Article — Katherine Bontrager | Photography — Russell Walker
In very few businesses will you hear phrases such as, “beginners have a tendency to overplay,” or “make sure you’re coming in with the same power.” Yet that’s exactly what Chris Bihuniak lectures day in and day out. Granted, his business is a little hipper than most stuffy office gigs. As owner of Rock Band Academy, Bihuniak gets to work and play, all while helping make dreams come true for Leawood kids.
Rock Band Academy is the place for kids to form a real rock band and learn to sound great as a group. And let me tell you, these kids do rock—and loudly. One Thursday night, I had the honor of watching the group Soundcheck record and the band H30 rehearse.
These kids are truly talented and are having a blast in the process. My foot kept time with the beat, and I was left wishing I had an inkling of musical talent and 10 fewer years to my age. (okay, getting called “interview lady” by a precocious 6th grader didn’t help me feel any younger.)
The business started in spring of 2009, after Bihuniak discovered the sons of some friends would be performing at the Plaza Art Fair. “The boys were in the 5th grade,” he recalls. “They sounded okay, but I knew that I could help them improve. Plus, with my background as a musician and producer, people have always asked me whether I could give their child private lessons.”
A professional musician and music producer—with extensive experience playing guitar, bass, drums, keyboards, and singing—Bihuniak is able to provide detailed instruction. And as a father of four boys and part-time soccer coach, he knows how to relate to, encourage, and teach kids.
In his spare time, this talented dad is an award-winning songwriter and producer of children’s music through his company 4 Boys, Inc. With 28 years experience performing in rock bands and eight nationally-distributed albums, not only does he know how to teach kids to rock, he does a fair job if it himself.
His client list has grown considerably, so Bihuniak is now coaching up to eight bands per week. The typical student at Rock Band Academy lives in Johnson County and is between the ages of nine and 14.
“Most of my students are boys, but I do have one all-girl band called Rockadella,” Bihuniak says. “However, I’ve also given private lessons to adults and have thought about starting a pre-school ‘Junior Rocker’ program. The Academy provides kids the one-of-a-kind chance to play in a real rock band with real instruments with friends or kids of similar ages.”
The Academy is staged in Bihuniak’s basement on the border between Leawood and Prairie Village, his family home for 11 years. The basement is equipped with all kinds of music equipment and colored lights, including drums, keyboards, amps, guitars, basses, microphones, a fog machine and more. For some, having such a tenuous distinction between home and work would be difficult, but for this entrepreneur it’s a blessing.
“I get to do something that I love. The kids and families really appreciate the service. And while it’s not a huge income generator, I earn enough to make it a viable business.” However, even in rock-and-roll there are some challenges. “Since it’s a group lesson format when a band is rehearsing, I don’t have lots of time to provide individual instruction for some of the kids that might be struggling with a particular part. Although I do offer some private lessons, I wish that some kids had a bit better skills.”
Another challenge? The cracking of voices that haunt teenage boys. And I think I heard the word “dude” more times in one hour than I have all year.
To that end, Bihuniak has an audition with every prospective student to make sure they have some musical talent and the right personality. Occasionally he will take a beginner to complete a group if they have friends in the band.
“Students should be able to keep a steady rhythm and hear changes in music,” Bihuniak says. “If they play guitar or piano, they should know their major and minor chords. Singers need to have good pitch and the ability to project their voice in a confident manner to be heard over loud drums and guitars.”
Bihuniak focuses on collaboration and a band’s ability to sound good together. “I want to find a group of kids with ‘chemistry’ so the group has a chance of lasting longer than one session and enjoy the experience of being in a band and not necessarily playing difficult songs.”
The response to Rock Band Academy has been jubilant, as the testimonials on Bihuniak’s website can attest. Comments range from “It was the best time of my life!” to parental surprise at a child’s talent to an appreciation for those other skills the kids gain in the process—self-confidence, teamwork, and dedication.
Thus far Bihuniak has coached 13 different rock bands, helping kids fine-tune their skills, meld with a group, and even write and record their own music. He also helps students shoot music videos. Some bands have become so well versed in the process that they’ve opted to direct their own videos to accompany the songs they’ve recorded with Bihuniak’s help.
On the wall of Rock Band Academy is a list of the “10 Rules of Rehearsals.” Alongside such missives as respecting each other and listening comes the final rule: “Thank my parents for letting me rock.” But to steal a line from Spinal Tap, if we wanted to go up to 11, man, one rule should be added: “Thank Chris Bihuniak for offering such an amazing, rocking experience.”
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