Is There More?

About 10 years ago, I seriously reflected on how God had used me to encourage others throughout the years. It’s not a huge amount of things, but very significant and meaningful to me. I remember leading people to Christ in high school and college; marrying a wonderfully fun and godly wife; organizing the Christian Guitarist Conferences for 15 years; raising two awesome boys (now married men!); recording 16 albums; ministering with Azusa Pacific University’s Mexico Outreach for 10 years; officiating the marriage of 5 couples (including one of my sons); leading worship for conference centers like Hume Lake, Mount Hermon, and Mission Springs; being a youth pastor for 4 years and a worship pastor for many years. I’ve been blessed so much and feel so satisfied to experience it all. I thought, there’s probably not much more.
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It was great to have last week off, so I again reflected on how God has brought more opportunities my way in the past 10 years. He opened the door at Valley Christian Schools, to mentor the high school and junior high students for the last 10 years; opened the door to get a Masters Degree in Entertainment Business and produce the Summer Concert Series at Mount Hermon Christian Conference Center for the last 3 years; opened the door to lead worship with the dear people at Gilroy Presbyterian Church; and begin a new season of marriage with me and Sherri as empty-nesters. I am humbled that God has given me such wonderful opportunities, but I can’t help but ask God…Is there more?
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I will be giving two concerts to encourage with music and stories of my journey and God’s faithfulness. I’ll be in Gilroy, Sunday night, March 1, 6:00pm, with Gilroy Presbyterian Church in the Worship Center and in Los Altos, Sunday night, March 8, 6:00pm, with Bridges Community Church in the Family Life Center. On March 7th, I’ll be featuring two workshops at the BASS Convention under the Music Arts track, Improving Your Voice and Acoustic Guitar in Worship. I’m working on three new albums: Encore, which includes drums and bass guitar along with my guitar and voice; Instrumental Guitar – Volume 2; and Heartfelt Worship, a new worship music project. Also, once a month, I’ll be training the worship leaders in the River of Life Community Church children’s program on Sunday afternoons. There is more that God is doing and I’m ready to dig in!
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Thank you so much for your support both financially and prayerfully! God’s work continues because of your generosity. May God richly bless you!.

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Reggie in Concert

Come be encouraged in Christ as I share my life and music journey in a solo concert at two locations. I’d love to see you! I’ll be in Gilroy at Gilroy Presbyterian Church Sunday, March 1, 6:00pm, and Bridges Community Church Sunday, March 8 at 6:00pm

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BASS Convention

Need training as a volunteer leader at church? The BASS Convention is a fantastic resource to improve. I’ll be teaching a guitar workshop and a vocal workshop Saturday morning on March 7. Hope to see you there!

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New Recording

I’m now working on my 17th album called Encore with Robert Rubino at Valley Christian School in their recording studio. It will be a full band sound accompanying my guitar and vocal work. The songs will be some favorites from throughout my life.

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Upcoming Events

• March 1, 8, 22, 29 (Sundays)
  I will be leading worship with Gilroy Presbyterian Church, 6000 Miller Ave, Gilroy, CA 95020. The service begins at 10:00am.
• March 1 (Sunday)
  I will be giving a solo concert at Gilroy Presbyterian Church, 6000 Miller Ave, Gilroy, CA 95020. The concert begins at 6:00pm.
• March 7 (Saturday)
  I will be teaching guitar and vocal workshops at the BASS Convention, at Redwood Christian Chapel, 19300 Redwood Rd, Castro Valley, CA 94546. Improving Your Voice at 8:00am. Acoustic Guitar in Worship at 11:15am.
• March 8 (Sunday)
  I will be giving a solo concert at Bridges Community Church, 625 Magdalena Ave, Los Altos, CA 94024. The concert begins at 6:00pm in the Family Life Center.
• March 15 (Sunday)
  I will be training the children’s worship team at River of Life Christian Church, 1177 Laurelwood Rd, Santa Clara, CA 95054. Workshop 1:00pm-4:00pm.

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Two Upcoming Concerts!

