NEW ALBUM FULL CIRCLE STREAMING NOW!
New England Music Awards Nominee -
Jazz Artist Of the year
“It’s exploratory, inventive, and it grooves…
sounds damn fun to play.” - Redline Roots
“pure joy” - Skope Mag
“Masterclass in Subtle Shredding” - Postcard Elba
Artist Bio
Originally from the piedmont of North Carolina, Hayes Cummings is a Richmond VA based guitarist, improviser, composer, and educator. He is interested in and inspired by the American styles of jazz, bluegrass, rock and folk music.
Hayes is composer and arranger for his group, The Still Point, playing jazz and rock-n-roll influenced original compositions. He is also a regular sideman and has played gigs across the United States. Hayes tours with the band Cordis, of which Billboard Magazine said, “Cordis sets itself apart through sparkling moments that defy classification.”
Hayes is a committed educator who maintains a private studio and is on faculty at Greater Richmond School of Music. He brings unique offerings to his students as he is also a certified Alexander Technique teacher and a student of mind body studies. Hayes holds a bachelors degree in classical guitar performance from Appalachian State University and a masters degree in Jazz and Contemporary studies at Longy School of Music. He trained in the Alexander Technique under Tommy Thompson at the Cambridge Center for Alexander Technique.
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TESTIMONIALS
“Hayes’ lessons have helped me enormously. I picked up the guitar as an adult, and Hayes has been flexible in using tunes and material that fit my interests and skill level. In addition to coaching me through specific songs, he’s worked with me on music theory and musicianship, while teaching me fresh approaches to blues and jazz improvisation. He knows classical, bluegrass, rock, and jazz. Plus, he’s smart, funny, and appropriately demanding.”
“I sought out Hayes as a guitar teacher because of a pinched nerve that was limiting my playing. I figured he would be sensitive to my issue because of his Alexander Technique experience. The guitar lessons improved my playing substantially, but the most amazing thing has been the Alexander Technique lessons. After a couple months of AT lessons the pain and numbness, which I had for more than a decade, was almost completely gone. I have had a significant and lasting reduction in my discomfort ever since, both in my guitar playing and in everyday life.”
“Hayes is a complete virtuoso guitarist. Any kind of music—jazz, classical, rock, country, atonal modern—and all sorts of effects, which I can’t begin to describe. When he plays something I’m trying to learn, it inspires me to work harder at it. I have studied music all my life, and had a lot of teachers, and Hayes is exceptional. He is responsible, respectful, supportive, forgiving, knowledgeable and fun. . He is absolutely the best guitar teacher anyone, young or old, will ever find.”
“I have deeply appreciated Hayes’ creative and engaging teaching style. He’s not formulaic; he really engaged me on my goals and then crafted a plan around them. He also has pushed me to think in different ways about my journey to become a more conscious musician. ”
Contact
Hayes Cummings
Richmond VA, 23220
hchayescummings@gmail.com