The John Payne Music Center is a non-profit music school founded in 1979 dedicated to providing high quality, caring, and patient instruction to all ages and skill levels with an emphasis on increasing musical enjoyment as well as ability.
John has over three decades of teaching experience and is a graduate of Harvard University, B.A. cum laude in philosophy.
With more than 40,000 lessons under his belt, he especially enjoys teaching complete beginners how to play and musicians of any level (or instrument!) how to improvise.
You can read about John's philosophy of music teaching by clicking here for his short article "Reversing the Dwindling Spiral of Musical Enjoyment".
John has played with Bonnie Raitt (on her Give It Up album and on tour) and with Van Morrison (live and on his legendary Astral Weeks album --- Astral Weeks was named third greatest album of all-time by the London Times in the 1990's, 19th greatest by Rolling Stone in 2003, and sixth greatest singer-songwriter album of all time by Amazon.com in 2009).
John also performed and/or recorded with Phoebe Snow, David Bromberg, Michael Franks, Leon Redbone, Maria Muldaur, Robert Ellis Orrall, and Noel Stookey (Noel is Paul of Peter, Paul, and Mary). He has appeared many times on national television, including an appearance with Bonnie Raitt on Saturday Night Live and with Phoebe Snow on Johnny Carson, Don Kirschner's Rock Concert, and Midnight Special.
John has released three albums under his own name on major labels, and has played nationally and locally for over thirty years. He was voted best Boston-area jazz band by Boston Magazine and nominated best clarinetist in the Playboy jazz poll.
With more than 40,000 lessons under his belt, he especially enjoys teaching complete beginners how to play and musicians of any level (or instrument!) how to improvise.
You can read about John's philosophy of music teaching by clicking here for his short article "Reversing the Dwindling Spiral of Musical Enjoyment".
John has played with Bonnie Raitt (on her Give It Up album and on tour) and with Van Morrison (live and on his legendary Astral Weeks album --- Astral Weeks was named third greatest album of all-time by the London Times in the 1990's, 19th greatest by Rolling Stone in 2003, and sixth greatest singer-songwriter album of all time by Amazon.com in 2009).
John also performed and/or recorded with Phoebe Snow, David Bromberg, Michael Franks, Leon Redbone, Maria Muldaur, Robert Ellis Orrall, and Noel Stookey (Noel is Paul of Peter, Paul, and Mary). He has appeared many times on national television, including an appearance with Bonnie Raitt on Saturday Night Live and with Phoebe Snow on Johnny Carson, Don Kirschner's Rock Concert, and Midnight Special.
John has released three albums under his own name on major labels, and has played nationally and locally for over thirty years. He was voted best Boston-area jazz band by Boston Magazine and nominated best clarinetist in the Playboy jazz poll.