God has been doing some amazing things! I will be giving two concerts to encourage you with music and stories of my journey and God’s faithfulness. I’ll be in concert in Gilroy, Sunday night, March 1, 6:00pm, with Gilroy Presbyterian Church in the Worship Center and in Los Altos, Sunday night, March 8, 6:00pm, with Bridges Community Church in the Family Center.
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On March 7th, I’ll be featuring two workshops at the BASS Convention under the Music Arts track, Improving Your Voice and Acoustic Guitar in Worship. It’s been a joy to be on the Board of Directors for the BASS Convention for 10 years and help empower so many volunteers in church leadership. It’s an affordable way to get quality training in every area of Church ministry. My good friend Peter Neumann will be the Keynote Speaker for the Music Arts track again this year.
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I’m working on a new album with favorite songs written throughout my life. It’s going to be called Encore, which includes drums and bass guitar along with my guitar and voice. I’m also working on having all the songs written out in music notation and guitar tab. This project will cost about $1,000 through Heartfelt Music®, and we need help financially to get it out. If you would like to help, go to our Support page with a note that it’s for the Encore album.
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Once a month, I’ll be training the worship leaders in the River of Life Community Church children’s program on Sunday afternoons. Our first time was last month with their two bands that lead the 5th graders. They did a great job in learning songs like Yes I Will, King of My Heart, and Good Good Father. They have a different theme every month and last month it was on God’s Goodness.
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Reggie in Concert

Come be encouraged in Christ as I share my life and music journey in a solo concert at two locations. I’d love to see you! I’ll be in Gilroy at Gilroy Presbyterian Church Sunday, March 1, 6:00pm, and Bridges Community Church Sunday, March 8 at 6:00pm

BASS Convention

Need training as a volunteer leader at church? The BASS Convention is a fantastic resource to improve. I’ll be teaching a guitar workshop and a vocal workshop Saturday morning on March 7. Peter Neumann will be the Keynote in Music Arts.

New Recording

I’m now working on my 17th album called Encore with Robert Rubino at Valley Christian School in their recording studio. It will be a full band sound accompanying my guitar and vocal work. The songs will be some favorites from throughout my life.

Upcoming Events

• January 26, February 2, 9, 16, 23 (Sunday)
  I will be leading worship with Gilroy Presbyterian Church, 6000 Miller Ave, Gilroy, CA 95020. The service begins at 10:00am.
• February 9 (Sunday)
  I will be training the children’s worship team at River of Life Christian Church, 1177 Laurelwood Rd, Santa Clara, CA 95054. Workshop 1:00pm-4:00pm.
• March 1 (Sunday)
  I will be leading giving a solo concert at Gilroy Presbyterian Church, 6000 Miller Ave, Gilroy, CA 95020. The concert begins at 6:00pm.
• March 7 (Saturday)
  I will be teaching guitar and vocal workshops at the BASS Convention, at Redwood Christian Chapel, 19300 Redwood Rd, Castro Valley, CA 94546. Improving Your Voice at 8:00am. Acoustic Guitar in Worship at 11:15am.
• March 8 (Sunday)
  I will be leading giving a solo concert at Bridges Community Church, 625 Magdalena Ave, Los Altos, CA 94024. The concert begins at 6:00pm in the Family Life Center.

God Has Truly Blessed

There are some pretty significant full time involvements that are coming to completion this spring for me. Through it all, I have to say, “God has truly blessed!” I just graduated with a Master’s degree from Full Sail University, which I highlight below. It was a shock to not have major projects due every week. Yet, I have learned so much and feel like I can see the bigger picture of what Heartfelt Music is about. You can read about the entire journey on my Tumblr blog. The Valley Christian High School year is coming to a close next week, also highlighted below. It has been a joy to work with junior high and high school students who want to learn. I’ve been teaching the worship teams and guitar classes. Next year, we’re starting a Guitar 3 class and a Music Technology class. It’s so fun to see the emphasis on guitar continuing to grow here at Valley. Some students even started a guitar club this year. The students who are a part of the Music Technology class will become certified users of Pro Tools and Sibelius. Thank you for your prayers over the last few months. Your interest, concern, and support in prayer means so much to me.

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Graduated with a Masters Degree

On May 6th, I graduated from Full Sail University with a Master of Science in Entertainment Business. What an amazing and outstanding experience. My final project was a new Business Plan for Heartfelt Music which will double the impact of what God is doing though us. I’m very excited about what’s to come. Stay tuned for a re-launch of Heartfelt Music in the fall.

VCS Chapel Worship

A few weeks ago, the Valley Christian School worship team led their last chapel with the whole student body of 1600 students. We’ve had an outstanding year and have seen a significant growth toward worshiping God. It’s really hard to imagine school wraps up next week with finals. The Blue Team will lead worship at San Jose Christian Reformed Church this Sunday.

