Star of the Small Ads - Mark Checkley, Guitar Master

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E.PURSLOW & SON LTD
Stone, Gravel, Cement Supplies
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Calor Gas Stockist
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Mark with jazz guitar, one of his
favourites in the collection.
There was no music on the
curriculum at Mark Checkleys
school, but that didnt stop him
saving up to buy his first
guitar. Today hes a full time
professional, his time divided
between teaching and playing
with a variety of bands and in
the theatre.
Two days a week for the
Solihull Music Service. You can
have as many as 30 kids in an
ensemble, its chaos but great
fun. Ive got students playing
in bands who couldnt play at
all when they came to me.
Fun with a serious side; he has
students going on to university
to study the guitar: If you
have a Grade 6 certificate or
above, it carries UCAS points
towards university entry.
Mark can offer tuition in any
style, from classical through to
rock, confirmed by the range of
instruments in the study where
he gives private lessons. Some
students move from classical to
rock, others come into
classical.
His own professional
playing covers a wide range
too. He gets theatre work,
arriving at the venue and
playing with sometimes little
or no rehearsal, a measure of
every players experience. His
ability to move easily from one
style to another brings him
work with bands, and more
recently hes twinned up with
a mean saxophone player to
play jazz. Hes very fond of
that free thinking music and
chooses his jazz guitar when he
poses for a photo.
How do his private pupils
divide up between professional
and pleasure players? Most of
them play just for pleasure, but
Ive got a lad studying theory
to go to Hereford College. He
has Grade 6 on the electric
guitar and plays an in a local
band.
As a professional guitarist,
does he still enjoy playing?
Its brilliant, I still love it. Ive
done a lot of things, been an
HGV driver and electrician,
but after 17 years as a full time
teacher I wouldnt do anything
else.
To cap it, he moved from the
West Midlands to Stottesdon.
Escaping the city, as he puts
it. If you have a fancy to learn
the guitar, his experience and
quiet rural retreat would be
very hard to beat.
The Cleobury Clarion - April 2014 - Page 17