Vreny’s Guitar Lessons

Vreny is, in a word — fantastic. I was a 55 year old (emphasis on old) man who hacked around on guitar occasionally as a kid and adult; hadn’t touched the instrument for 10+ years and decided to take lessons. Found a handful of teachers on Google and emailed them; Vreny was the only one who responded in a timely fashion. I went in with very specific ideas of what I wanted to learn (very interested in music theory but didn’t want to learn to read music per se, wanted to learn technique as well as songs, leaned towards progressive and classic rock, interested in electric and acoustic). The lessons I receive are tailored to my specific desires and goals — not a «one-​size fits all» approach that other teachers may use (other teachers — «all my students finish book 1, then move on to book 2, etc». NOT Vreny). Vreny is striving to make me not only a guy who can play guitar, but a guitarist and musician. He is really easy-​going, pleasant, and a lot of fun, but is not the guy who will smile past your imperfections and say «that’s perfect» when it isn’t just to stroke your ego and make you feel good. Yet I never feel belittled or that I need to «perform» for him. THAT’S the kind of teaching I need and the kind of teaching that accelerates improvement. If you just want to learn how to play «Horse With No Name», Vreny can do that (and that’s OK — I’m sure Vreny would accelerate and perfect your learning). If you want to go deep and learn the guitar, this man is fantastic. He is a great player, but great players are pretty common (pretty discouraging thought for someone learning to play). Great players with a great knowledge base AND the ability to teach it — THAT’S rare. Vreny is the man!

Is Vreny a guitar genius? Probably. Did he graduate from Berkely «cumlaude»? That’s what he told me. Does he have «30 – 40 students per week and over 17 years of teaching experience» Quite possibly. Did my drive for learning the guitar completely die after 5 lessons with him? Almost. If you like being whisked in and out the door and being instructed at mach 1 speed in my opinion, so that, in my opinion, he can get to his next student, by all means look no further. Its really a pity because with the great experience and knowledge that Vreny has I was really excited to get the most from him but After 5 lessons I honestly felt like I had been led in the dark blindfolded by a person who used his musical process to try and squeeze every last dime out of me. But i guess I still could’ve saved $ 2010 dollars by buying 100 lessons according to his website ;) Will Vreny give you great tools to improve? Yes. But In my opinion, if you don’t like being spoon fed week by week at his pace & price then i would def suggest a different teacher. Vreny’s lesson plan made me feel dependent on going to him week after week in order to advance. When I asked him for material to study on my own for the next two months he disagreed with me. Which was fine, we could part ways and I would find a different teacher. he handled it so poorly in my opinion, by getting bitter about it and almost started crying. (check your secret video tapes vreny) had he not reacted like this I would not be writing this review. My ego can handle moving on due to having differing opinions with Vreny’s style but when, in my opinion, his ego can’t and he dicides to get all emotional and rude about as I try to leave then this review is what happens. –Blake — — — — UPDATE: after posting this review vreny has since threatened to take me to court if I do not take this review down for slander. He has also threatened to «blacklist» me by reporting his issue with me to all of his friends. Sorry vreny I don’t know how they do it in Belgium but in America we have this thing called the first ammendment which protects my right of freedom of speech. You have not been slandered against. It is extremely unprofessional of you to threaten to take me to court because of a review that resulted from my unpleasant xperience with you. I wouldn’t go back to you if you offered me 500 free lessons. Merry chrIstmas vreny and thx for Your lovely threats. Just because you reacted immaturely and don’t get a 5 star review doesn’t mean you can threaten and SLAP people or persons wiith false claims of slander and lebulous defamation. And To «blacklist» me to all your guitar friends and teachers. I also think its extremely dishonest of you to secretly record videos of me in your house without telling me. Talk about creepy dude. Best of luck to you Vreny, sorry things couldn’t go your way. Take care

Vreny is hands down the best music teacher I have ever had. This includes various colleges and music schools. His approach is unlike anything I have been introduced to before. He integrates theory, technique, and passion together in a way that makes you progress at a rate you never would have dreamed possible. The great thing about Vreny’s teaching style is that, if you are committed, you will emerge more than a great guitarist, you will emerge a musician who understands the amazing language of music. From beginner to pro, this is an amazing and patient teacher. You will never fell rushed with him, because he has a passion for your learning! Thank You Vreny!!!

I write music professionally and have been playing guitar for many years. I was self-​taught and felt I needed to really learn what I was doing as far as theory and to really get my technique together, as I was sure I has plenty of bad habits. I’m not the guy playing Stairway to Heaven or the one shouting, «Let’s jam some blues, man!» at the party, so I wanted a teacher who taught serious guitar and got into the roots of the whole thing so I could basically re-​learn what I was doing from a theory perspective.
I can honestly say that he’s one of the best teachers I’ve had, of any instrument. He’s a bad-​ass musician himself but won’t sit there and show off at all — he really is all about his student. As many others here have said he’s patient, effective, highly organized, and has a method that really pushes you (you should be willing to practice!). I don’t have much of a desire to practice in general, but when I really dig in to what Vreny has me doing I see my playing and theory knowledge skyrocket, truly.
I’m a very experienced musician who does it for a living and Vreny is opening my mind to so many new and challenging things — worth every single penny. He’s serious about what he does and it shows, and he’s a pretty hilarious guy, too. I wouldn’t recommend him if you’re not going to practice at all, as you won’t get out of it what he’s putting in, which is a way to quickly, deeply and effectively improve your guitar playing from multiple angles.
Hell, he’s even patient enough for you to mispronounce his name for weeks.
HIGHLY recommended.

