very well to children of
all ages.
Mike
Krause-Instructor
Mike began the study of drums and mallet percussion along with
the disciplines of reading, rudiments, technique, jazz, rock & classical
repertoire when he was ten years old at the Settlement Music School, the
largest community school of the arts in the United States. He went on to
receive a performance scholarship from the acclaimed Berklee College Of Music
in Boston, immersing himself in many different styles of music including
jazz, rock, R&B, latin and big band.
Following his studies at Berklee Krause became a student of
master percussionist/educator Alan Dawson and played drums with Boston area
groups featuring members from the bands of Patty Griffin, Levon Helm, British
power pop giants XTC, blues legend Ronnie Earl and indie rock pioneers
Throwing Muses among others. A germinating interest in the guitar
eventually led him to focus exclusively on the instrument.
Krause has performed since as a veteran sideman/bandleader in a
wide variety of contexts including multiple appearances at SXSW in Austin,
TX, the International Country Music Festival in Zurich, Switzerland, the
Stone Free Music Festival in Kanchanaburi, Thailand and as a recording session
musician.
Krause has appeared as a session guitarist on CD’s with Tift
Merritt, Caitlin Cary (Mary Chapin-Carpenter, Ryan Adams), Big Al Anderson
(NRBQ, Carlene Carter, World Famous Headliners), Chris Stamey (The dB’s,
producer/engineer), Thad Cockrell, Tres Chicas, Terry Anderson (The
Yahoos, Olympic Ass-Kickin Team) and members from the Ben Folds Five, The
Jayhawks and NRBQ among others.
