Stars to rock, teach in American Fork

AMERICAN FORK — The guitars. The drums. The hair.

Tonight at 7, you can take it all in at a concert at the Music School, 350 E. State, featuring the Monsters of Classic Rock.

Well, not the hair. The Monsters now have short, or no, hair.

They've aged since the 1970s and 1980s — when drummer Chris Slade played drums for AC/DC, Greg Douglass strummed the guitar for the Steve Miller band and Carmine Rojas was on bass for Rod Stewart.

In addition to the concert, the band will do a workshop for students of the private school.

"They're going to do techniques, (show their) expertise, questions and answers," said Darren Jones, marketing coordinator for the Music School. "They're going to show what they've found to be successful."

The concert is a kick-off of the Music School's Rock Academy, which started this year, and provides up-and-coming rock bands an opportunity to record, perform and learn about the music business.

The cost of lessons and ensemble instruction at the Music School is $110 a month for drums, bass guitar, keyboarding and specialities such as saxophone.

"We're trying to capture those individuals, those hobbyists (who are) fiddling with the guitar and want to see what they can do on a higher level," Jones said.

Stirling Ogden, 17, from Provo, has studied classical music for years but wanted to sing in a rock band. So he began attending the Music School.

"I just wanted the chance to perform more," said Ogden, who has been performing with his rock band, Soothsayer, for four months. "The Music School helps us get gigs."

Soothsayer and some other rock bands-in-training at the Rock Academy will open for the Monsters of Classic Rock.

Another such band will be J. Wride and the Sounds of Reason — described by guitar player Matt Lind, 18, as Cold Play-meets-John Mayer-meets-Dave Matthews Band.

Lind, from Alpine, is self-taught on the six-string but went to the music school when he discovered "there are some things you can't teach yourself."

Lind and his bandmates all went to the Rock Academy.

Tickets are $15 at the door and will pay for the performance of the Monsters of Classic Rock. They are charging the school only $5,000 — a discount — because they enjoy music education, Jones said.

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If you go . . .

What: The Monsters of Classic Rock concert

Where: The Music School, 350 E. State, American Fork

When: 7 p.m.

Cost: $15

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E-mail: lhancock@desnews.com