Allen Mathews, Classical Guitarist and Guitar Lessons

Oct 28th, 2019

Allen was fantastic at our wedding. He was very professional and easy to work with and he is an amazing guitarist.
Jan 18th, 2016

My son has been taking lessons with Allen for a couple of years now, and I have to say he is learning to play at an amazing pace! Allen keeps the lessons fun and inventive so that my son does not get bored and stays energized. Allen has a substantial knowledge of the classical guitar and is able to pass that knowledge on to my son, but at the same time he is learning "popular" songs and can sing and play now as well. A great teacher!
Mar 29th, 2014

Allen is great to work with, knowledgeable, kind, patient, fun, and all around nice person. His studio is a warm, inviting space and I especially appreciate a place to warm up in before class. I had picked up the guitar about a month or so before starting to study with Allen. I had no prior music background before so there was a lot Allen needed to teach me from how to hold the guitar, to reading music, to how to play the music in a piece. I have been a student of the guitar with Allen for a little over 3 1/2 years now, off and on, and the ongoing journey has been incredible so far, with a passion developing for the cool little wood object with 6 strings. One of the greatest skills Allen has given me is how to approach a piece, how to effectively practice, how to break it down, how to problem solve. More importantly he has helped me see the music in a composition beyond the notes. The concept of expressiveness is complex. It seems to me there is inherent compositional expressiveness, intangible human intuition which can't be taught and the more tangible concepts which can be taught and Allen approaches these with passion. Now if I could just have consistent technical command of the piece and control of my dynamics, tempo, and tone......... Allen is a very expressive player and when he performs, his music engages on a deep level. It is those rare musical experiences we search and hope for. Allen is highly recommended as a performer and teacher!
Mar 1st, 2014

When I first met Allen I already knew he was a terrific musician. I quickly learned that he is a terrific teacher too! He is patient, thoughtful and encouraging and understands how to provide just the right amount of instruction so that I never feel overwhelmed but always feel challenged. He listens so carefully and explains so clearly that, though I am at a very basic level, I feel my skills and knowledge of music have increased greatly in just the few months I have been taking lessons from him. (I am continually surprised how much information he can impart from just a single, simple tune!) It is clear that Allen has a real passion for the music and, while issues of technique, theory and appropriate exercises are always critically important aspects of the lessons, musicality and playing for the sheer joy of it are always part of the mix too. It's just plain fun to take lessons from Allen....and he's a really nice guy too! He easily gets five out of five stars from me.
Feb 19th, 2014