Daniel Sumner believes there is a need for music teachers and a need for guitar.

Guitar has not usually had a place in traditional music programs. Not many schools offer guitar lessons. Guitar players aren’t common in marching bands, choirs or orchestras. So where do they fit in?

Texas, Florida and New Mexico have started to employ guitar teachers. ULM’s guitar program is modeled after the University of Texas at Brownsville’s program.

“Their [guitar] professor, Michael Quantz, graduates students who have guitar as their major instrument and they go into high schools to work,” Sumner said. “They have ensembles and orchestras, like we have at ULM. That gives guitar players in high school a place to play their guitar. And that’s what we are trying to do here in Louisiana.”

Sumner is the assistant professor in music education and guitar. He helped start the guitar program in 2010 during his second year teaching at ULM.  There are currently five students pursuing guitar as a major instrument.

Next year, they are hoping to expect a guitar student from Honolulu. Sumner met the guy while touring with his band, the Louis Romanos Quartet.

“There are very few people who devote their lives to playing an instrument. It’s a big deal to become a guitar major. It’s a specialized career path,” said Sumner. “There is no job at CenturyLink for a guitar player.”

But that doesn’t mean people who graduate with music degrees can’t pursue other things. Sumner knew colleagues who went to law school with a music degree. They now work in music and copyright law.

Sumner and VAPA are planning to offer a guitar class for non-majors in summer one and two.

According to Sumner, this is the only opportunity for non-majors to take lessons for credit at ULM.

“I would really like to offer guitar to everyone in the school, but we don’t really have the resources for it at the moment,” Sumner said.

Stewart McCulloch is a senior at ULM and one of the five students in the guitar program. He has been playing guitar for 11 years. He plans to perform and teach. McCulloch is also part of a group called the Scallywag Swingers. They recently played their first gig at Jeff’s Place, a restaurant in Monroe.

“We started off as a school ensemble and now we are trying to do professional playing,” McCulloch said. “[Monroe] is a great town to get started with a band. We are looking forward to playing more. Keep an eye out for us.”

John Farmer began playing guitar 12 years ago. Hearing Sumner play was enough to inspire him to come to ULM to study.

“Music was always what I loved, but I had no idea how to make it my life and work. I figured a music degree in guitar would be the ticket,” Farmer said. “Since studying at ULM I went from making no money at all with guitar to teaching at Zeagler’s Music full time.”

For more information on how to get involved, contact Sumner at [email protected].