New Album in New VCS Studio

Valley Christian School has built a new recording studio on campus to enhance the Conservatory of the Arts program. Under the engineering of Robert Rubino, I am working on a new album in this new studio. My most recent recording Here & Now includes simple voice and guitar arrangements. This new one will be a full band sound. I’ll let you know more as it progresses.

Upcoming Events

May 29, June 5 & 19 (Sun)
Leading worship with San Jose Christian Reformed Church, 5150 Camden Ave, San Jose, CA 95124. The services begin at 10:00am. May 29 is a special Sunday with the Valley Christian School chapel worship team leading music.

June 20-26 (Sun)
Leading worship at Community Presbyterian Church in Danville’s week long Vacation Bible School and Sunday worship services, 222 W El Pintado, Danville, CA 94526.

Still Learning

I hope I never say, “I’ve learned enough, now I can stop.” In order to be a great teacher, I must be a passionate learner. Putting myself in the students shoes and putting a high value on my own continued education is important. I’m continuing in the Masters program at Full Sail University and learning tons. The three classes I have completed so far have been compelling, challenging, and inspirational (Mastery: Personal & Professional Development; Executive Leadership; and Project & Team Management). In July, I completed the Sibelius training in order to write out music digitally. I also attended the National Worship Leader Conference to sharpen my skills at worship leading. I haven’t arrived! I certainly believe the saying, “The more you come to know, the more you discover you don’t know!” Yet, this is a truly enjoyable journey as I become more and more equipped to help others on their journey.

Fall Guitar Lessons Begin

I will be continuing private guitar lessons this fall and would love to help you get further along on your journey. On Mondays, I will be teaching private lessons from 4:00pm to 8:30pm at Bridges Community Church in Los Altos starting August 24th. I will be teaching at Valley Christian High School on Thursday afternoons 3:00pm-6:00pm starting September 3rd. On Fridays, I will be teaching every other week from 4:00pm to 6:00pm at my home in Mount Hermon starting September 11th. Let me know if you want to start.

New Guitar Instrumental Album

I’m aiming to record a new instrumental album and hoping you will help in some way. I’ve started a crowd funding page at Indiegogo.com which has perks and further explanation of this project. I have one song on YouTube.com you can watch called Abundant Sunshine. When it comes out is when the funds come in. Thank you for your prayers and encouragement! It will cost about $700 for the whole project. Those who donate $10 or more will receive a digital download of my album Instrumental Guitar – Volume 1. Those who donate $20 or more will receive a digital download and a signed CD of my new album Instrumental Guitar – Volume 2. Those who donate $30 or more will have their names printed on the inside of the CD cover. In addition, all perks stack, so any one of the higher donations will receive all the perks before it.  These are just a small way to say thank you for your involvement.

Valley Christian School Begins

The Valley Christian School year is starting back up next week. I’m excited to work with the worship teams, chapels, and guitar classes. This year I will have three guitar classes. There are three worship teams, one junior high and two high school. The worship teams will be doing events outside of the school as well. My Mission Statement for life is to lead others toward intimacy with God and Valley Christian School is the perfect platform to do that (I consider it an extension of Heartfelt Music Ministry). It is very fulfilling for me to see students succeed.

Coming Events

• August 16, 23, & 30 (Sun), 10:00pm
  Leading Worship at San Jose Christian Reformed Church, 5150 Camden Ave
  San Jose, CA 95124 (408) 266-4412.
• August 23 (Sun), 6:15pm-7:15pm
  Leading worship with band at Cityteam in San Jose for the men going through recovery, 2304 Zanker Road, San Jose, CA 95131, (408) 232-5600.
• October 9-11 (Fri-Sun), Daily
  Leading worship at the Tonto Rim Christian Camp’s Men’s Retreat, 353 N. Baptist Camp Rd., Payson, Arizona 85541.

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Moving Forward in 2014!

