Music production, DJ mixing, live performance, and creative technology.
ExploreDrawing, illustration, painting, mixed media, and creative exploration.
ExploreStapleton Tuition offers computer music tuition for students aged 5 to 18. Based at Candyland Studios in North Devon, we provide individualised learning in music production, live performance, and creative technology.
Every student receives a learning experience shaped around their interests, abilities, and pace.
Get in TouchTuition is organised around two core areas of practice.
Learning to compose, record, produce, and mix music using professional tools. Students work primarily with Ableton Live, alongside other software where appropriate, and develop skills in sound design, synthesis, sampling, arrangement, and mixing. Suitable for complete beginners and students with existing experience.
Areas of study may include: digital audio fundamentals, sound design and synthesis, sampling, song structure and arrangement, recording techniques, mixing, and music theory.
Learning to perform music live using technology. Students develop skills in DJ mixing, live electronic performance, controller‑based setups, and the design of performance systems — covering both the technical and creative aspects.
Areas of study may include: DJ mixing, live electronic performance, controller and MIDI systems, performance software, set design and preparation, and sound system awareness.
Across both areas, students encounter ways of making music that go beyond conventional instruction. Generative and interactive music systems invite engagement rooted in play, curiosity, and expression. Students learn by interacting with systems that listen, respond, and evolve — developing musicianship through dialogue with the technology rather than simply operating it. For students who find traditional learning environments difficult, this approach can be particularly effective.
Our computer music tuition is led by Reece Duncan‑Johnston — a musician, producer, and educator whose practice spans electronic music production, live performance, mental health support, and special educational needs.
Reece holds a degree in electronic music production and has been active in the art and performance scene in Bristol, both as a practitioner and as a collaborator — facilitating other artists' creative work and recordings in his studio. His research draws on ecomusicology — the study of music in relation to culture and the natural environment — alongside an ongoing practice in generative interactive music systems. This work directly informs how he teaches and what he brings to sessions.
Reece has worked as a mental health professional, and has also worked supporting students with complex needs in a special educational needs school. He understands how different minds learn, and how to create an environment where a student feels comfortable enough to experiment and find their own creative voice. He brings a particular interest in creative play and therapeutic approaches to music‑making.
Candyland Studios sits within thirteen acres of woodland, and the land is a working space. Students learn to listen, to record, and to understand how sound behaves in physical environments. Reece draws on principles of biomimicry — patterns, structures, and behaviours found in the natural world — to inform composition and sound design. For many students, this connection between music‑making and the living environment is both intuitive and therapeutic.
His current work centres on generative and interactive music systems — technologies that respond to the student in real time. This sits at the intersection of composition, improvisation, and play, and offers a different way of engaging with music and technology.
Individual sessions tailored to the student's needs, pace, and interests.
Small group sessions and music making workshops are available for students who prefer a collaborative environment, or for schools and organisations.
Sessions make use of recording and performance equipment at Candyland Studios, as well as the woodland and surrounding land.
Sessions are available online via Zoom, for students who cannot attend in‑person.
Reece operates a complete mobile rig that can be set up anywhere. Sessions can be delivered at the student's home, at school, or outdoors. Field trips into the surrounding landscape use the natural environment as both source material and a working space.
Students are encouraged to use their own computers and can be advised on what they may need. All necessary equipment is provided during sessions.
Please get in touch to discuss rates and availability.
Stapleton Tuition offers visual art tuition for students aged 5 to 18. Based at Candyland Studios in North Devon, we provide individualised learning in drawing, painting, illustration, and a wide range of artistic disciplines.
Every student receives a learning experience shaped around their interests, abilities, and pace.
Get in TouchTuition is organised around two core areas of practice.
Learning to observe, draw, and develop a personal illustration practice. Students work across a range of materials and techniques, building foundational skills in line, tone, composition, and visual storytelling. Suitable for complete beginners and students with existing experience.
Areas of study may include: observational drawing, illustration, figure drawing, perspective, composition, mark‑making, visual narrative, and sketchbook development.
Learning to work with colour, texture, and material across painting and mixed media disciplines. Students develop skills in a range of techniques and are encouraged to explore different approaches to find their own voice.
Areas of study may include: painting, printmaking, collage, textiles, sculpture, ceramics, and multimedia.
Across both areas, students encounter ways of making art that go beyond conventional instruction. Illustration and visual storytelling are central to this — students learn to develop narratives through their work, to interpret the world around them, and to communicate ideas visually. Sessions encourage students to find meaning through personal expression and creative exploration. For students who find traditional learning environments difficult, this approach can be particularly effective.
Our visual art tuition is led by Isabella Duncan‑Johnston — an artist, illustrator, and educator whose practice spans illustration, body art, sculpture, photography, and film. She also brings experience in special educational needs.
Isabella studied visual art before completing a degree in electronic music production in Bristol. She runs her tattoo and art studio at Candyland Studios, where her ornamental tattoo work is integrated with English folklore and mythology. She has undertaken commissioned work for a range of clients and creatives. Her interdisciplinary practice spans both analogue and digital, with sculptural, photographic, and film‑based projects sitting alongside her illustration and tattoo work.
Isabella's own work is rooted in English folklore and mythology — informed by a belief that these stories carry vital lessons worth reviving. Devon holds ancient lands, and the environment around Candyland Studios offers rich material for interpretation and creative reappropriation. This perspective informs how she teaches and what she brings to sessions.
Isabella has also worked supporting students with complex needs in a special educational needs school. She understands how different minds learn, and how to create an environment where a student feels comfortable enough to experiment and find their own creative voice. She brings a particular interest in the therapeutic aspects of art‑making and in creative exploration as a way of generating ideas.
Having grown up on Stapleton Farm, Isabella has always been deeply integrated into the surrounding woodland. The land is a working space. Students learn to observe, to sketch from life, and to draw inspiration directly from the natural environment. For many students, this connection between art‑making and the living environment is both intuitive and therapeutic.
Individual sessions tailored to the student's needs, pace, and interests.
Small group sessions and art workshops are available for students who prefer a collaborative environment, or for schools and organisations.
Sessions take place in a fully equipped art studio at Candyland Studios, with all necessary materials provided.
Sessions are available online via Zoom, for students who cannot attend in‑person.
Isabella can deliver sessions at the student's home, at school, or outdoors. Field trips and sketching sessions extend into the woodland and surrounding landscape — working from life and integrating nature, culture, and the environment into the creative process.
Students are encouraged to use their own materials and can be advised on what they may need. All necessary equipment is provided during sessions.
Please get in touch to discuss rates and availability.
To arrange an initial consultation, discuss your child's interests, or ask any questions, please get in touch.