Hello there! My name is Randy J Clay – Sales Representative at Practicing Musician.

Welcome to my profile. Thanks for stopping by.

My musical journey in life started when I was in third grade. I chose to learn to play a musical instrument in grade school. My grandfather learned to play the accordion in his home country of Czechoslovakia. He played polka music, and I could tell he loved it! I did not have the option to play the accordion, so I chose the trumpet. I really liked Herb Albert and the Tijuana Brass, so I thought it would be a good instrument to learn.

Fortunately, I had a wonderful music teacher and learned fast. I was 1st chair of all the trumpets by the following year. I learned fast and well and loved to make music!

I moved to a larger city that had an orchestra in junior high school. I soon became the 1st chair trumpet in the orchestra. Then came the Beatles, Led Zeppelin, and ZZ Top – I was hooked on Rock-n-roll—especially the guitar. I tried to play their music on the trumpet, but it didn’t sound the same. So, I gave up the trumpet completely, got an electric guitar, started a band, and never looked back.

I saw John Prine, James Taylor, Tommy Emmanual, and Crosby Stills Nash many years later and was immediately hooked on the acoustic guitar and songwriting. I sold all my electric stuff and bought a world-class acoustic guitar. Thirty years later, I still play acoustic guitar shows at coffee houses, breweries, festivals, and almost anywhere they will have me.

I specialize in custom songwriting and write and sing songs for weddings, funerals, and birthday parties mostly. I also give guitar lessons, teaching students basic theory and showing them open tunings, which I have learned to master.

The beauty of open tuning is that the student can play music usually after a couple of basic lessons. Fewer fingers are used for chording, and the ability to slide the chords opens a whole new world of theory and learning.

My greatest thrill is to have a student thank me for teaching them how to play and perform music. It changes their life in most cases, and certainly, it has changed mine. That’s why I am excited to combine my lifelong passion for music and my lifelong pursuit of sales consulting services to help even more students access the benefits of music education through the Practicing Musician organization.

I am so excited to share this awesome format for teaching and learning music. Music education for everyone. What a beautiful concept to be a part of!