23rd June 2025

Dear Mr Shelton

I was so pleased that I found your email address on your website. You often cross my mind and I felt I should write to you, to thank you.

You examined me for my grade 8 Trinity piano exam in October 2005 in Johannesburg. Of all the music examiners that I have dealt with over many years, you are the only one who treated me kindly. You came out to the waiting room to meet me, asked me what pieces I was going to play and said let’s go and have a good exam. That totally relaxed me. When you gave me my sight reading test, you intentionally put it upside on the music stand as a joke. When I left the exam room, you gave me the advice ‘to keep going’. You gave me a good merit mark for that exam. Thank you!

So for the past 20 years, I have heeded your advice and ‘kept going’! Our family left Johannesburg shortly after my music exam and moved to the little seaside town of Sedgefield in the Western Cape, in the Garden Route area of South Africa. I started teaching music early in 2006, and obtained my ATCL (2007) and LTCL (2009) in instrument teaching. Teaching music is one of the most rewarding things I’ve ever done and I often tell my students about the very kind examiner that I had for my grade 8 exam.

At the end of 2010, I took up the clarinet which I also enjoy. I did my grade 5 clarinet exam in 2014. After that I joined our local community orchestra where I played for almost 10 years, retiring in 2024. Currently, I’m working on grade 7 clarinet pieces, so that I always have a goal to work towards.

So after 20 years, and at the age of 75, I’m still keeping going. Still teaching, still always trying to improve! After all, age is just a number. We must never stop learning!

So thank you once again for inspiring me! It’s much appreciated.

Mike is always professional in his approach with a calm demeanour when explaining why a technique works rather than just being told to do it in a certain way.  For me as a mature musician, it’s not just about how to play the instrument; Mike has taught me musicianship, which I can use on other instruments and in different scenarios.  His calm approach and gentle encouragement has enabled me to see and hear my own improvements.  A simple question raised, can bring out a mass of detail from him, which when put into practice instantly improves the way I play. Always an honest answer even if it’s not the shortest of explanations.

Mike considers it his duty to enable you to achieve your goals. His musical understanding and technical knowledge are second to none. He has several ways of approaching a subject until he finds something that clicks with you. Having not had a lesson for over 40 years, within nine months, Mike enabled me to achieve a distinction at Grade 8, followed by a distinction at ATCL diploma level 6 months later. Every lesson was like a masterclass and thoroughly enjoyable. He is a true professional with an uncompromising style and fabulous sense of humour. 

Mike is an experienced, inspirational music teacher. He is passionate about his own playing and through sensitive guidance is pushing me to be the best I can be. Mike plans and shapes his lessons well so that there is progress in every session. He uses positive reinforcement and gentle humour to great effect and regularly ensures my understanding of new ideas and techniques. Lessons with Mike are always encouraging, enjoyable and excellent value.

Four years ago I began clarinet lessons with Mike after a 20 year break.  He helped me prepare for (and successfully pass) my ATCL performance diploma; I am now working towards my LTCL. Mike is an excellent teacher; his expert knowledge and skill is always delivered in a professional manner. However, most importantly for me, is the way he has developed my confidence in believing in myself to perform at a higher level whilst developing my understanding of the instrument and performance techniques. For this, I will always be grateful. I just wish Mike had been my teacher whilst studying Music at university all those years ago.

Mike has been teaching me Saxophone and Piano for a number of years now.  Mike is always professional in his approach to teaching, adapting his style according to my needs and the topic in hand.  I look forward to my lessons with Mike because I know they will not only be enjoyable but will also bring great results.    Being taught by Mike is not just about blowing the saxophone.  His character and quality of tuition goes far further than just the notes on the stave.  He encourages a depth of understanding of, for instance, the mechanics of the instrument as well as the physiology involved in playing.  All this combines to allow me to perform to the highest possible standard.

I have been taking clarinet lessons with Mr Michael Shelton for about 3 years. In that time I feel I have made good progress in all aspects of playing. Mike is most professional and hugely knowledgeable in this area. He is well able to adapt his tuition to the students level of understanding and ability and is encouraging when difficulties occur, which they inevitably do. He has a fairly relaxed style of teaching which I have found beneficial. He always encourages musicality and a strong interpretation of the music being played which is challenging and exciting. I have only entered one grade exam (5) under his tuition and was awarded a distinction.

