Guitar & Strings Instructors

Richard N. Fustino

Guitar, Bass, Ukulele, and Music Composition

​

Richard has been teaching at Matt's Music for 54 years! He studied at Fredonia, University of Buffalo and ECCC and his majors included music composition and social studies.

Craig Haendiges

Guitar, Bass, Ukulele, Banjo and Mandolin.

​

Craig has been teaching at Matt's for 30 years.  He studied under Ernie Coralo and Ralph Parker. 

Jonah Krull

Jonah Krull is a long time friend of Matt's Music, with over a decade of experience in guitar, bass, vocals, songwriting, and audio production. He spent his college years studying at various schools across the county (including Nashville, Tennessee), honing his craft to a professional level. Jonah has been teaching guitar, bass, and other stringed instruments at the store for the past 6 years, and now offers songwriting lessons to help students explore their creative side.  He is also the head of the Matt's Music Studio, which provides high quality recordings as well as lessons in audio recording, music production and live sound.

Ed Croft 

Ed started his career playing in the New York City subways with famed blues musician Carolina Slim. From there, he began playing local shows with his rockabilly band, The Moonshiners. Upon graduating from high school, he pursued a Bachelor's degree in Music Education from SUNY Fredonia, which he completed in 2013.​

In between national shows, music festivals, and local showcases, Ed received his Masters degree from Bowling Green State University where he studied under Jeff Halsey, David Bixler, and Chris Buzzeli. 

Ed won the 2018 JazzBuffalo Poll for Best Acoustic Upright Bassist (repeat from 2017), Rising Star, and the John Hunt Jazz Artist of the Year awards. The results of these awards are decided on by residents of the city of Buffalo and all of Western New York. 

Penn Watson

Penn Watson is a classical guitarist from Buffalo, NY. He began playing guitar at age 10, fell in love with classical guitar at 15, and graduated from SUNY Fredonia with a B.M. in Music Performance in 2019. He graduated with a Performer’s Certificate — an award given to a handful of graduating students who perform two high-level, professional recitals. His past teachers have included James Piorkowski, Thomas Viloteau, Joanne Castellani, and Evan Drummond.

Performance highlights include the Mary Seaton Room at Kleinhan's Music Hall, Mannes Concert Hall at The New School in NYC, Rosch Recital Hall at SUNY Fredonia, the Louis P. Ciminelli Recital Hall at Buffalo State, and a karaoke bar in Chiang Mai, Thailand. Penn plays a guitar made by Dake Traphagen.