Philadelphia Neighborhoods » Blog Archive » Fishtown: Making Harmony

by fa0909fishtown

But one of them is a teacher, and the other two are students.

As the rehearsal room opens, it’s clear that this is no ordinary classroom. And this is no ordinary music class. There’s an overstuffed couch against one wall and a stage on the opposite end of the room. A drum set takes up most of the stage, leaving room for a few microphones and amplifiers. Daniel Cullen and his students begin to set up the stage and begin tonight’s class.

Cullen stands by his students on the stage, listening to their chord progressions and vocal pitches. His two students, Bill Johnson and Lou Filippone, from the singer/songwriter class are performing Bruce Springsteen’s “Atlantic City.”  The acoustic guitars fill the room with vibrant sound as they play, taking cues from Cullen.

Cullen is taking a different approach to music education. The goal of Cullen’s themed rock band classes is to get his students familiar with the material, and then to play together as a band. “I worked a lot of music schools in the area and I always kind of thought to myself, ‘I can do this a little bit better,’” says Cullen. “There are different points I like to emphasize with teaching that I’m not allowed to at these schools.”

Passionate about his idea, he formed Rawk U in Fall of 2008. “I always wanted to bring that next level of education to the

student,” says Cullen. “I couldn’t do it if I wasn’t working for myself.”

Cullen has the positive attitude that anyone can hope for in a teacher, and it stays with him. “I think that I can teach anybody to play the guitar,” says Cullen. “I’ve never come in contact with someone who I couldn’t teach.”

Cullen’s patience in teaching stems from a background of being in the student’s seat. When he was younger he took about six years of private guitar lessons, and later went to the Berklee College of Music in Boston.

Music education is an important part of American society. It not only teaches individuals how to interact with others but it helps brain function as well. Musicians are constantly changing tempo, tone and rhythm.

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