Zachary Jordan Garcia
About
Hello current and future students! My name is Zach Garcia and I am a tuba, trombone, and euphonium/baritone teacher. I'm looking forward to getting to know you! As for me and my background, I first got interested in performing music when I joined my school band in the 6th grade as a tuba player. The 7th grade year is when jazz band was offered as an elective at my middle school, and because tuba wasn't an instrument that was allowed in the jazz band, I started learning the trombone. Throughout middle and high school, I continued to play tuba and trombone, and in high school, I began to take an interest in teaching private lessons to middle school students after volunteering my time to assist the low brass students at the middle school down the road from the high school. I made my own fliers and business cards, handed them out to the low brass students in the middle school classes, and eventually built up my own private lesson studio as a high school student. After high school, I went to college to study music education and tuba performance at Colorado State University. Since then, I've taught for roughly 9 years in public and charter schools to both middle and high school aged students, while continuing to teach privately as well. Most of my teaching experience has been in-person teaching, but since the pandemic, I've taught music classes and lessons online as well. I also taught for a little bit in Japan! I'm a pretty open book, so don't hesitate to ask further questions if anything crosses your mind. Once again, I'm looking forward to meeting you in a future lesson. Let's have fun making music together!
Teaching Style
I am a kind, patient and student focused teacher, meaning that I try my best to teach in a way that will fit the student's personality and needs to make progress as a musician. Whether you are working on your school band music, playing a solo, working towards an audition, or just getting started playing an instrument, I'd love to work with you and help you improve your musical skills no matter your musical level. Don't hesitate to reach out to me if you have any questions!
Curriculum
I have all sorts of materials and books that I like to use, but I will list some below. Many of the listed trombone books will also be used with euphonium/baritone lesson students. If your school band teacher has you use a specific music book or other materials, we can use those in our lessons as well.
For Beginner Musicians:
Sound Innovations (or your band class beginning book) (tuba, trombone, euphonium/baritone)
Brass Buzz (tuba, trombone/euphonium) (Michael Davis)
First Solos for the Tuba Player (Herbert Wekselblatt)
Easy Classical Trombone & Piano Duets/Tuba (Javier Marco)
For Intermediate to Advanced Musicians:
Studies in Legato for Tuba/Bass Trombone (Reginald H. Fink)
Studies in Legato for Tenor Trombone/Euphonium (Reginald H. Fink)
Blazhevich’s 70 Studies for Tuba
Bordogni’s 43 Bel Canto Studies for Tuba
Elementary Etudes for Bass Trombone (Tommy Pederson)
Selected Studies for Trombone (H. Voxman)
Performance Studies for Tuba (Patrick Sheridan)
Method for Bass Trombone and F Attachment Tenor Trombone (Allen Ostrander)
Intermediate Studies for Developing Artists on the Trombone and Euphonium (Howard Hillard)
Credentials & Affiliations
I am a K-12 licensed music educator from Colorado and received a bachelor degree in Music with a concentration in Music Education and Tuba Performance from Colorado State University. I attended CSU from August 2009-December 2013. During my time as a student at CSU, I performed with various ensembles, some including the CSU symphony orchestra, wind ensemble, symphonic band, marching band, and the basketball pep band. I also performed in a brass quintet and trombone choir. I was also an active member of the music fraternity Phi Mu Alpha Sinfonia. I performed and had experience directing the men's choir, acapella group, and brass band for the fraternity's Colorado chapter.
After college, I accepted a middle school band director position at Thunder Valley K-8 in Frederick, Colorado. I taught there from January 2014- May 2016. I taught band, beginning guitar, music technology, and also assisted with the school musicals each year. During this time, I was regularly playing with the Longmont Concert Band (tuba), Flatirons Jazz Orchestra (bass trombone), and Longmont Theatre Company (all low brass), and the Wither Without Orchestra (tuba).
From August 2016-October 2021, I taught middle and high school music at Pinnacle Charter School in Thornton, Colorado. I primarily taught concert band, but also taught choir, beginning guitar, history of rock and roll, music appreciation, and music technology. I also directed the pit orchestra for the musicals each year. At the start of the COVID pandemic, I taught my school music students virtually using an online music composition program and digital audio workstation. Before the COVID pandemic, I continued to perform with the previously mentioned ensembles, adding on the Pikes Peak Brass Band (tuba).
I'm currently living and teaching in Japan. In Japan, I have performed with the Odate Concert Band and I am currently playing with the Hamakaze Wind Orchestra (bass trombone).
A fun tidbit to add is I've played trombone with The Chunderfins, which is a fun video game style, chiptune band based out of Fort Collins, Colorado. If you have an interest in video games, I recommend checking out that group online.
