Lincoln player teaches the blues online
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BY JEFF KORBELIK / Lincoln Journal Star
David Boye has no trouble performing in front of a crowd.
The longtime Lincoln guitarist does it often, whether he’s playing bass for Charlie Burton & the Dorothy Lynch Mob at The Zoo or backing up karaoke singers at Duffy’s Tavern.
He also teaches individual and group lessons at Dietze Music.
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But when he tried to video himself performing … the cool rock musician suddenly became a nervous Nellie.
“I’ve never been on camera before and I was feeling a little self-conscious about it,” he said. “Playing in public is different.”
But he got over it, thanks in part to friend Fred Stuart, Haymarket Theatre executive and artistic director.
Stuart helped Boye prepare an audition video for WorkshopLive.com, a video Web site where subscribers can learn to play guitar, keyboard, drums and bass.
Not long after submitting his tape,WorkshopLive contracted Boye to teach several segments on blues guitar.
Boye is the only Nebraskan among the 50-plus teachers on the site, which soon will include such big names as Joe Satriani, the Christian rock band Mercy Me and jazz great George Benson.
“I found his presentation to be quite enjoyable and very informative,” said Nat Gunod, WorkshopLive’s chief content officer. “He managed to be informative without being pedantic or dry.”
WorkshopLive launched its online instruction in 2005. It offers subscribers — one month costs $29.95 — lessons in several music styles, including acoustic, rock, blues or jazz at any skill level. There are also seminars on music theory, classical guitar, bending, slide and more.
It offers more than lessons. WorkshopLive forged a relationship two years ago with Alfred Publishing, giving the Web site access to many popular songs from The Eagles, Green Day, Pink Floyd, Led Zeppelin, George Gershwin, Duke Ellington and more.
“We’re one of the few sites where you can learn a song, and it’s legal,” Gunod said. “There are a lot of renegade sites, and by and large the accuracy is hit or miss. Usually, it’s miss.”
Boye’s tutorials became available earlier this year. He is one of 11 teaching blues guitar. He flew to WorkshopLive’s studios in Pittsfield, Mass., last year to film nearly 50 segments.
His one on slide technique, for example, features the mop-haired Boye in a Zoo Bar T-shirt. He said the shirt caused a bit of controversy.
When he sat down to film, a producer rushed in and told him he had to change, saying they didn’t allow clothing with advertising or writing on it.
Boye told the producer The Zoo was one of the country’s most famous blues bars. He was, after all, teaching a blues lesson. She let it go.
“She was pretty adamant about it, but I convinced her,” he said.
In addition to lessons and songs, the site features biographies on each instructor, which include short Q&As. You can learn about Boye’s first stage performance (as a saxophonist in a high school jazz band), what to look for in a guitar (comfort is important) and what music means to him.
“Music sites on the Internet tend to be boring,” Gunod said. “We tend to require the best from our teachers. David did that. He managed to deliver information that was enjoyable to receive.”
Boye even slips in a few references to his home state during his lessons.
“I explain that cows come from Nebraska farms,” he joked.
Reach Jeff Korbelik at 473-7213 or jkorbelik@journalstar.com.
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