Travis Jenkins

I'm a classical guitarist and teacher living in the United States with over 3.5 years of teaching experience. My main area of expertise is in classical or finger style guitar. I enjoy teaching music theory, music analysis, and music writing as well. I studied Classical guitar at the University of Georia and earn a Bachelors of Arts degree in music from UGA in 2021. Since my graduation I have primarily been working as a teacher in Cumming, Ga, USA at Vivo Music and Arts Academy. There I teach between 40 and 50 students per week for half our lessons. My students vary widely in age, from 7 years old to adult learners. My patience and dedication as a teacher have awarded me with high student retention rates. I aim to always offer and teach music and techniques that appeal to each student as an individual and offer my lessons and critique in a gentle and kind manner. 

I have also worked as a session guitarist for an entertainment company in Atlanta called Etude Entertainment. With Etude I mainly played wedding ceremonies and receptions where my fellow musicians and I arranged pop songs, chosen by the bride and groom, in a classical style. 

Before my career as a classical guitarist, I played electric guitar in a rock band called Hooker in Athens, Georgia. We wrote original songs, recorded an album with gold and platinum record producer Paul Hornsby (Marshall Tucker Band, Charlie Daniels), and toured across many states in the southeast USA. Though our album and recorded music are not accessible to the public at the moment, you can find many live recordings of Hooker if you search "Hooker Athens Ga live music" in YouTube. 

I try to provide a kind, patient, and attentive atmosphere as a teacher. My main focus as a teacher is to help my students play their pieces in a way that sounds good, which can be exceptionally difficult on an instrument like guitar. I can help students understand various classical techniques, like ergonomic left and right hand positions, best practices and strategies for choosing left and right hand fingerings: this still works in the direction of the music sounding good. I teach and guide students in their interpretation and phrasing using listening exercises, music theory and analysis. This also aides in sounding good.

Generally I like to teach standard notation reading but I understand that many students prefer guitar tab, so I always remain open to tab resources. However, if you, like me, find standard notation more clear, more empowering and fun, I will gladly help you develop your reading skills on guitar. To me, one of the greatest and most empowering feelings is sight reading a beautiful new piece of music! This a joy of mine which I want to share with my students.