John started playing guitar at the age of ten. Once a week, he would walk to his lesson with guitar in hand and then run home and teach brother Pat everything he’d learned. By the time they reached high school, their band was playing for school dances, proms, park dances, and private parties. They were lucky enough to hone their craft before the advent of DJs.

After high school, John left Manhattan Beach for the University of Oregon to study flute with Richard Trombley. He also beefed up his resume at this time by playing 2-3 nights a week at any coffee house, jazz club, or biker bar that would either pay or feed him.

Upon returning to Manhattan Beach, John continued his flute studies with studio flautist Art Hoberman and on his recommendation spent time in France taking classes with Munich Symphony flautist Andras Adorjan and the renowned French flautist Jean Pierre Rampal. He studied saxophone and clarinet in L.A. with studio musician and “Mike Douglas Show” alumnus Vince Trombetta.

John now enjoys a full roster of students at his shop as well as performing 60-80 gigs a year on flute, sax, and steel drums.

Specialties: Woodwind instruments

Over the years, Pat has played at more than six thousand private parties and corporate events.

Pat has taught guitar and mandolin lessons locally for 34 years.  In 1988, he started Dietz Bros. Music in Manhattan Beach with his brother, John.  They are now instrument dealers for Fender and Martin guitars, as well as many other instruments, books, and accessories.

Susan Dietz began her musical career in a back-road Oregon Grange Hall at the age of five. She played Balloons on the piano and sang April Showers accompanied by her big brother. The wild clapping when she finished was not for her, but from relief that the recital was finally over, but this began her life-long love of performing. The next year her family went to see Sound of Music and her fantasy of becoming a singer like Julie Andrews grew to worrisome size. Knowing this has helped her husband John understand her ups and downs. When she breaks into song while asking him to take out the trash, he kindly lets her do so. She studied piano and voice for the next twenty years and eventually became good enough to fool quite a few people. She studied the Robert Pace piano method and became an accredited Pace teacher herself at 18. She then studied at both the local community college and the University of Oregon; singing, acting and writing music for local theatre and even touring in a company with a grant from the Oregon Endowment for the Arts. While in school she met her husband John and his brother Pat. She and John did get married much to her parent’s relief and taught music lessons to earn money to study in Europe. They studied at L’Academie d’Ete in Nice, France. Susan studied with Mady Mesple of the Paris Opera and Jean Gireudeau of the Paris Opera Comique. After they returned she continued teaching piano and voice and singing as the resident soloist at Wayfarer’s Chapel in Palos Verdes. Her thirty years at the beautiful glass church could be seen as an inspiration, however it is certain that she frightened as many people as she inspired. The congregation would look warily at the windows each time she hit a high C. Her time with Los Angeles Master Choral, Orange County Opera Pacific, Long Beach Opera and others has convinced her that doing what others ask can take the joy out of music. So, she quit them all and happily freelances. She can now choose more of her own repertoire as she continues to blithely go through her day teaching and performing and occasionally bursting into song for no good reason. She would like to thank her husband and three sons for their understanding over the years.

Specialties:Piano

Carol Dietz started playing the violin after a few years of piano lessons when she was ten years old. There was a violin class offered at her school that met twice a week, which ultimately led to the beginning of her love for the violin, for playing in a group, and for her teacher Mrs. Brian. Mrs. Brian was tall, fashionable, and had a beautiful position and technique on the violin. Carol wanted to be just like her! Ever since then Carol has loved the sound of the violin, whether played by an expert or beginner. Thus she indulges herself in that sound twice a week at Dietz Bros., in private lessons and small group classes. There is nothing that gives her more thrill than the sound of tuning violins, so come and try a class or lesson with her and learn to love the squeaks and the glorious sounds of the violin.

Specialties: ( Violin & Viola , Harp )

Josh Brown splits his time between classical and electric guitar. When he’s not playing guitar, he’s probably at his repair bench fixing one. He recently started teaching group classes for beginning guitar and for forming a rock band. He plays lead guitar in the band Foot Foot.

Specialties: Guitar ( Electric , Classical )

Joseph lives, breaths, and digests music. An aspiring film composer obsessed with art and the emotional impact music makes on people. He picked up the guitar at the age of 12 after first hearing The Beatles Rubber Soul and has now been playing for over 11 years.

