ABOUT US
Since 2006, the Federal Way School of Music has been offering the finest in private and group music instruction, serving the Federal Way community and the greater Puget Sound area.
The school's mission is simple: to bring the joy of music to people of all ages, ability levels, instruments, and styles, and to help keep the arts thriving in our community!
The school is constantly expanding its offerings with community partnerships with important arts and city organizations such as the Federal Way Symphony, Federal Way Youth Symphony, Federal Way Arts Commission, and Federal Way School District.
In 2014, the Federal Way School of Music was proud to announce its partnership with Ted Brown Music company, the Puget Sound's largest local family-owned music store. This has expanded the school's offerings to include useful services including instrument rentals and sales, school band and orchestra supplies and books, instrumental repair drop-off and pickup, and more.
Bringing years of professional experience, the internationally-acclaimed and award-winning staff is comprised of many of the area’s top educators. The highly diverse staff regularly performs with major national and local orchestras as section leaders and soloists, in national touring jazz and rock groups, have taught at universities and K-12 public/private schools, and also work as composers in the film and video game industry.
Our School Founder, STEVE LYNCH
Steve Lynch was a founding member of the group Autograph in the mid-80's. Autograph has sold over 5 million records worldwide, including the platinum-selling album "Sign In Please". Their hit single "Turn Up the Radio" reached No. 29 on the Billboard Hot 100 and Steve's work on this track helped earn him "Guitar Solo of the Year" honors from Guitar Magazine in 1985. Autograph appeared in several movie soundtracks, television shows, and toured with artists including Van Halen, Motley Crue, Heart, Aerosmith, Ronnie James Dio, Bryan Adams, and Whitesnake, before disbanding in 1989. Steve reformed the new Autograph in 2014 and they are currently performing on an active international touring schedule and are busy in the studio.
Steve is known as the "Two-Handed Guitarist" for his innovation of two-handed multi-fingered tapping technique, which he still teaches today. Perhaps the most elaborate recorded example of the technique is the unaccompanied instrumental track "Hammerhead", from Autograph's second album, "That's the Stuff".
Beginning as a bass player, Steve was inspired to transition to guitar the day Jimi Hendrix passed away. He began studying music theory and jazz technique with Don Mock, who was then an instructor at West Seattle Music. Mock moved to Los Angeles to become one of the founding instructors of the Guitar Institute of Technology and invited Steve to become one of GIT's first students that same year. Steve became one of the first graduates of the Musicians Institute in Los Angeles, California. He is currently endorsed by DBZ guitars.
Steve has written columns and appeared in Guitar World, Guitar for the Practicing Musician, Guitar Player, and Musician magazines as well as other international music magazines. He has also written three books and has an instructional video (REH Video's "Steve Lynch - The Two-Handed Guitarist") displaying his double-handed playing technique and has taught over 300 clinics on advanced guitar techniques in 18 countries. When Steve returned to Seattle, he developed a successful lesson studio with over 20 years of experience teaching guitar privately in the South King County area, eventually founding the Federal Way School of Music in 2006. After reuniting Autograph and releasing a new album in 2016, Steve is currently touring nationally and internationally.