Music School

Word of Life Music School offers programs and instruction to children and adults, giving them an opportunity to mold and shape the musical gifts God has placed within them.

CLICK HERE TO DOWNLOAD FORMS FOR 2010–2011 ENROLLMENT

Bryan Dumas

Bryan has been a lifelong lover of music and a bass player since he was 13. Bryan quickly became involved in bands and by the end of high school was a working musician. Many years of traveling with bands, leading bands as well as working in other areas of the music industry followed. He rededicated his life to Jesus in 2001 when he moved to Shreveport and began attending Word Of Life and soon joined the Praise and Worship team as the bass player. In 2004 he became the Band Director and this year also becomes the Director of the Music School.

Bass Lessons
Playing the bass guitar has many facets; from the melodic to the rhythmic it is a wonderfully unique instrument. More than just going through a lesson book, (We use the Hal Leonard Bass Method) you’ll gain knowledge from a longtime bass players perspective. You’ll not only learn the notes, rhythms, scales etc… but also the practical side of learning songs by ear, the drum bass relationship, instrument care, setup and more. The goal is to produce a well-rounded musician with a working, useful knowledge of the instrument and music. 

Anna Park

Anna began playing the piano around the age of 10 and has been playing for over 20 years. Anna took private lessons for several years before studying piano and voice at Institute For The Arts in Austin, Texas where she graduated with a bachelors degree in Worship Ministry. She has been playing, singing and teaching at Word of Life for 5 years.

Piano Lessons
Piano classes are geared toward giving students a well rounded and complete knowledge of the piano. Students will learn to play by ear as well as read notes so they will have thorough understanding of theory and the ability to communicate with other musicians. Classses use the Alfred books along with chord charts to songs that are familiar from church that will help students develop their own style. Classes are designed to allow the student to learn and grow at each ones skill level by having small setting of 2 to 4 per class.

Vocal Lessons
Vocal classes offer more than a few tips in singing. Classes are designed to teach the student how to breath properly, maintain vocal health, sight read, good rhythm, as well as blending and harmonizing. Using a series of vocal work outs, songs, breathing and theory exercises will teach you how to improve overall sound as well as develop, good, healthy singing habits for vocal longevity.

Don Opperman

Audio Engineer/Guitar Instructor
Don is House Engineer at WOL. He mixes the sound for each service.
He has been mixing audio (sound) professionally for (30) thirty years. He loves to teach audio and guitar.
Don brings to the classroom many years of experience as an Audio Engineer/Consultant sound systems design and installation, room acoustic treatments.
In addition, he is has been playing guitar for 46 years. He has been a guitar technician 40 years from maintenance and repairs to the actual building of guitars.

Guitar Lessons
Don focuses on basic chords, scales, rhythm and lead.
Anyone with a desire to learn can play a guitar. I offer guitar instructions for beginner to advanced level.

Sound Class
1st and 3rd Tuesday of the month from 7 - 8:30PM.
This class begins September 7, 2010
Interested students can fill out an Music School enrollment form available at the Information center or on line at the W.O.L. web site and indicate Sound Class.

Ryan Hoechten

At the age of 21, Ryan acquired his very first drum set, fully equipped with a laundry basket as a snare stand, a 5 gallon bucket for a stool, cymbals that appeared to have been previously used by a medieval soldier as a shield in battle and one pair of drum sticks held together with duct tape. And so his musical endeavor began. Within a short time, he successfully auditioned for a
band for the first time. Over the next few years he played for multiple bands,
each having a unique style ranging from punk rock, jam band, blues, country and even a Latin-heavy-metal-funk band (if that makes any sense). Thus providing opportunities to play clubs, parties, charities and the notorious 6th St. It did not take long for him to realize that his gifting, though freely given, came with a greater responsibility. At the age of 24, Ryan made a decision to devote his life and giftings to God. Soon after, he attended Institute for the Arts in Austin, TX, where he acquired a Bachelors degree in Music Ministry with a focus on percussion and an Associates of Theology. Since the age of 24, Ryan has had the opportunity to tour and record with multiple Grammy and Dove award winning artists, as well as having lead worship in churches from Seattle, Washington to Tampa Bay, Florida. With 11 years playing experience and 6 years teaching experience coupled with a love for God, a passion for music, and an enjoyment of imparting what his experience has brought him, he has become a well rounded musician and instructor.

Drum Lessons
Ryan's teaching style is as quoted "I teach people the lessons I wish I had been taught and in the manner in which I wish they had been taught to me". Ryan's class is focused on fundamentals, mechanics, and creativity geared to each student's current experience, while attempting to provide a fun environment in which to learn to play an instrument.