I’m Bryan Chung

Professional guitarist and tutor based in Leeds.

About me

My musical journey has been deeply influenced by the guidance of accomplished mentors, namely Mark Leung at Ola School of Music in Hong Kong amongst others in Leeds in the UK. My training under such esteemed instructors has shaped me into a capable and versatile electric guitarist.

Having earned both my Master's and Bachelor's degrees at Leeds Conservatoire (formerly Leeds College of Music), I've cultivated a rich foundation in music theory and performance. Having been on the Popular Music course learning about performance and production, I eventually focused on Jazz because of my deep love for the genre.

Beyond the academic realm, I am a working musician maintaining an active profile on the scene, bringing my knowledge and expertise from the stage back to the classroom. Over the years, I've contributed to diverse musical landscapes, collaborating with bands across various styles and genres in live performances and recording sessions in studios. Whether sitting in as a sideman, leading my own Jazz group, or backing Pop ensembles and Rock musical theatre shows, playing Blues festivals in York and Wharfedale, I've graced notable venues including Matt & Phreds in Manchester, Tapestry Arts in Bradford, and the Domino Club in Leeds.

Join me on an exploration of the depths of sound, technique, and expression. Whether you're a fellow enthusiast or a budding musician, I'm here to share my knowledge and love for the art of the guitar. Let's embark on a musical adventure together.

MY TOP ACHIEVEMENTS

Teaching

I’ve taught 100+ students around the world including places like France, Dubai, Canada, and the USA.

Performing

Playing in the opening act for Ray Greene (lead vocalist for Santana and Tower of Power)

Awards

Postgraduate Performance Award 2020

Specialist Institutions Award - Student of the Year 2016 

Kishore Budha (bass & vocals), Oli Reeves (drums), Ray Greene (headline act), Bryan Chung (guitar), Lisa Crawford (vocals)

 

Mojo Catfish blues band - the opening act for the headliner Ray Greene later

 

MY MUSICAL JOURNEY

Over a decade of studying under the tutelage of private guitar tutors.

Early days

Believe it or not, guitar is not my first instrument. I started off on classical piano aged 3 and violin aged 6, passed auditions and exams, played in school orchestras who won competitions and even performed on national TV! However, when I was 10 or 11, all it took was one listen to Linkin Park’s What I’ve Done and watching Green Day music videos on YouTube that got me started on the electric guitar. 

I love the guitar because it is one of the most versatile instruments that covers a lot of musical genres that I enjoy. Starting from mainstream Pop/Rock, growing into heavy metal, then going back to old-school Jazz & Blues, I have played or continue to play these styles. I also enjoy listening to (and occasionally dabbling in) Funk & Soul, R&B, and neo-soul. 

Full-time music studies

I came to Leeds in 2015 to study music full-time for six years: two on the Pop Diploma, three on the Jazz degree, and one on the Masters. I fell in love with Jazz after being introduced by my teachers and fellow coursemates to the likes of Charlie Parker and Sonny Rollins going all crazy and bebop on a simple 12-bar blues progression, and Miles Davis’ 1959 Kind of Blue album. 

Thinking back, it was the wide ranging sounds and sub-genres within jazz (bossa nova, fusion etc) that fascinated me. Up until then I was exploring guitar virtuosos like Steve Vai, Joe Satriani, Guthrie Govan, having previously been hooked to mainstream pop/rock which were proving a little too commercial and mundane. Jazz provided a way out of that and, to say the least, I was very interested and curious about this art. 

Full-time teaching

Fast forward to graduation, I simply turned what I loved doing everyday into my working career. I feel very at home and confident in running my private tuition business thanks to prior experience teaching part-time in schools and music centres during my studies which featured different settings, atmospheres and environments. My students have ranged from as young as aged 7 (year 2-3 in primary schools) to aged 70+, from complete beginners who haven’t yet touched a guitar before to advanced players who were accepted onto music degree courses and successfully auditioned into professional session bands in the music industry. 

On the playing front, I have led my own groups, hosted jam sessions, been a dep for other projects (an industry term for stepping in and covering for other guitarists, usually at short notice!), hired as a player in pit bands backing musical theatre shows, and provided live music entertainment at functions and corporate events.

