With over 20 years of teaching experience, I'm committed to helping students improve all aspects of their guitar playing and musicality. In addition to classical guitar I'm well versed in popular styles such as rock, blues, and funk. I've successfully prepared students for RCM exams and post-secondary auditions, and my students have enjoyed great success in competitions such as Kiwanis and the OMFA Provincial competition.
I'm available for lessons in person at my home studio near Arbutus and King Edward Ave in Vancouver, BC., and also online via Zoom.
Lesson rates:
$75 CDN/60 mins
$57 CDN/45 mins
$40 CDN/30 mins
Please contact me to inquire about scheduling.
* New ARCT Performance Preparation Course now available starting in September 2022. Click here for details, and contact me to apply.
Student reviews:
"Michael Kolk is a world-class instructor. His teaching is a combination of technical mastery, musical expertise and performance and recording experience. His approach is patient, professional and personal. Both my playing on the classical guitar and my overall musicality have been raised to another level. He truly cares about his students and is able to meet them wherever they are along their journey with the guitar, across multiple styles."
-Elliott
"Learning classical guitar as an adult seemed a daunting task when I first started taking lessons, nearly eight years ago. Mike's friendly, patient, yet detail-focused teaching style has helped me get to a level that I never thought I would reach. Whether we are working on the fine points of a piece for an RCM exam or sight-reading through something more light-hearted, I learn something new during every lesson and leave feeling motivated to keep playing."
-Bibiana
"Lessons with Michael are inspiring and rewarding.
It's a privilege to be his student."
-Jake
"I have been studying with Michael Kolk for the past 3 years. His approach to teaching is second to none. I leave all my lessons with concrete accomplishments and clarity on what I need to work on to achieve my goal. Michael has amazing musical skills and professional attitude with a very calm attitude towards teaching. I have absolutely no reservations endorsing him as a teacher for young or older students."
-Bruno
I'm certain that my progress with learning guitar would not have been as fast, and my passion for the instrument would not be as strong, if it weren't for Michael's skill as a teacher. His attention to detail in our lessons, focus on balancing technique and musicality, and finding effective practice solutions to approaching difficult passages have allowed me to far exceed where I thought I would get when I bought my first guitar 9 years ago.
-Nick
I've taken lessons with Michael for two years. In that time I've gone from knowing nothing about guitar or classical music, to playing pieces (I`m at RCM Level 4) for my family and friends at Christmas, birthdays, etc. Aside from learning guitar technique and repertoire, I've learned a lot about music theory, music history, and enjoy listening to classical music because of what I've learned with Michael. I'm a full time graduate student, and when I don`t have as much time to practice as I'd like, Michael finds things to work on to make the lesson fun and useful.
-Colin
