News from Whole Music

Douglas Blair named head of Rock & Guitar Department

We're thrilled to announce that Douglas Blair has joined our teaching staff. Blair, lead guitarist for the band W.A.S.P., has extensive touring, performing and recording experience, and has also been an instructor for many years.

"Douglas Blair is the real deal -- a true rocker and an international touring professional," said E.J. Ouellette. "We're psyched to have him join our team."

Blair will lead our Rock & Guitar department, and is available for private lessons and ensembles. He will be teaching guitar, voice, bass, piano, and sound engineering. Douglas will also be assisting EJ Ouellette in the Artist Development program. Douglas' extensive professional background includes singing and songwriting in addition to fronting bands such as the New England trio "Run 21" and power duo "signal2noise."

"I've taught on the North Shore for more than 10 years, and many of my students have gone on to Berklee and into the music scene with their own groups. I think that musicians should never stop learning -- I am constantly seeking inspiration from others, including my students. It keeps me current," says Douglas.

Douglas also develops exotic instruments, and created the innovative "GuitarCross," an instrument that combines five guitar strings with three bass strings which can be played and amplified separately. His instruments offer unprecedented musical approaches. Stay tuned to learn about about the coming "Ultimate Guitar Workshop" at Whole Music where Douglas will demo his craft and his original instruments.

Whole Music Artists release eight new singles on iTunes

Whole Music Artists released eight new singles developed within our Artist Development program in December. Released under the company's development label, Whole Records, the singles include original material by teens and adults, developed and produced by EJ Ouellette. Two of the releases, "So Serious" and "Switch" are the second singles for teens Frankie Weeks and Forrest Finn respectively. The other songs are all debut releases from AD artists David Corson, Megan Starrak, Katie Marinelli, Michelle Cheney and Karin Hovey. Songs released by Whole Music can be seen on Whole Music's CDBaby page. Congratulations to all of our artists on these singles.

Whole Music welcomes new teacher, Peter Cicco, Jazz specialist

Peter Cicco, an accomplished guitarist, vocalist and songwriter, has joined the teaching staff of Whole Music and is now accepting students for private guitar, bass, voice and piano lessons. Peter also leads our Tuesday night Blues Workshop in Amesbury.

Peter has been a private music instructor for over twenty five years, teaching a wide variety of musical styles, and has led student ensembles in Jazz, Rock, Funk, R&B and Latin music. He has a wealth of musical education having studied jazz, classical, and popular music privately in the Boston area, at Boston University, The New England Conservatory, and most notably has studied jazz improvisation and composition with Charlie Banacos. Please help us welcome Peter Cicco to the Whole Music community.

Ongoing Adult Music Classes at Whole Music in Amesbury

• Beginning Guitar: Basic fundamentals of guitar, chord and melody playing, theory, exercises and fun. Mondays, 6-7pm. Taught by EJ Ouellette.

• Blues Workshop: For those who love the Blues! Directed by Peter Cicco, this workshop is open to guitarists, keyboard players and singers who want to learn about and play the Blues. Tuesdays, 7:30 - 9 PM.

• Voice: Love to sing? Learn correct vocal techniques, exercises, melody, harmony and develop your own singing style. This class is for the "shower" singer and Karaoke stars. Thursdays, 6:30-7:30pm. Taught by EJ Ouellette

For more information, please email: info at wholemusic dot com or call 978 462 9020.