When in high school Joseph was eager to join his first band (E>K>U>K), sacrificing his love for guitar to play the bass. This was the beginning of a long relationship and a new direction in music that would take him far north as Seattle, Washington and far east as Austin, Texas to play the cities main musical event, South By Southwest 3 years in a row.  Touring was an eye opening experience for meeting new people and hearing all types of different music. And along the way was fortunate enough to have songs featured in major motion picture soundtracks and network television. Today you’re more likely to find Joseph recording and producing his own music in his hometown of Hawthorne, California.

Specialties: Guitar, Bass

Richard Schwagerl will help you to explore the three elements of music: melody, harmony, and rhythm. He will have you delve into playing by ear, improvisation, arrangement, and leading a band, all while practicing reading, writing, theory and good technique. Rich also leads group classes, such as School Of Rock, Jazz and Blues (all instruments and vocals welcome).

Richard earned a scholarship degree from USC, toured with Lou Rawls, and composed for MTV and The Travel Channel. He patented the Drum-A-Long System, which is sold nationally, and wrote Simple Principles of Learning. He also performs regularly as the bandleader of Island Voyage. “Proud and honored to be working with the Dietz Brothers since 1981.” – RS

Specialties: Piano, Steel Drums, Drums

Devitt Feeley has been singing and playing string instruments most of his life. He started early playing string bass in the public school systems of Chicago. Along the way he taught himself guitar, electric guitar, mandolin and violin. After high school he attended the Berklee College of Music studying String Bass performance and winning contests and awards throughout these early years. He performs in innumerable genres including rock, jazz, blues, classical, country and show tunes, but his love is bluegrass. He has won the Topanga Canyon Folk Festival Competition several times. Each win highlights his talent and diversity. He won for guitar performance, mandolin performance, best back-up musician, and most recently for best band (Rockyneck Bluegrass Band) in 2009.
His television appearances have been on The Next Great American Band as mandolinist and back-up vocals for Cliff Wagner and the Old #7, on Justified with the Rockyneck Blugrass Band and on My Fair Wedding also with the Rockyneck Bluegrass Band. He has opened for Leo Kottke, IIIrd Time Out and has shared the stage with John McEuen from the Nitty Gritty Dirt Band. He has worked at Dietz Bros Music for twenty years teaching and repairing instruments.

Maralynne Mann is a freelancing oboist and instructor in the Los Angeles and Orange County areas. Maralynne graduated Cum Laude from Chapman University in 2003 with a degree in music performance where she studied under Leslie Reed. In 2007 she entered the master’s degree program in oboe performance at the Cole Conservatory of Music at California State University, Long Beach where she studied under studio professional Joseph Stone, held principal positions in all ensembles and was selected to play with the University Wind Quintet. Throughout her career she has participated and performed in masterclasses with John Mack, David Weiss, Carolyn Hove and Marc Fink.
Maralynne is now a member of the wind quintet The Quintessential Winds. In 2010 they were fellows in the Chamber Music Institute in Lincoln, Nebraska and in 2011 they were selected guest artists of the Fairbanks Summer Arts Festival in Fairbanks, Alaska. Recently the quintet was named winners of the 2011 Beverly Hills Audition. Quintessential Winds is also featured on the Musician’s Roster of the Los Angeles Arts Commission alongside groups such as the Los Angeles Chamber Orchestra and Musica Angelica.
As a performer, Maralynne plays with many of the areas regional and collegiate orchestras. Recently, she was principal oboist with the Orange County Mormon Choral Organization where she played multiple sold-out performances in Orange County’s Segerstrom Hall. Additionally, she frequents the orchestra pits of local opera and musical theater companies across Southern-California.
Maralynne is also a passionate music educator with a large studio of students. She currently teaches oboe, piano, clarinet, and flute to students who have participated in the SCSBOA “All-southern” ensembles, the South Coast Youth Symphony Orchestra and many other youth ensembles in the Southern-California area.

Conor Griffin was raised right here in Manhattan Beach and began learning to play guitar at age 12. Since then he’s tried his hand at everything from drums and ukelele to bass but the guitar still remains his primary passion. He’s been rockin’ the halls of Dietz Brothers for about a year now and is excited to help you learn to play. When he’s not teaching or attending classes, Conor can be found writing songs for his band Another Side, Another Story.

Specialties: Guitar