Feb. 17, 2023, GRAND RAPIDS, Mich. -- After a dozen years as an adjunct instructor at Grand Rapids Community College, Jonathan Marshall is in his first year as an assistant professor in the music department and the college’s Director of Guitar Studies. And he couldn’t be happier.
“This is the best job in the world,” he said. “Our students are great, and the people I work with in the music department, just amazing, amazing people. I couldn’t ask for anything more.”
In addition to his teaching and work as director, Marshall also heads up the GRCC International Guitar Series and the GRCC Community Guitar Ensemble/Society and is director of the GRCC Virtual Youth Guitar Competition.
“It’s busy,” he said with a chuckle. “But it’s a busy I wouldn’t trade for anything. I was a student here myself to be back in this capacity is a dream come true.”
In fact, Marshall added, he and the college’s three other guitar teachers – Brian Morris (his predecessor as Director of Guitar Studies), Kyle Thompson and Jeremy Verwys – are all GRCC alumni, graduates of the guitar concentration that is part of the associate degree in music.
“We all walked these halls as students,” he said. “Now we’re back to teach the next generation. And what’s even better is we all get along, we all work hard, and we all want to see our students succeed. It’s pretty cool.”
What’s also pretty cool, he said, are the students he and his colleagues work with daily and the opportunities they have to succeed.
“The students we work with value their education, and they want to get as much knowledge as they can while they are here,” he said. “And for us, we walked the path they are on now, so it’s really fulfilling to see them develop these skills that they can use the rest of their life. At the end of the day, you can either watch Netflix all day or you can practice guitar, right.”
GRCC music students can be a guitar performance major and also have guitar as their applied instrument while pursuing a different music degree, including Instrumental Studies, Piano and Organ Studies, Recording Technology and Vocal.
Marshall said there are typically 10-15 students enrolled in applied guitar lessons (one-on-one lessons), and the department also offers group guitar classes in classical guitar, beginning guitar and jazz guitar. And students who take applied lessons or guitar class often later enroll in the GRCC guitar ensemble.
“It’s safe to say that there is a lot of guitar going on at GRCC music,” Marshall said.
Marshall and his guitar colleagues all play professionally, and he said the thrill of performing never gets old. It’s also eye-opening for GRCC students to see their instructors in action.
“When people hear something, and you see them happy because our fingers can do this, it’s satisfying,” he said. “And for our students, yeah, we’ll play, maybe as part of the (International Guitar) series, and it opens their eyes.”
Marshall performs with Morris in the Grand Rapids Guitar Duo, and they will perform at GRCC on April 13 as part of the International Guitar Series.
Morris was his mentor when Marshall was a student at GRCC, before he went on to study classical guitar with Carlos De La Barrera at Grand Valley State University and complete his master's degree at the College-Conservatory of Music, University of Cincinnati under Professor Clare Callahan.
As he looks back on his academic career though, his experience at GRCC, Marshall said, remains the most formative part of his higher education experience.
“Being here was just an amazing experience,” he said. “I think sometimes when students leave GRCC, and this was true for me, maybe they are expecting something better and bigger. But that’s not always the case. And wherever they go or whatever they do, I know our students are well prepared for the next step.”
Marshall added with a laugh that he initially came to GRCC because of the culinary program, but then realized there was a waitlist so figured he’d bide his time until there was an opening. Having studied music as a child, including guitar, he migrated to the music department, and it was love at first note.
“I never left,” he said laughing. “GRCC Music is where I found my purpose.”
This story was reported by Phil de Haan.