Shapesounds LLC provides flexible, personalized, in-home music lessons and music therapy to people of all ages and abilities in the San Francisco East Bay.

Founder James Crocker has worked for over 30 years with hundreds of students in private practice, as well as through Arabesque Conservatory, the Community School of Music & Arts, and Devon Youth Music.

All sessions begin with the goals and needs of the student in mind, with flexiblity for changing energy levels, emotional state and interest. Whether the focus is on musical development, personal expression, mood regulation, or physical movement the student will always find a positive and encouraging environment.

With such a wide variety of needs, strategies can vary greatly, from student to student, session to session and moment to moment. Sometimes the best approach is the structure of traditional music lessons, with their emphasis on technique, and repertoire. Other times call for an informal jam session, where improvisation is used for self-expression, and where the student can be guided to experience musical concepts first-hand. Somtimes we sing to aid language development or listen to gentle sounds to soothe the nervous system. In some cases, music lessons can include other family members or friends. If you have questions about how a music session might look for you or your child, please use the contact form here. Typically, our time will include elements from the following areas:

Instrument Instruction

Learning to play an instrument is both challenging and rewarding, providing many well-documented  benefits, including:

• improved attention and focus
• more control of emotional regulation
• boosted confidence
• greater discipline and persistence
• enhanced coordination and fine motor skills
• social connection
• help for language development
• improved memory
• better pattern recognition and problem-solving
• increased brain plasticity
• ...and, perhaps most importantly, it's fun!

Decisions on the direction of learning are made together with the student and families and material is age and developmentaly appropriate. Whether learning guitar, piano, ukulele, drums, keyboards, or another instrument, the focus is on developing confidence, musicality, and expressive freedom.

Music Therapy

Neurodiverse learners can benefit greatly from being connected to music through singing, dancing, playing, and listening. Approaches may include simplified language, softer instruments, increased repetition, slower pacing and specialized repertoire.

Individuals with memory loss, depression, anxiety, or other mental health challenges may also benefit from musical engagement, aiding regulation, communication, and emotional integration. Here self-expression can encouraged with an emphasis on improvisation and composition. Playing fast and loud can be a cathartic experience, or playing a familiar tune can be comforting.

Music Theory

Developing an understanding of the ideas underpinning music is important for any musician or music lover; music theory helps what we hear make sense. From do-re-mi to complex harmony, as well as the physics of sound, music history and musical traditions from around the world, there is a lot to discover at every stage of learning!

Playing with Sound

For younger or neurodiverse musicians, sessions may focus on creative interaction with sound and experimenting directly with music fundamentals:

• Dynamics
• Pulse
• Pitch
• Timbre
• Meter
• Rhythm
• Melody
• Texture
• Harmony
• Form

Simple games, exercises and pieces help the student experience these fundamentals and experiment with them. This approach encourages curiosity and play-based learning, and can also be very useful for non-verbal and language-delayed students.

Recording

Students can explore the basics of recording, sampling, sequencing and sound synthesis; developing an understanding of how the music they hear everyday is produced.

Body Coherence Audio

These are original and precise sound patterns that entrain fundamental body rhythms, including breathing rate, heart rate variability, and neural activity. From the gentle waves of sound emerges a desired state of relaxation or alertedness.

The Red Dragonfly

A solo fingerstyle guitar piece written for a Dragonfly who visited every day during the Covid lockdown

The Accelerando Illusion

The Neural-Correlate Society shortlisted my experimental piece for their Best Illusion of the Year Competion in 2023. It was the first audio illusion ever shortlisted! Ater a public vote, it placed fourth. Try clapping along!

Dagda's Harp (with Tempest)

Infinite Scales : Descending

An original audio illusion, using aleatory music to create a constantly downward pitch gravity

The Chatter and the Noise (with Along came Jones)

Mother and Child (with Equation)