Vacation was so relaxing, but now I’m back in the fast lane. I can’t complain because I’m doing what I love. I feel so blessed to be teaching, leading worship, and spending most of my days in music and ministry. I’m playing guitar at least an hour everyday. This year will hold more training, concerts, and worship leading.  Thank you for your interest in what God is doing through Heartfelt Music Ministry.
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Concert-Worship Leading-VCS
Check out what’s happening in the columns below which are significant events for the next couple of weeks.  I’ll be performing a benefit concert at The King’s Academy this Friday night at 7:00pm. I’ve been leading worship at Community Presbyterian Church in Danville and will be leading for two more weekends in the Video Cafe. I’m training and leading three worship bands at Valley Christian School as well as teach a Guitar for Fun class at the elementary school. We will have a week long Spiritual Emphasis Week in a couple of weeks using all three worship bands.
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Accelerate the Impact
The Accelerate the Impact support opportunity, over November and December, was a tremendous blessing. We received $4,100.00 which will help Heartfelt Music Ministry to do more ministry…sooner.  It will still take just over a year to pay off this debt we’re carrying.  Thank you for praying for us and for your generous donations. Please, CLICK HERE to make a donation or sign up to support us monthly.
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Albums
Both of my latest albums, Here & Now and Instrumental Guitar Volume 1, are available on our website, CDbaby, iTunes, Rhapsody, Spotify, and others  The lyrics and the stories behind the songs on Here & Now are on the Heartfelt Music Blog HERE. The stories behind the songs on Instrumental Guitar Volume 1 are on the Heartfelt Music Blog HERE.

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Benefit Concert at the King’s Academy

This Friday, I’ll will be performing a concert at The King’s Academy in Sunnyvale as a fundraiser to benefit their Guadalajara Service Trip and Hope House in Ixtlahuacan, Mexico. The cost is $8.00 in The King’s Academy Theater. I’ll be sharing songs from my two latest albums and leading worship with familiar songs.  Come join us!

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Worship at CPC in Danville

This weekend, February 1 & 2, I will be leading worship with Community Presbyterian Church in Danville making beautiful music joining with their excellent musicians. Come join the great worship and teaching for 5:00pm service for the Gathering in the Multi Purpose Room and on Sunday for the Video Cafe in the same place.

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Chapels at VCS

I am leading three worship bands at Valley Christian Schools.  We just finished studying a book called Becoming a True Worshiper by Tom Kreauter. The bands lead the 2,000 students in worship during chapels every week. It’s a delight to work with the groups, learn new songs, and see significant spiritual growth in the lives of the student body.

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Coming Events

Jan 31 (Friday)

Performing a concert for The King’s Academy in Sunnyvale as a fundraiser to benefit their Guadalajara Service Trip and Hope House in Ixtlahuacan, Mexico. The cost is $8.00 in The King’s Academy Theater. It will be from 7:00-8:30.

Feb 1 & 2 (Saturday & Sunday)

Leading Worship at Community Presbyterian Church in Danville on Saturday night for The Gathering (6:00pm) and on Sunday for the Video Cafe (9:00pm & 10:45pm).

Feb 7 & 8 (Saturday & Sunday)

Leading Worship at Community Presbyterian Church in Danville on Saturday night for The Gathering (6:00pm) and on Sunday for the Video Cafe (9:00pm & 10:45pm).

Mar 7 & 8 (Friday & Saturday)

Teaching Workshops at BASS (Church Workers Convention in Castro Valley: Teaching four workshops: Creative Songwriting, Worship Infusion, Dynamic Guitar in Worship, and Worship Band Interactive.

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A Season of Giving!

Christmas is coming and there are reminders everywhere, all over the world!  Jesus is the center of our celebration and relationships are what He’s about.  More than “loving things,” Jesus has demonstrated His deep “love for us” by becoming one of us, giving His very life, and making a way for us to be with Him forever.  This is a season of giving as we recognize and value the relationships God has brought into our lives.  May this be a most meaningful Christmas for you, your family, and your friends.

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As a special gift, we’d like you to enjoy a free MP3 Download of the song “Flame” from the new album Here & Now (CLICK HERE).

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We are holding a one-time opportunity for you to give to Heartfelt Music Ministry called Accelerate the Impact.  We have never done something like this before and will not be doing it again.  Unlike most non-profit ministries who hold yearly giving campaigns, we have not chosen to do that. People have volunteered one-time donations and some give monthly or bi-monthly. This is how we thrive.  The Accelerate the Impact opportunity is a way to help Heartfelt Music Ministry start fresh by paying off the $21,000 debt from the past Christian Guitar and Bass Conferences.  See details below and visit the Indiegogo site for more information.

