Tools For Improvisation: A brief manual on the fundamental components of jazz theory

David Matthew Shere has been a successful guitar teacher in Chicago, IL, Santa Barbara, CA, and Seattle, WA. He has performed in a wide range of ensemble settings both in and outside of academia, produced numerous successful recording projects, and coached a variety of bands. David completed a Bachelor’s degree in music from Cornish College of the Arts in Seattle, WA in 2003. In 2006 and 2007 he completed M.A. and Ph.D. degrees in music composition at the University of California, Santa Barbara. He has worked as a Teaching Assistant at UC Santa Barbara, conducting classes in electronic music and music theory. He has also studied jazz performance extensively with such luminaries as Jim Knapp, Julian Priester, and Tom Talman, and classical performance with Roger Nelson and Jeremy Haladyna. As a composer, David has had acoustic and electronic works performed by the Odeon string quartet, the Seattle Chamber Players, CREATE, and the UCSB Ensemble for Contemporary Music. He has written several lengthy instruction books, many compositions, and countless tutorials for the guitar, and is a proud endorsee of Godin Guitars. Currently David teaches jazz improvisation at Music Center of the Northwest in Seattle, WA.