Lost your password?

robert-renmanJeff Scheetz, our Director of Education, sat down with Robert Renman to discuss his experience as a TrueFire Educator and winner of TrueFire’s first Next Top Guitar Instructor in 2013. Be sure to check out this year’s competition, which is now open for auditions and nominations, and Robert’s newly-released course, Blues Booster.

How did it feel to win TrueFire’s Next Top Guitar Instructor in 2013?

It was completely fantastic! I didn’t expect I would go very far, since there were so many great instructors in the competition. It was both nerve-racking and exciting to see the standings each week!

What motivated you to enter the competition?

I had followed TrueFire for some time, and I wanted to see if I could be involved as an instructor for TrueFire. Then when the Next Top Guitar Instructor competition came up, that was perfect timing. Entering the competition made me work extra hard on the videos, and it was a lot of fun to be in such a situation.

I am very thankful to TrueFire for all they have done for me – it’s an amazing company. I am also very thankful to all who voted in the competition, and not just the ones who voted for me. I think it’s a great way to discover new guitar instructor talents, and I think in the end, we all benefit from that! You can never have too many great guitar lessons!

Have you gotten a lot of good feedback since you won the competition?

Yes, people have been emailing me and saying they voted for me, and that they are happy I won. I have also been getting positive emails about the course I did – Blues Booster, so I’m very happy about all of this!

What would you say to anyone thinking about auditioning this year?

I would say, go for it! You have nothing to lose, and everything to gain. As an instructor, you will reach a lot of guitar students, regardless of if you win or not. I would also recommend making each video very focused, and I highly recommend tying together all of 5 lessons with a theme. I think that gives students the message that you have the ability to create focused and well structured lessons, which is important for creating good guitar lesson courses.

What was it like going to Florida and recording in the TrueFire Studio?

It was very exciting! The TrueFire team made me feel like a king, and the service, support and encouragement was incredible. You can’t help but feel a bit nervous going into the studio, but hey that’s part of the exciting thing about being in the hot seat. I learned so much during this studio shoot, I can’t wait to do it again! It was a very positive and empowering experience.

What else do you have going on in your musical career?

I’m teaching guitar both in person and on my own website www.masterguitaracademy.com, and I’m in the planning stages for a new TrueFire course. I play in a local band too, which is a nice opportunity to get to perform some of the things I teach. I have also been working on some ideas for my own, first album, although that will probably take quite a while to finish. Still, I’m excited about the idea of getting my own music out there.