Matt Brown

Musician & Teacher

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Private Lessons

I am an amateur player in my senior years, and I can honestly say that I’ve never had a music teacher who has helped me grow in so many areas in just one year of lessons. We started on banjo, both two-finger and clawhammer styles. We then did Carter-style guitar followed by harmony singing and songwriting. Matt has a pleasant personality and provides clear feedback and guidance in a patient and supportive way. He is knowledgeable in many styles of music from “old-time” to more recent ones. My original goal was to just learn an additional style of banjo, but Matt has expanded my knowledge and abilities far beyond that goal.
— Jim from Pennsylvania

I offer online private fiddle, banjo, and guitar lessons from my studio in Kentucky to students all around the world. I teach kids and adults, and my students range in experience from beginner to advanced. If you’d like to set up an initial lesson, contact me here!


Fiddle

Matt’s style of pragmatic, goal oriented teaching helped me make way more progress through my first year and some months of learning fiddle than I would have otherwise. He introduced new exercises and tunes at just the right pace that made for a perfect mix of challenge and interest. He knows how to correct without being critical and I feel encouraged and inspired after each lesson. I have a few sources of fiddle influence and learning and I think my lessons with Matt have been the most valuable. At the beginning he asked me what my goals were and one of the biggest was to be able to play in jams and improvise and I have already started doing that.
— Keith from South Carolina

I was so fortunate to study with some of the best fiddlers in America including Bruce Molsky, Brad Leftwich, Rayna Gellert, Dirk Powell, Garry Harrison, Bruce Greene, Mitch Reed, and Kirk Sutphin. With their encouragement, I’ve also learned a lot by scouring source recordings of some of their (and now my) favorite source fiddlers. As a fiddle teacher, I focus on old-time style and repertoire, as well as the fundamentals of bluegrass and country fiddling. My favorite fiddlers are John Morgan Salyer, Benton Flippen, Edden Hammons, Isham Monday, Stuart Duncan, Tommy Jackson, and Kenny Baker.

I have been taking fiddle lessons with Matt for over a year and he has truly become a mentor to me. I have learned so much more than how to play a Bluegrass tune — he has taught me about the history of Bluegrass as well as how to learn from recordings, how to listen to the music in different ways, how to play kick-offs, fills, solos, and back-up. Matt is extremely organized and knows exactly where I am from lesson to lesson. He challenges me yet makes learning fun and enjoyable. Matt cares about how I progress, and about me as a person. I am lucky to have the opportunity to learn from him, and highly recommend him as a fiddle instructor.
— Pam from Idaho

My bluegrass students learn tunes from Kenny Baker’s iconic Plays Bill Monroe album, as well as how to construct solos and fills for songs in all eight bluegrass keys. For those passionate about classic country music, I love sharing tips on how to get that honky-tonk sound with kick-offs, breaks, and fills. We’ll focus a lot on how to play tasty double stops in tune!

I have worked with Matt in many capacities during our 20+ year friendship. Not only have we taught at summer camps together, but I am now pleased to say that I myself am a student of his. He is an incredible teacher. He meets students where we are, but simultaneously pushes us to meet our goals with humor and grace. He teaches a variety of styles that when any out-of-left-field idea for a song to learn comes up, he is able to help! I highly recommend working with Matt. Our lessons are one of the best parts of my week.
— Lindsay from New Mexico

Clawhammer Banjo

I teach my banjo students clawhammer or the two-finger, thumb-lead style. My clawhammer instruction is greatly inspired by the Round Peak tradition in general, by Wade Ward in particular, and takes a lot of cues from modern masters Paul Brown and Adam Hurt. I find clawhammer to be a wonderful way to play most square dance tunes, as well as a good variety of songs. I’ve studied the playing of several 20th century masters of the style, and applied that knowledge to modern old-time music as well as on albums for Americana artists.

Two-Finger Banjo

Matt’s cheerful positivity helped me stay motivated to keep practicing and improve. Two-finger style banjo is fun to learn and more versatile than I imagined. Thanks to Matt’s deep musical knowledge, he helped me grow as a musician far beyond playing banjo.
— Will from Illinois

My two-finger banjo curriculum was developed over a seven-year tenure at the Old Town School of Folk Music in Chicago. While there, I created four instructional levels, culminating in a course designed to teach banjo students how to make their own two-finger arrangements. Since moving away in 2019, I’ve been building and improving a free instructional website devoted to the two-finger banjo style. That site is here. It features videos and tablature. Curious banjoists from anywhere in the world can try their hands at my arrangements for beginners, intermediate players, or the more advanced musician, all in a variety of banjo tunings.

Matt is a phenomenal teacher! I started taking two-finger banjo lessons from him almost five years ago, and I’ve learned more than I ever thought possible. From classic old time banjo songs to Dolly Parton’s hits to covers of songs you might not expect to hear on the banjo (Taylor Swift! The Killers! The Frozen soundtrack!), Matt makes learning each new song fun. Playing banjo has become a true source of joy for me, and I look forward to our lessons every week.
— Stephanie from California

Guitar

Matt is such a good listener. He will hear a missed note or an incorrect pick direction even if I sneak it in really fast (or quietly), but even more: he is good at asking questions and/or just listening to my playing and forming a lesson plan on the spot that meets some need I didn’t even know I had.
— Otto from Chicago

As a guitar teacher, I focus on the foundations of bluegrass playing as well as the intricacies of old-time rhythm backup. I’m a firm believer that the guitarist in an old-time band has the opportunity to add layers of color that elevate the music, rather than just follow the fiddle and banjo and “keep time.” Of course, having a deep pocket is essential, but we can add so much more to the music if we make time and connect the phrases and parts with choice bass notes and runs. I also like to share my thoughts on chord inversions, flat-picking fiddle tunes, cross-picking, finger-picking, and the legendary “Mother” Maybelle Carter’s iconic style of lead playing.

I was connected with Matt because he taught my son’s girlfriend how to play banjo and he just happened to move from Chicago to the Denver area and she told me he was great.

I happen to agree with her. I have taken lessons from Matt for about 1.5 years. He is kind, encouraging, patient and so talented. He gets you to playing and singing within a few lessons. His kindness shines through on the first visit. His encouragement and patience helped me so much, especially when I would get discouraged. He is an amazing teacher and his talent for all the stringed instruments is so lovely to listen to.

If you are considering taking up a string instrument, I encourage you to get Matt’s professional guidance. He is a wonderful teacher with a talent for creating a relaxed and fun atmosphere.
— Penny from Colorado

Group Classes

Since August 2021, I have been teaching group classes at the Louisville Folk School in Kentucky. I’ve taught an advanced old-time fiddle class, an old-time ensemble, and several levels of two-finger banjo. Check out my schedule on the LFS website for more information.

Here’s a recording of one week’s fiddle class:


Performance Coaching

In addition to teaching private lessons, I also enjoy coaching bands and artists on how to improve their live shows and hone their performances. I offer a perspective on what makes a set satisfying to the audience. I’ve seen critically acclaimed artists make horrible decisions onstage in packed and prestigious venues. I've also been in awe of obscure artists totally captivating a house concert audience in a living room. I've observed bands at all levels succeed and fail in connecting with their audience. I know what makes a concert wonderful and what allows the audience to relax and enjoy themselves.

If any of this sounds like your cup of tea, send me a note via the Contact page to set up an initial lesson or consult!


I’ve had a lot of amazing students of a variety of levels over the years. One of them is Sylvia Pine, who wrote me this gorgeous waltz when I moved from Chicago to Denver. Thanks, Sylvia!