Michael has been a fantastic flute teacher for our son. He creates a fun, positive and engaging learning environment, which encourages and supports pupils do their best. We would highly recommend him as a teacher.

Sax lessons with Mike are looked forward to with confidence that progress will be made, problems resolved and the session enjoyed. This comes from his positive attitude to the student’s efforts, and his enthusiasm for music and performance. The student’s goals are established at an early stage, and meeting objectives is treated as a collaboration. Self-appraisal is encouraged, and the needs for best tone production and standard of performance are emphasised. Mike draws on extensive professional experience to advise how technique can be improved within and between lessons. Each session concludes with feelings of satisfactory accomplishment and eagerness to continue playing.

I heard about Mike Shelton’s saxophone tuition through a recommendation and from our first session it was evident that he is a well-qualified and experienced musician and educator. Prior to working with Mike, I had been attempting to teach myself to play alto sax and had had only a handful of informal lessons. Consequently, I had developed bad habits and had practiced these until they had become hard-wired. However, Mike was able to quickly identify my foibles and clearly explain what I needed to do in order to fix them. He was able to rapidly identify the way in which I learn and the way my character is reflected in my playing. He then ensured that his approach to the tuition sessions was tailored to suit my personality, doing so in a very proficient manner. Although he is highly professional, he conducts our sessions in a relaxed and humorous way. He is never critical but is very encouraging and always positive. He has quickly enabled me to produce a much more melodic, “professional” sound from my sax. Definitely a 5* tutor.

Mike has been my clarinet teacher for over four years. He is a passionate teacher who gives clear instructions and has helped me improve my techniques to get the best out of my instrument. My half an hour lesson is a good mix of playing and theory which has developed my musical knowledge greatly. Mike has boosted my confidence in my ability to play a variety of pieces to a high standard.

I have known Mike for about 10 years and he has always been both very approachable as a person and extremely professional in his style of tutoring me on the clarinet.   Having a gap in my clarinet playing left me feeling uncomfortable about taking up the instrument again but Mike accepted me with open arms and immediately set a charming tone.  His wealth of musical knowledge and experience informs his teaching and enriches the learning experience.  He is always encouraging, creates a relaxed atmosphere in lessons and offers realistic and achievable goals.  I owe it to Mike that I now feel comfortable playing the clarinet again.  Highly recommend him for any standard of player.

Mike has taught my daughter and I on 3 different instruments. I find the quality of his teaching to be incredibly high. Mike is very thorough in his methodology, which has enabled me to work to a level of distinction. I like Mike's understanding character. He gauges with precision when I'm nervous before a performance and when I need more drive and energy and has the know how to overcome these situations. Mike's style of teaching and professionalism throughout has nurtured my self belief and confidence. This has enabled me to become a musician far beyond I thought I could ever be.

I was introduced to the clarinet as a child and having recently retired I wanted to find a clarinet teacher who would honestly assess whether I could take it up again. I looked for a teacher who was professional, knowledgeable, patient and sensitive to my objectives. I have found Mike to be all of these. He applauds my strengths and addresses my weaknesses, making sure I continue to improve. He is always encouraging, always good humoured and I look forward to lessons.

I started to learn to play the piano late in life, and count myself extremely lucky in finding Mike as my teacher. He provides great encouragement and equally demonstrates great patience in supporting my developing skills. I enjoy and share his interest in a wide variety of music and we take the opportunity to include this variety in my lessons. Mike always takes time to explain clearly the technical context of the music and provides a constant focus on excellence in all aspects of the performance.

Mike has taught my daughters both saxophone and piano for over 7 years. They have both excelled in their progress achieving high grades in all their exams. Despite having very different learning styles the girls thoroughly enjoyed their lessons demonstrating that Mike is not only a fantastic musician but an adaptable and talented teacher. His support with auditions, exams and building confidence has enabled my daughters to achieve their ambitions. We highly recommend him.