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My new album, Here & Now, just came out last week!  You can hear excerpts at iTunes, CD Baby, Rapsody, Amazon, and you can order physical CDs at our product page or CD Baby.  I continue to teach about 30 guitar students, lead worship at various churches, and train through workshops.  I’m setting up January events now, so let me know if I can join you or your church in some way.  Wrapping up a semester at Valley Christian School which has been a rewarding ministry experience.  Our Christmas concerts will be all next week, Tuesday through Friday at the California Theatre in San Jose.

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People Matter!

People are what God cares about most (John 3:16).  Even though the schedule seems a bit hectic sometimes, valuing people the way God does makes it all worthwhile. Autumn is here and the pace has really picked up for me.  Waking up at 5:00am is something I may never get used to, but Valley Christian School is a tremendous ministry experience where I daily see God moving.  I have 20 private students in San Jose, Los Altos, and Mount Hermon which I look forward to mentoring each week.  I continue to lead worship at various churches and provide concerts and workshops throughout the Bay Area.  Let me know if you’d like me to come to your church.  For more information, go to the Heartfelt Music website.

My most recent album called Instrumental Guitar Volume 1 is available on iTunes, our product page, as well as other venues (like Rhapsody).  The stories behind the songs are on the Heartfelt Music Blog.

Heartfelt Music Ministry has been carrying a financial burden for a few years now primarily because of the Christian Guitar & Bass Conferences we held for 15 years.  We really can’t do some of the projects and conferences because of this burden and much of the time I spend is donated time.  We have been faithful to pay toward this burden each month and will have it completely paid off in 18 months.  For now we are greatly limited because of it.  The next eNewsletter will include an opportunity for you to help.  Thank you for your prayers!

New Here and Now Album

I’m still progressing on a new album called Here and Now.  Three songs can be viewed on my You Tube Channel (Similar versions that are on the album): Worthy & So Wonderful, You Are My God, and Here and Now. I’m writing a new song called Calm Down which is replacing the song He’s Alive.  The songs are developing very nicely. Six of them are completed, but I need to put the finishing touches on the other four.  I’m not sure when this new album will be released because of current financial limitations. All of the recording has been done on the Roland VS-1680 shown above.

Music Training at VCS

Ministry at Valley Christian Schools is thriving!  In the High School, I’m teaching two worship bands, a music technology course, a beginning guitar and bass course, and private guitar lessons.  In Junior High, I’m leading the worship band and teaching private guitar lessons.  In the Elementary school, I just began an after-school course for beginning guitarists called Guitar For Fun (As you can see in the picture above).  Mentoring and empowering these students to serve God through music is a passion of mine that is so fulfilling.

Music in the Mountains

Last Saturday, I did a concert for the community off of Summit Road in the Los Gatos mountains.  The view was beautiful as we had a BBQ dinner before I sang.  Many of the people had lost their homes in the fire a few years back and still are struggling to get back to normal.  I shared about God’s deep love for them and how I’ve experienced Jesus through a number of tough situations.  It was an encouraging evening as 30 of us were packed into the living room.

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Shine Like the Sun!

The sun is shining here on the coast of Northern California.  I hope you are enjoying your summer and getting time to relax!  I have a couple of weeks left of summer making the best use of my time to balance vacation and exciting projects.  I am preparing to let Jesus shine this fall as I’m working on a new album called Here & Now, a new eBook called Leading Worship Effectively, and a new Guitar and Bass Course for Valley Christian High School. Please pray that God would use these tools for His work and His glory.

Challenging & Relevant Private Lessons

This fall, I’ll be holding private lessons in Los Altos, San Jose, and Mount Hermon.  Now is the time to sign up as we’ll begin August 19th.  Lessons are available on Skype and FaceTime as well.  Each lesson is filled with personal intensive education following your goals and specific interests.  A Lesson Summary Video is recorded at the end of each lesson for you to download (usually within 48 hours) to have audio and visual examples to remember the assignment.  You will receive a Private Assignment Page (which is password protected) for details of each assignment.

Music Training & Concert in Brentwood

On Sunday, August 4, I’ll be leading Leading Worship Effectively & Team Building workshop.  This three hour dynamic workshop for musicians and leaders is designed to develop the skill of the musicians and leaders, enhance the corporate singing of the church, expand understanding of group worship dynamics, motivate a lifestyle of intimate worship, inspire confidence and expression, and build “team” unity with good communication.  Workshop at 3:00pm and Concert with Band at 7:00pm.  All the informaion, registration and cost for each workshop is found by clicking HERE. All these workshops will take place in the main auditorium at Brentwood Bible Fellowship in Brentwood.

