Stephen Dempster has been playing the guitar for over 41 years and teaching it in one form or another for over 30 years. In 1995 he decided to make it official and began his own teaching studio Dempster Guitar Studio.
He has been on faculty with the Maritime Conservatory of Music & Dance, the Canadian Conservatory (Music Stop) and the Long & McQuade Music Education Centre. He was also assistant to Carol VanFeggen of Dalhousie Univerisity in the popular “Guitar & Lute” class.
During his career, Stephen has mentored thousands of students helping them grow their skills as guitar players. For those bound for university music programs, Stephen has successfully coached not only their technical abilities but also the required musicianship skills of ear training, and music theory for entry to these programs.
Dempster Guitar Studio places tremendous value on helping guitarists of any style understand the mechanisms of RHYTHM in their playing-an area of guitar training which receives very little formal attention- visit our BLOG for more on this subject.
“Everything we play is infused with an awareness of rhythm right from day one…”
As a result, Stephen’s motto for the studio is:
“Play it Right! Play for Life”
This simple idea was born of a very significant life event which helped to shape Stephen’s commitment to the teaching of guitar. Really! You should go and read it
When Stephen is not teaching he is spending time writing and composing for his Acoustic band KINGSMERE or studying orchestration or cosmology (Yup! You read that right). If you’re lucky, you might even catch him finishing up a painting or two as well. Does the term “renaissance man” come to mind? He also loves hot tea and just hangin’ with his family peeps.
Don't Strum Another Song Until You've Read This GUIDE!
"I think it's a fairly well-accepted urban legend that strumming will just occur naturally once a guitarist learns a few chords...and while this may be true for some, your teaching is precisely what the rest of us need in order to progress".
