Hamrock Music

Mark is not only an outstanding guitar teacher, he is an excellent song writer. If you’re looking to put your thoughts/ideas into lyrics, Mark is your guy.

Mark is an exceptional instructor, and an all around wonderful human being.

I had been playing guitar without any real structure for almost 15 years before I decided to buckle down and actually learn the correct way. I was initially pretty nervous about the whole endeavor.. I didn't want the way that someone taught me to negatively affect my creative process or ideas, but it was immediately clear after a few lessons that Mark was not that kind of instructor. He goes well out of his way to clearly explain things to you in the level of detail that you are looking for going as deep or shallow as you feel comfortable or are willing to. It's clear that he is an oasis of knowledge, from theory to application, has years of experience in many forms of music, and genuinely wants to constructively share that with others.

Within these last two years I went from being able to play almost nothing but bad renditions of Metallica and Megadeth songs to understanding chord structure, key structure, improvisation in many different styles, structured practice routines that are engaging and fun, and ultimately completely shaping my own musical voice. I honestly can't thank Mark enough for everything that he has done for me up to this point, and I am extremely excited to see where the rest of the journey takes me. If you are in Southern California and looking for a music instructor at any level, for any style of music, I can not recommend Hamrock Music enough. Take the dive, you wont regret it.

Mark's greatest strength is his flexibility and ability to tailor his teaching approach to exactly what his student wants to learn. I came to Mark with what I assumed was a common complaint from guitar players - hitting a plateau and wanting to unlock the fundamentals of improvisation, soloing and song-writing. I've been impressed with how effectively Mark combines music theory with practical applications and examples from your own favorite music, no matter the style. He's structured, organized, clear in his communication, and really excited about sharing his knowledge with his students. I highly recommend him for guitar players of any level.

As a left-handed guitar player, I did a lot of research to find an instructor who could help me switch to right-handed play, and also give me a more structured music education. So happy I found Mark. I have been taking guitar lessons from Mark a little over a year. He is a highly skilled, well-educated instructor who is incredibly patient and proficient in determining my specific needs as a student. Not only does he provide instruction according to what I want to learn, but he has a keen ability to suggest exercises, playing styles, music theory, and songs, perfectly tailored for my improvement.
Mark is an accomplished musician, no doubt expertly suited to instruct students at any level - Highly Recommend Hamrock Music Instruction!

My son has been taking lessons with Mark for 15 months and is advancing at an impressive rate. Mark is incredibly talented and educated in a wide variety of styles, which we love because my son didn't have an idea which style to focus on. Mark is excellent at customizing lessons & songs according to his student's interest and ability, as well as coming up with a plan to include a variety of skills and styles for those students with unknown goals. We love the structure Mark gives my son, but also love his gifted flexibility to create music notes by ear for songs that we ask to learn (when there are no online notes). We are so thankful to have found Mark, and to be exposed to such great talent.