New Album, Here & Now

I am working on a new album that has both vocal and guitar on it.  It’s almost completed.  Songs that have not been recorded such as Worthy & So Wonderful (you can check it out on YouTube), Flame, Wings to Fly, You Are My God, and Sherri My Love.  I will also have some songs that have shaped my life such as Make My Life a Prayer, Water Grave, and He Is Alive.  Plus, the album Confidence is discontinued, so I will redo 2 of my songs from that album. You can view two of my song on YouTube.com here:

• Here and Now https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_Jg6UjuvxHc
• You Are My God https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5kW-Hgnu26Y

Coming Events

August 4  (Sunday)

Leading Worship at Community Presbyterian Church in Danville (Sanctuary). Services are Sunday, 9:00am and 10:45am.

August 4 (Sunday)
Holding the Leading Worship Effectively and Team Building workshop at Brentwood Bible Fellowship in Brentwood (3:00pm-6:00pm): Find more information and registration by clicking HERE.

August 4 (Sunday)
Worship concert with band at 7:00pm at Brentwood Bible Fellowship in Brentwood.

August 18  (Sunday)
Leading Worship at First Baptist Church in Watsonville. Service is Sunday at 9:30am.

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Summer Is Here!

The weather is beautiful and summer is in the air.  Barbeques, beach days, family fun, movies with friends, time to catch up on things, summer is an exciting time we’ve been looking forward to.  I just finished up a year at Valley Christian School which was a tremendous ministry experience.  Leading the Worship Bands for Jr. High & High School, Coordinating the Chapels, and teaching Music Technology and Cadet Band kept me busy.  Now, it’s come to a screeching halt and I have some time to read, relax, record, and do things I’ve put off for some time.  I hope your summer is off to a good start and you get extra time to be refreshed and renewed.  For a personal update on my family, go to the Heartfelt Music Blog.

Check out what’s happening in the columns below which are significant events for June.  I’m working on a new album which I wasn’t sure whether to call Flame or So Wonderful.  I think I’ve settled on Here & Now which is a line in the song Wings to Fly:  “Here and now I need You to live out Your life in me…”  It refers to the new covenant lifestyle where Jesus empowers us to live life to the full as He lives through us.  I will be sharing these songs in concerts throughout the Bay Area this summer.  Let me know if you’d like me to set something up in your area.  I’ll be in Morgan Hill Sunday June 30th and Brentwood Sunday August 4.

The album called Instrumental Guitar Volume 1 is out on iTunes, our product page, as well as other venues (like Rhapsody).  It has a variety of styles with beautiful guitar techniques.  You can listen to excerpts of each song at iTunes.com or CDBaby.com and purchase individual songs if you’d like.  Or you can get the whole album at this link at a discount:  Click this link to purchase & download
Instrumental Guitar Volume 1.  The stories behind the songs are on the Heartfelt Music Blog.

Leading Worship at Redwood Chapel

This Sunday, I’ll be leading worship at Redwood Chapel Community Church in Castro Valley.  I was on staff with them for a year ago as the Worship & Arts Director until I took the full-time position at Valley Christian School.  It will be good to be back and see people again and encourage them in Christ.  They are in a four week teaching series on the Holy Spirit.  They are at 19300 Redwood Rd, Castro Valley, CA 94546 if you get a chance to come join me.

Music Training in Los Altos

On Saturday, June 22, I’ll be leading three intensive guitar workshops specifically developed for your skill level.  Each workshop will be 2 hours long.  You will receive the book The New Complete Guitarist and will be able to play “hands-on” for the whole time.  On Saturday, June 29, I’ll be leading four intensive music workshops specifically developed for your interest.  You are welcome to attend all of them.  Each workshop will be 1 and 1/2 hours long. Creative Songwriting, Worship Infusion, Improving Your Singing, and Leading Worship Effectively. For details and more information, registration and cost for each workshop, click HERE. All these workshops will take place in the choir room at Bridges Community Church in Los Altos.

New Album

I am working on a new album that has both vocal and guitar on it.  Songs that have not been recorded yet such as Worthy & So Wonderful (you can check it out on YouTube), Flame, Wings to Fly, You Are My God, and Sherri My Love.  I will also have some songs that have shaped my life such as Make My Life a Prayer, Water Grave, and He Is Alive.  Plus, there are two albums that will no longer be available Here to Worship and Confidence, so I will redo 4 of my songs from those albums.  Pray that the recording, mixing, and mastering process will go as fast as it did for my instrumental album.