Yes it’s cliché. Vreny rocks. Having studied with more than a few teachers over the years, he is by far my favorite. Fun, fast and very very patient. No matter what you’re into, he seems to have played that too. Basically: you want to play guitar-​go to Vreny

Great teacher and great motivator. I was only able to take 2 lessons with him, but in those 2 lessons he taught me a lot and I still apply them to my practice routine even though I can’t afford guitar lessons right now. As soon as I’m more stable financially, I’m going back to him!

Vreny is without a doubt the finest guitar instructor from whom I have ever had the pleasure of studying. His resume speaks to how learned he is while his work ethic and rehearsal schedule explain much of his mastery — saying nothing of Vreny’s immense natural talent.
Vreny’s teaching style is uniquely his own. It is one that he’s spent years creating and that is based not only in theory and method but in science and intuition as well.
I’ve known Vreny for over six years and have studied with him for more than three. There is a reason why Vreny is booked up all the time. Whenever I go to a lesson I come out feeling charged and elated — no matter how I’ve felt coming in. It’s just that he is so positive and his method of teaching so empowering on the guitar and in life in general that you come out feeling like you can do anything. And with Vreny as your teacher along with regular practice… you can!

If you want to learn guitar fast as well as challenge yourself go see Vreny. Vreny is very patient and can help you no matter what guitar level you are at.
If you are a beginner, Vreny can help you. If you are an expert, Vreny can help you!
Vreny also is familiar with all kinds of music, Rock, Punk, classical you name it! Go see Vreny!
I myself will be back working with Vreny again soon.
Widow

I took lessons with Vreny for about a year, and it was a fantastic experience. I have loved listening to classical guitar all my life, and on a whim I decided to take it up with no previous guitar experience what-​so-​ever (although I played trombone for 12 years). Because of my beginning level, I had a very difficult time finding a teacher who was willing to focus specifically on the classical guitar style. After checking out the local colleges and music schools, I found Vreny online via Craigslist.
Vreny’s teaching method was fantastic. He was patient and flexible. He designed lessons specifically for my individual needs, using both his own materials and a beginning classical guitar book I purchased online and felt comfortable with. And he has a library of really great beginner guitar music that was unlike anything I could find in stores. He let me set my own pace, never pushing me too hard, but always nudging me just enough to make sure I practiced hard each week.
I’m not currently taking lessons with Vreny due to the arrival of a daughter, but I hope to begin lessons again with him again in a few years when life settles down a bit.
Incidentally, don’t think that Vreny only teaches classical guitar. On the contrary, he is a kick-​ass rocker and plays professionally in clubs fairly regularly. That’s what most of his students are learning. If you are interested in finding a teacher in the Hollywood area, you should make Vreny your first call.

Vreny rocks! Not only is he an amazing musician, he is also an excellent teacher. He is extremely effective, organized and patient. He will guide you to your goal no matter what level of player you are. I went to him as an absolute beginner, and he has always been nothing but helpful and encouraging. He’s also not the typical flaky musician. When I was first looking for an instructor, I initially contacted about 8 different teachers. Vreny definitely stood out in his professionalism. Several of the others didn’t even get back to me until weeks later. By that time, I was happily taking lessons with Vreny. He’s not the guy who is gonna cancel or forget about your appointment because he’s hungover or playing a last-​minute gig. I think the main difference is that many other teachers give lessons out of necessity to pay the rent, whereas Vreny has many other projects but is also very committed to his lessons because he truly enjoys teaching. His passion is inspirational, and I always leave my lessons with a renewed excitement about my playing. I would absolutely recommend him to anyone.

Vreny is more than a kick-​ass guitar teacher– he’s a freakin’ saint for putting up with my sorry ass.
I’ve been wanting to get really good at the guitar for a long time. It’s one of the few instruments that has always eluded me (I guess because it requires actual practice for mastery), and that I’ve never been able to get past plunking a few chords out on (because I have no time– and, ok, I’ll admit it– not much of a desire– to practice).
I found Vreny through some quirk of fate, and even though he’s alllll the way out in Hollywood, I decided to write to him and see if he could take another student. Fortunately for me, he could. I worked out a trade with him– I did training and massage on him, and he gave me guitar lessons. He was patient with me (and trust me, teaching me guitar requires A LOT OF PATIENCE), customized the lessons based on how I learn, and gave me stuff I enjoyed playing. Despite my lack of practicing, I was actually progressing. Shocker! After a while, I started taking 2 lessons a week because I wanted to progress faster (and because Vreny is just that cool). I have to say, I did pretty well. It almost made me want to practice more.
Unfortunately, my schedule doesn’t allow me to take guitar lessons any more at the moment. But if I ever get the time again, Vreny is my man. If anyone can get me to be the next female Yngvie Malmstein, it’s Vreny. He’s the bomb-​diggity.