Check out what Jim’s students have to say!
“From my first lesson with Jim in 2006, it was apparent that his instructional skills and passion for teaching guitar is a rare talent. Jim is able to communicate with and motivate students of all ages, and personalizes each lesson to fit your goals and challenge your skills.
As a proud parent, I watched Jim transform my son from strumming his first chords to confidently stepping to center stage and performing an Allman Brothers lead solo at a benefit concert for hundreds of people in downtown Baltimore. Jim packs 90 minutes worth of instruction into 60 minutes with well-structured demonstration techniques, detailed analysis, and challenging exercises.
Having logged over 1,000 Instructor hours in combat aircraft and coached sports for over 15 years, I can say with great confidence that Jim’s unique instructional and coaching skills are a rare find. If you are serious about playing guitar and are ready to commit to accomplishing your musical goals, sign up for that first guitar lesson with Jim – it will be the best decision you can make.” – Brigardier General Guy Walsh, United States Air Force
“Over the past 5 years I have been taking guitar lessons with Jim at his studio. I believe that Jim’s approach to teaching has been the key to my progress as a guitar player. I will often arrive to my lesson with a specific song I want to learn and Jim is always more than willing to help me work through that song. But more importantly, Jim pinpoints certain techniques/skills that are present in the song that can be applied to other songs. With Jim’s approach, I learn to play the music that I am interested in while increasing my fundamental skill.” – Mike H., student since 2006
“Jim Bowley is an awesome teacher! He has helped me acquire skills that I never thought I would be able to reach. He doesn’t just teach me theory, but we also learn songs and about musicians and artists that I am interested in, so that it’s always fun.” – Piper B., student since 2007 and lead singer/guitarist for Cryin’ Out Loud
“I started lessons with Jim 4 years ago. During our time together, my guitar playing has grown tremendously! At that time, I was playing rhythm on my acoustic guitar and wanted to learn theory and how to play “lead” guitar on my electric. Jim’s patience while teaching has been very rewarding! A typical lesson with Jim isn’t necessarily “planned” and it doesn’t require the usual guitar method books. If you have a favorite tune, you bring it to the lesson and every time it becomes a teachable moment. I have learned chords and notes up and down the fretboard, scales, lead guitar pieces, blues, songs I never thought I could play and more. The most empowering thing I have learned is how to listen to a song and, using my knowledge of music theory, figure out the chords, notes, and capo positions all on my own, BY EAR! I take it to my lesson and Jim helps tweak it to perfection!!! It’s been a great and rewarding experience for me!” – Roseann W., student since 2007
Comments taken from Harford Community College student evaluation forms:
“Jim is an excellent teacher and guitarist.”
“Great class, excellent instructor. Jim’s ideas inspired me.”
“Jim designs and presents his course in a very practical way. The use of songs at the end of each class really helped us apply what we’ve learned.”
“Great instructor! He made the class interesting and fun.”
“This class was awesome! Mr. Bowley made it fun, so much that I couldn’t wait to go home and practice. He is a very patient teacher.”
“Well organized course. Mr. Bowley presented instruction clearly and made adaptations to suit the needs of the students. I look forward to the next guitar class!”
“Give this outstanding instructor a raise!”
My son, JC, was a student of Jim’s for several years. He took an incredibly shy kid with NO experience at all and helped to transform him into a confident young man with recognizable talent. His lessons were more than simply “how to play a guitar” in nature. Jim took a personal interest in my son, working very hard to find what techniques worked and what wouldn’t with JC. And there were many life lessons learned in addition to new chords and guitar playing techniques. He made a tremendous impact on JC, and we will be forever grateful. He is by far a superior instructor, and his teaching skills are a gift. JC is away at college now, but he took his guitar–and his lessons from Jim–with him. I’m sure he will continue to take the lessons learned, both musical and non, into his adult life. A wonderful, worthwhile experience. I highly recommend Mr. Jim Bowley.
[...] Students Speak [...]