Music filled the hallways of the Wellness Center on Friday morning as people met, guitars in hand, and took time to play together.
The newly formed Tellico Village Guitar Workshop kicked off its first meeting with two sessions — one for beginners and one for advanced players.
Village resident Jack Padgett came up with the idea to form the group.
Guitar workshop
fills a need
“I’ve been taking lessons from Ronnie Raper for a while, so I thought it’d be wonderful to share that,” Padgett said. “We don’t really have an established teacher here to do this. We have every club in the world, except we don’t have this.”
Padgett talked with Raper about the idea of creating and leading the group, and it was something Raper was “excited to teach.”
“I talked with him about teaching a class at first,” Padgett said. “... But after talking about it some, he thought it might be a better idea just to form a workshop group instead of just a class, so I thought that was a cool idea and he jumped on it.”
Raper prefers a group setting over a one-on-one lesson.
“For me, as an instructor, my biggest regret is when somebody calls me, and I do not have a spot available for them,” he said. “I always feel like if someone wants to play, they can. The only thing that would get in the way is not having the time to teach them because that spot’s not open for them.”
With the group setting, Raper says he’s able to teach five to 10 people at a time.
“As many people that want to come, we can teach,” Raper said. “An example today was Jorene Spencer, and she wowed us. A month ago, she didn’t know what the strings were called on the guitar. Today, she played her first song and we clapped and supported her in that setting.”
Inspiration for the group comes from the desire of Padgett and Raper to pass on their knowledge.
“It always makes it worth it all when you see someone who thinks that guitar is beyond them succeed in it,” Raper said. “It’s not about the financial aspect or anything like that to me. It’s about passing everything I know to people and seeing them achieve. Jack and I really believe in that.”
All aspects covered
The group will learn every element possible about playing the guitar, Raper said.
“We’re not going to leave any box unchecked,” Raper said. “If it’s the basics in the beginner’s class, then we’re going to make sure you have firm handle on that. I want them to learn how to finger pick, flat pick and not be genre-limited. With the advanced class, they come with a little bit more knowledge, so we’re just building up on that and going forward. I’m also learning from them just as they are from me.”
Due to growing interest from Villagers, Padgett is looking to continue the group for years to come.
‘Want to keep on doing’
“This is absolutely something we want to keep on doing,” he said.
“We first did this as a workshop because we weren’t sure if there’d be enough interest to sustain it,” Raper said. “I think everyone is enjoying it and they’re really just enjoying being around each other. When Jorene played that song, that felt like a victory for all of us. Nobody is in this by themselves.”
The group will meet 10 a.m.-noon Fridays. The group will gather this week at Chota Recreation Center, but future meetings will be at the Yacht Club.
For more information, contact Jack Padgett at 865-458-0161 or rich8899@charter.net.
