Guitar, Drum, Bass, Piano
Robert Cooney began his musical studies at a young age, taking saxophone lessons and reading music beginning in elementary school. His family has a long and rich musical history, and Robert was inspired to pursue percussion by his grandfather, a professional drummer who was in the house band at the 500 Club in Atlantic City and worked alongside stars like Dean Martin, Frank Sinatra and many others. Under his grandfather's tutelage, Robert became an exceptional drummer. He began playing drums in a hard rock band while in eighth grade, and by the next year he was performing publicly. He soon picked up the guitar as well, and fell in love with the instrument.
Robert began taking guitar very seriously, playing and performing in several bands. While attending and completing his degree in Education, Robert also enjoyed a career as a professional BMX rider and started a band with his teammate. Their band performed at a wide variety of venues up and down the east coast, from Pawtucket, Rhode Island down to the Outer Banks, North Carolina. They also enjoyed a tenure as house band at the Khyber in Olde City, Philadelphia, and had several of their songs featured in BMX videos that were sold all around the world.
Throughout his journey, Robert had always had a desire to teach, and continually looked for opportunities to do so. He began giving private lessons, and eventually started teaching multiple instruments as a senior instructor at a local music school. He quickly found teaching music to be an incredibly rewarding endeavor. Robert loves teaching and values the importance of passing music on to younger generations, considering this a fulfillment of his family's musical legacy. He has taught students of all ages, from children as young as three up through adults.
In Robert's words, "I get a thrill when I see my students become musicians. There's nothing like it, not even playing on stage." He takes music seriously, but also keeps his lessons enjoyable, engaging, and low-pressure. After all, music is meant to be fun!