I’m very excited to announce that the Instrumental Guitar Volume 1 album is now available!  It’s available on this site (of course) under Products, but also 20 different online venues including iTunes and CD Baby (You can hear an excerpt from each song on either of these two sites).

Though I majored in Vocal Performance in college, the guitar was the instrument I was known for.  I have recorded 13 albums (Living In Jesus, No Greater Love, Take It to Heart, Radically Committed, Shout for Joy, Sing to the Lord, A New Song, Heartfelt Celebration, Intimacy, Confidence, A Christmas Gift, Heartfelt Praise, and Here to Worship), but this 14th album is my first instrumental one.  My sons were getting on my case for not recording for awhile and convinced me to start this project.  I hope you enjoy it!

This album has a variety of styles with a variety of guitar techniques.  I wrote five of the songs and five of them were written by others.  The acoustic guitar I use is a Taylor 815ce and the Electric-Synth guitar is a Godin LGXT.  Here’s some of the details about each song:

• You Drive – This song is upbeat and jazzy which is great to keep me awake while driving in the car.  The rhythm is acoustic guitar and the solo sections go back and forth between the electric guitar (Santana  style) and the saxophone sound from the Godin synth (using a Roland GR-30).  The solos are improvised.  The title You Drive is a prayer allowing God to be in control of my life.
• Tenacious – The word tenacious means to keep going and not back down.  I use a capo on this song which is on the second fret, but has the second string open.  This gives an unusual tuning and offers harmonies a little different than normal.  I also use an E-Bow which is like an electronic bow, vibrating the strings magnetically.  There is a lot of the rhythmic “tapping” technique in this song.  I use a looping device to be able to play multiple guitar parts in a live situation.
• Freedom’s Challenge – This song tells a story of an unfortunate experience I went through.  God gives us a strong sense of joy and freedom in our new life in Christ, but sometimes hard things happen in life that disrupt and challenge that joy and freedom.  Whether the loss of a loved one, the betrayal of a friend, or a difficult experience at work, sometimes hard things happen.  Healing and comfort needs to take place which happens over time.  But God is faithful and through a message, a song, a book, or a friend, we begin to feel the joy and freedom again God intended us to experience.
• Remember – This is a slower reflective song which has improvised soloing throughout.  Often, this song fits well during communion which is when we remember Jesus and the sacrifice He made on our behalf.  I also use a looping device on this song.  As I was recording this song, I broke a fingernail and had to buy some fake nails in order to get a consistent sound.
• Morning Come Lately – There have been times in my past when getting out of bed in the morning was pretty difficult.  This song tells the story of such a morning.  The alarm would go off and I’d snooze for a while just dreaming about the day.  Suddenly, I’d notice how late it was, jump out of bed, rush to get ready and finally slam the door to get on my way.  This song is in the open tuning of DADDAD.
• Del’s Bells – This song by Phil Keaggy is in “Dropped D” tuning (DADGBE).  There is a luthier (guitar maker), Del Langejans, who is friends with Phil Keaggy.  He made a guitar for him and Phil used it for half of the songs on his Acoustic Sketches album.  One of the songs Phil wrote on this guitar was Del’s Bells.  Though the first part follows exactly what Phil does, the second part is more improvised with some variation.  There is a lot of the rhythmic “tapping” technique in this song too, hence the title “Bells.”
• Carolan’s Draught – This Irish song was written by Turlough O’Carolan in the 1700’s, a popular blind harpist touring extensively throughout Ireland.  This song has a capo on the fifth fret and uses the common DADGAD alternate tuning.
• Don’t Get Around Much Anymore – Written by Duke Ellington in the 1930’s, this song is considered a jazz classic.  It has a nice “swing” feel to it and incorporates some challenging finger-style voicings and chords.
• Jesu, Joy of Man’s Desiring – This song was written by Johann Sebastian Bach in the 1700’s and is considered a classical standard, often played at weddings and special events.
• Amazing Grace – This song, written by John Newton, is probably the most popular gospel song in the world.  In this arrangement, I use the electric guitar with a Jimmy Hendrix style.  It’s a really fun version, but different than what you’re used to.

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