EDUCATION INITIATIVES

MUSIC EDUCATION, EVERYWHERE IT'S NEEDED

This page is the umbrella for everything I do as an educator — a place to stay informed about current and upcoming programs, and to reach out about bringing one to your school, library, or organization. My work as a teaching artist ranges from alternative schools and residential programs to private lessons and college-level coursework, all built on the same belief: music is a craft anyone can learn, and creating something of your own is the fastest way to fall in love with it.

Whether you're a parent looking for lessons, an administrator at a school without a music program, a librarian planning youth programming, or a student headed to the Cherokee Nation Film Institute this fall — you're in the right place. Here's what's happening:

TULSA BOYS' HOME — SONGWRITING & PRODUCTION PROGRAM

An ongoing summer program (seeking funding for Fall) built around music as a healing and therapeutic outlet. Students write, record, and produce their own songs. I bring in synthesizers, ipads and try and focus on methods they can use when they are alone, to begin to write — learning that their voice is worth hearing. I'm actively raising funds and awareness to keep this program growing. If you'd like to support it, visit the Support page or reach out directly in the contact form above.

CHEROKEE NATION FILM INSTITUTE — POST-PRODUCTION SOUND (FALL 2026)
This fall I join CNFI as an instructor, leading the Institute's first ongoing Post-Production Sound course — a 40-credit-hour introduction to the craft behind what you hear on screen: dialogue, sound design, scoring, and the mix. If you're interested in a career in film and television sound, enrollment information is available through the Cherokee Nation Film Institute.

MANY WINDS — SPONSOR A STUDENT

Many Winds is our grassroots scholarship, started by two friends giving $50 a month. It exists for one reason: to completely remove the financial barrier for kids whose families could never realistically afford music lessons. Through our fiscal partner RAFT, $300 buys a student a guitar or bass they keep, plus ten lessons at Noise Town Tulsa — a package worth around $1,000, because we provide lessons at 30% of our public rate. Full transparency, no mystery: a kid gets an instrument and a teacher. And if they're crushing it when the lessons run out, we'll find a way to keep them playing.   

LEARN MORE / /  SPONSOR A STUDENT

SONGWRITING 101
My flagship course, offered for several years as an approved vendor through the Oklahoma Arts Council and Epic Charter Schools. Students learn songwriting as a hands-on craft — no experience required, every skill level welcome. 

RECORDING 101 & SUMMER CAMPS
Camps introducing students to home recording, production, and the modern tools of music-making — including Noise Town Tulsa's summer recording camp and summer school music programs with Tulsa Public Schools.

SCHOOLS, LIBRARIES & COMMUNITY PROGRAMS
I've founded and led creative music programs at Street School (through the bART Foundation), Sapulpa Bartlett Alternative School, and area public libraries — with a focus on places of learning that are often overlooked, especially schools without an existing music program. Through partnerships with the Oklahoma Arts Council, nonprofits, and community sponsors, these programs reach students at minimal or no cost.

PRIVATE LESSONS AT NOISE TOWN TULSA
One-on-one instruction in music theory, songwriting, instruments, home recording, and production at Noise Town Tulsa on historic Route 66 — for beginners, working musicians, and everyone between.

PRIVATE LESSONS & GROUP PROGRAMS AT NOISE TOWN TULSA

One-on-one instruction in music theory, songwriting, instruments, home recording, and production at Noise Town Tulsa on historic Route 66 — for beginners, working musicians, and everyone in between.

But lessons here don't follow the traditional model, where students spend years on drills and scales before they're allowed to make anything of their own. At Noise Town, students start writing and creating from the very beginning. From day one, the goal isn't just learning to play music — it's learning to make it. Theory, technique, and fundamentals all still get taught, but they're taught in service of something the student is actually building: their own songs, their own sound, their own ideas.

That philosophy extends to our group rock band classes, where students learn what it means to play together — writing and arranging as a group, rehearsing like a real band, and working toward performing and recording original material. Think School of Rock, with one important difference: our students don't just cover songs, they create them. Some of the most rewarding moments at Noise Town have been watching a group of kids go from strangers to bandmates to songwriters — walking out with a recording of something that didn't exist before they made it.

It works. Year after year, it's the students who create early who stick with music longest — because from their very first lesson, it was already theirs.

Lessons and group classes are open to all ages and skill levels. To ask about availability, scheduling, or which program fits: dehoward23@gmail.com

BRING A PROGRAM TO YOUR COMMUNITY — OR JUST STAY IN TOUCH
If you're interested in lessons, want a program at your school or library, or would like updates as new programs launch, reach out anytime: dehoward23@gmail.com