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TEACHING & PLAYING EXPERIENCE

Teaching

Artforms Leeds City Council

North Leeds Music Centre (Leeds Music Education Partnership funded by Arts Council England) with ensemble classes and workshops.

Music Lab

Music centre that offers instrumental tuition in 1:1 and group settings with two branches in Leeds. Formerly known as Leeds Music Academy.

Leeds Junior Conservatoire

Creative courses for young musicians aged 8-18 with a broad curriculum from songwriting and production to band performances.

Playing

Jazz & Blues Clubs

The Domino Club

Sela Bar

LS6 Clock Cafe

Harrogate Blues Bar

Matt & Phreds, Manchester

Hyde Park Jazz Club, Leeds

The Mess Room, Skipton

Caroline Social Club, Saltaire

Blues at the Bay, Middlesbrough

Venues & Theatres

The Wardrobe, Headrow House

Lending Room at Library Pub

Tapestry Arts, Bradford

The Tyne Bar, Newcastle

Milton Rooms, Malton

York Grand Theatre

Leeds Grand Theatre (Opera North)

Clothworkers Centenary Concert Hall (University of Leeds)

Festivals & Functions

York Blues Festival

Wharfedale Blues Festival

Saltaire Festival

Yorkshire Marathon 

Leeds Light Night (Kirkgate Market)

Opening Ceremony for White Rose Shopping Centre (Outdoor Village)

MUSIC EDUCATION & QUALIFICATIONS

  • Leeds Conservatoire

    MA in Creative Musicianship [Merit]

    BA in Jazz Guitar [First Class Honours]

    BTEC Dip in Pop [Distinction]

  • RSL Awards - Rockschool

    Level 4 Performance Diploma [Distinction]

    Grade 8 Electric Guitar [Distinction]

    Grade 8 Music Theory [Merit]

  • Trinity College London

    Grade 8 Electric Guitar [Merit]

  • ABRSM - Associated Board of the Royal Schools of Music

    Grade 5 Theory [Pass]

  • The Registry of Guitar Tutors

    Registration No: BC5247

  • Independent Society of Musicians

    Membership No: 77540

  • Help Musicians

    Postgraduate Performance Award 2020

  • Full Enhanced DBS Check

    Professional development and training:

    HSQE Safeguarding Children Level 1

    Child Protection Training for Central Services Education Staff 2023

MUSICAL STYLES & GENRES I TEACH

  • Pop

    From figuring out Steve Lukather guitar parts on the Michael Jackson ‘Thriller’ album, to John Mayer’s heavily blues-influenced playing.

  • Rock

    Starting with riffs by Led Zeppelin, Deep Purple, Pink Floyd to virtuosos like Jimi Hendrix and Santana.

  • Blues

    Digging deep into the roots of B.B. King and Buddy Guy to modern players like Joe Bonamassa and Gary Clark Jr.

  • Jazz

    Learn jazz standards in swing, latin, and bossa nova styles. Study bebop language through Charlie Parker, Chet Baker, Miles Davis and guitarists such as Grant Green and Kenny Burrell.

PEDIGREE & TUTELAGE

I’ve had the immense privilege of studying with inspirational mentors for over a decade who helped me discover my musical potential and pass on this knowledge to my students.

Gigging as a jazz guitar duo with Mark Leung in Hong Kong.

Mark Leung | 2009 - 2019 | Pop, Rock, Bebop Jazz

  • Founder of Ola School of Music 

  • Studied with Stony Chan and Teddy Suen in Hong Kong and Ze Eduardo in Portugal

  • Renowned educator hosting various lecture demonstrations in the “Jazz Up” series presented by the Leisure and Cultural Services Department in the Government of Hong Kong 


Jiannis Pavlidis | 2019 - 2020 | Hardbop Jazz

  • Principal Lecturer at Leeds Conservatoire

  • Studied at Berklee College of Music with Jon Damian and Jerry Bergonzi

  • Touring and recording with David Liebman and Ari Hoenig


Jamie Taylor | 2017 - 2019 | Bebop Jazz

  • Principal Lecturer at Leeds Conservatoire (taught internationally acclaimed songwriter Bruno Major)

  • Regular performer at prestigious London venues including Ronnie Scott’s, the Vortex and Troubadour Club

