This is a risky post, but it is a subject that has come up repeatedly over the last couple of months. Let’s imagine that a professor of a student who applied to this person’s studio reached out, a person I do not know, and that I am not associated with in any way (surprisingly, as…
Teaching Listening
One problem I see increasingly prevalent in higher education is a decline in teaching musical literacy. I began to realize this problem back in my time as a graduate student, one day in a cold February, sitting in a wind ensemble dress rehearsal as we hacked through Michael Colgrass’s Winds of Nagual. It’s an amazing…
The Other Work/Life Balance Article
I have seen an increasing number of musician Instagram accounts that espouse a “holistic” approach to musicianship. The party line is related to practices like yoga, meditation, and how work/life balance will benefit a career or are ingredients for some form of musical growth. Today, I would like to break this argument apart a bit…
Dave’s Dojo
Finally ready to go public with this. I am helping administer a wonderful new program with David Bilger, Principal Trumpet of the Philadelphia Orchestra.. Dave’s Dojo! This will run January through June. Designed to be a minimal investment, to fit a wide variety of time constraints, and to provide committed professional and preprofessional trumpeters a…
Trumpet Wizard
I’ve been thinking a lot about Gandalf. What, exactly, is a wizard? What does it take to become a wizard in Middle Earth? Read Tolkien’s books and get back to me (watch the movies and arrive at a very different interpretation). I have some theories based on what Tolkien wrote about wizards in Middle Earth.…
Under New Management
Fellow musicians! It’s been a while. The world is coming back alive. As such, it feels like everybody is getting back on the highway all at once, and it is making scheduling a special sort of nightmare. I suppose if there is such thing as a good kind of nightmare, it might be this. It…
Brass Connections — IN THE CAN!
After this upcoming Saturday, Brass Connections will be wrapped! It has been an incredible experience, with ups and downs (thankfully, mostly ups). I am sad to see it go, but happy with what we accomplished. The participants have been really, really incredible. I’m not saying that because every administrator has a responsibility to praise their…
Trumpet Mechanics
The last year has been a whirlwind of revelation for me. I have traveled the world “virtually” since the pandemic began, sensing that many who had seemingly been left behind now had a second lease on a career, and that the only obstacles for those individuals were money, time, and ego. So stuck not least…
National Opportunities
What Comes After All-State? You worked hard for months, you auditioned, and you’ve made All-District or All-State. First of all, congratulations! Your hard work has paid off. This document is to provide some possible next steps on your path to world domination. Because there is no “national band” (or at least, a multitude of options),…
Black Friday?
Let me start by first putting forth the thesis of this article as clearly as I can: if you want a career in music, you MUST invest. You cannot be shy about spending money to get the advice and guidance that you need. I had the wonderful experience of hosting U.S. Coast Guard bandsman and…