Partial review of my latest CD "The Other Road" from JazzTimes May 2008: "Weird, but this guy with the name Ed Johnson composes some of the finest Brazilian music in the world from his home base in Northern California. It just goes to show that the world-wide reach of the bossa nova style popularized by Antonio Carlos Jobim, João Gilberto and Baden Powell has never lessened and infiltrates all corners of the globe. The joyful and romantic strains of bossa nova are what Johnson co-opts so well with his eight-piece Novo Tempo...."
*********************************************************************************
Ed Johnson has been teaching private lessons in both guitar and voice at Gryphon Stringed Instruments for 30 years, making it the longest anyone has been on Gryphon’s private lesson teaching staff. With his many years of experience, he provides a knowledge of all aspects of guitar and vocal techniques that few can match, plus an affinity for teaching students at any level of ability.

Ed teaches a broad spectrum of musical styles, and plays nylon-string, steel-string acoustic, and electric guitars. Here’s a listing of what he offers in guitar instruction:

Acoustic Guitar Stylings (beginning through advanced), including basic folk guitar, country blues, bluegrass, contemporary singer-songwriters, and classic rock repertoire for acoustic guitar. Ed has a wealth of written materials in each of these genres.

Classical Guitar (beginning through advanced), with repertoire ranging from Renaissance, Baroque, and Classical period composers to the great works of Spanish and Latin American composers of 19th and 20th centuries.

Jazz Guitar, including everything from playing simple swing chords for song accompaniment to be-bop, modern mainstream jazz, and Brazilian jazz. Ed has transcribed and arranged literally hundreds of songs in these styles, and has developed excellent materials that deal with soloing over chord changes and jazz theory.

Electric Blues and Rock Guitar—especially the styles of blues masters such as B.B. King and rock/blues stylists such as Clapton and Hendrix.

Voice Instruction—Ed is as highly regarded for his vocal talents as he is for his guitar prowess. He has developed a proven method for teaching voice that really helps to remove the “mystery” of vocal technique and help people overcome the barriers that are often associated with singing. The musical styles and repertoire that Ed offers to voice students include jazz, rhythm and blues, folk, and rock. He also teaches harmony singing (a favorite of his!)

About Lessons For Beginners — For students brand new to guitar, Ed likes to take an approach from two angles: 1) getting the student started with basic chord fingerings and very easy songs, and 2) introducing the student to reading music, starting by learning the notes in the first position (first four frets).

All of Ed’s lessons are held at Gryphon. To sign up for private lessons, or check scheduling and current prices, contact Ed by phone, at (650)858-0264, or by email: edmundjohnson@sbcglobal.net