  • Worked with American jazz artists Sheryl Bailey and John Stowell 


Mike Casey | 2015 - 2017 | Rock, Jazz Fusion

  • Music Lecturer at Leeds City College

  • Touring guitarist for Magic of Motown theatre show

  • Top UK Steely Dan tribute band Extremely Dan


DIVERSE STUDENT BACKGROUNDS

  • Children

  • Teenagers

  • Working Professionals

  • Retired

Music that inspired me to pick up the guitar

I’d specifically like to share a few songs which had a huge impact on me that inspired me to pick up the guitar and learn to play certain styles - I call these ‘converters’ because only after one listen they instantly got me hooked and converted me to listen to that genre. Such remarkable moments are so unforgettable that I even remember vividly when it happened, where I was and who I was with.

  • There used to be this TV programme back home in Hong Kong that featured Western artists and bands. It was always on at 6pm when I’d normally be watching it at home after school, but for some reason I was out. When I did come home later that evening, my sister said ‘I need to show you something - you’ll like it’ and showed me this 20-second clip recorded on her Nokia flip-phone: a heavily pixelated music video of Linkin Park’s What I’ve Done. And I did like it, especially that guitarist Brad’s big afro hair looking so cool… Then I went on YouTube for the full and not-so-pixelated version of it and just put it on a loop forever!

  • Fast forward to when I found myself in a boarding school as a teenager feeling bored and somewhat lonely being away from family. This kid Jamie in the same year as me who was blonde, cool and popular (he was good at sports and played in the rugby team) also played the guitar, and during our homework session in the computer room he logged in and showed me Guns N’ Roses Sweet Child O’ Mine. I was attracted to the rebellious black and white music video featuring alcohol, cigarettes, and girls. Then the teacher walks in, glances at the computer screen and says: ‘Boys, what is this stuff? Not nice, is it… now turn it off!’

  • At this point I’m in my first year in Leeds, and my teachers have already started recommending jazz standards and albums to me, namely the bebop and bossa nova styles. So at this house party full of students on the jazz course, I got talking with a saxophonist from Manchester called Adam. Later on we bumped into each other at the library and he recommended Never Will I Marry by Nancy Wilson featuring Canonball Adderley on alto sax. I succinctly remember being curious about the sound of those chords and harmony against such an unconventional melody. I was absolutely blown away by the solo - the fluidity, smoothness and playfulness of his playing. I don’t remember Adam’s exact words, but it was clear from the grin on his face - it was the expression of ‘yeah man, this is the real sh**!’

  • Linkin Park

  • Guns N' Roses

  • Nancy Wilson/Canonball Adderley

A FEW INTERESTING THINGS ABOUT ME

What’s the gear situation?

Contrary to popular belief about guitarists endlessly collecting gear, I only have two main guitars - a Japanese strat and a PRS Soapbar, and a backup Yamaha Pacifica. Never owned more than a handful of guitars or amps, and never played one that costs over a thousand pounds. It’s the wizard not the wand!

Favourite food?

Yeung Chow Fried Rice. Or anything Hong Kong style really. I encourage you to try this instead of your usual Chow Mein next time you get a Chinese takeaway.

Do you play any other musical instruments?

Violin and piano came before the guitar, but I wouldn’t say I can play them now. I can play some bass, though.

Dream/Vision?

  1. Playing at Ronnie Scott’s in London.

  2. Becoming a lecturer/professor at University.

  3. Make my own music - record, publish, tour!

Favourite movie?

The Matrix. One reason: that scene where Neo bends back and dodges the bullets!

I also love martial arts films (all the Bruce Lee ones, Ip Man etc), police/crime/gangster movies especially ones made in the 90s in Hong Kong, and Tarantino of course - Reservoir Dogs being a memorable one.

Funny story at a gig

Funnily enough the best moment at a gig did not happen during the gig on the stage, but right after packing down and loading the gear back into the car. Just as I parked at the side of the road next to the venue entrance with the hazard warning lights on getting ready to get out of the car, a middle-aged woman casually opens the passenger door thinking I was her Uber ride home. Mind you, she looks as though she had had a few too many… Anyway I just said: Hello, what are you doing?