Guitar Students: Testimonials
I have become sort of a legacy instructor at the Swannanoa Gathering’s Guitar Week, missing only three Gatherings over the past twenty years.
I was humbled to find out in 2014 that my classes closed out within minutes of the opening of on-line registration and have always carried long waiting lists.
I read all my student evaluations. Here are a few of them along with other responses to my teaching.
– Scott Ainslie
Student Evaluations
John Gorka
Scott Ainslie was generous with his time and gave me a short lesson on slide-guitar. I think I learned more in twenty minutes with Scott than I had in a […]
Scott’s Right Hand’s From Krypton!
“Scott isn’t pretending to be a black bluesman. But the way he tells the stories of the people who made those songs, lets him present those songs in the voices […]
Montclair NJ Guitar Workshop 9/10/2016
Yesterday, I attended (as a student), a Scott Ainslie acoustic blues workshop that I helped to organize. Here’s a few thoughts about that: The guitar is a fiendishly simple and […]
An Important Teacher and Protagonist
Ainslie is a beautiful stylist who respects the country blues and acoustic blues music, feels it deep down to his soul, and understands its essence. He is not just an […]
Old Blues and Southern Musical Traditions
Ainslie is one of the most important cultural protagonists of the old blues and Southern musical traditions.
The Best Guitar Instruction I’ve Had
Your Mississippi John Hurt class at the Summer Acoustic Music Week (SAMW) this year has turned out to be some of the best guitar instruction I’ve had thus far. I […]
No Ordinary Blues Musician
Ainslie is no ordinary Blues musician. Not hardly. He has delved into the music and its history and doesn’t mind sharing it. – “Year’s 10 Best Jazz & Beyond,” Pittsburgh, […]
Play and Understand Robert Johnson
If you are one of the many frustrated bluesmen who have considered selling your soul to the devil in exchange for the ability to play like Robert Johnson, stop right […]
Head And Shoulders Above Any Other Collection
Scott Ainslie has taken on the monumental task of transcribing all of Robert Johnson’s recorded blues songs and succeeded with flying colors…Robert Johnson/At The Crossroads, (Hal Leonard, 1992) stands head […]
Exceptional Ability To Play and Teach
Ainslie has the exceptional blend of ability to play and teach, with the willingness to do so.
Magical in Both Song and Storytelling
We truly enjoyed your time here and the schools cherished your outreach. Your blues workshop scored a major impression on the guitarists from all over the West Georgia region. The […]
An Extraordinary Teacher and a Gifted Musician
Ainslie is truly an extraordinary teacher and a gifted musician. The things I learned from him, rhythm and right hand technique, slide technique, riffs, and some of the secrets of […]
Tied to the Life and Work of Robert Johnson
During his career, Ainslie has become particularly tied to the life and work of late bluesman Robert Johnson, whose legend states that he sold his soul to the devil at […]
Passionate, Knowledgeable, Engaging
What a passionate, knowledgeable, engaging instructor. Scott really helped break bad habits and instill the kind of right hand discipline necessary for playing this kind of music (Blues). I wish […]
Brilliant
A brilliant musician and wonderful person, Ainslie is informative, well-prepared, and very encouraging. Class was great.
What A Teacher!
Excellent – what a teacher! In addition to wonderful singer, guitar player, etc. he genuinely cares about his class – each person. That is the feeling he exudes. And Scott […]
Exceptional Ability to Play & Teach
Ainslie has the exceptional blend of ability to play and teach, with the willingness to do so. He gave me new physical abilities and tools to develop at home.
Frighteningly Incisive
One of the finest musical instructors I’ve known. Scott’s suggestions to help improve guitar accompaniment in all our songs were frighteningly incisive and I was very pleased with it. This […]
He Is The Best!
I have been a student of Scott’s at Augusta and I think he is the best! Class is demanding, but the presentation is non-threatening and punctuated with good humor. Seeing […]
The Heartbeat of the Blues Program
Scott is the heartbeat of the Blues program. A humble giant of the Blues who shares his soul in class. An excellent teacher and a superb human being. Class was […]