Harry Bartlett
Guitar
Q. How would you describe your style of teaching?
“I’m an open-minded teacher who offers patient, personal, and intuitive lessons. As a teacher I like to dig deeper in to the mechanics of the songs we learn; revealing what it is that makes them unique and attractive. Through personalized exercises, structured improvisation, and song writing, I’ll help you develop your own voice on the instrument rooted in the music you love.”
Harry is a recent graduate of the University of Toronto's Jazz Performance program with a diverse set of experiences pertaining to music education and is always excited to share with his students what he has learned through his own education and professional career.
While much of his music is rooted in the jazz tradition, Harry is inspired by and incorporates a wide range of musical idioms into his playing and composing. As a bandleader he has appeared in major festivals and venues across Canada and released his debut EP, Harry Bartlett Trio in July 2018.
As a teacher, Harry believes that music should be connected to the concept of play at every stage in one’s development. To achieve this, he strive to create an open and comfortable environment conducive to learning.
Harry likes to centre lessons around the students interests which once established, will help to form meaningful and structured lesson plans for subsequent sessions. Each piece worked on will offer unique opportunities for growth as a musician and through learning them there will be opportunities to discuss technique, music theory, and improvisation.
With a grant from the FMUA (University of Toronto’s Faculty of Music Undergraduate Association) Harry developed and presented a program on Open Improvisation to high school students across Canada in November 2019. This project successfully provided young musicians with an opportunity to improvise in a context free of right and wrong. This provides a sense of confidence and a deeper connection to making music for students, which speaks to his philosophy as a teacher.
Harry has 6 years of experience as a music instructor and has held positions at the Vancouver Symphony Orchestra School of Music, and other independent teaching studios.
