Part of what makes my blog a little different from those of some other professional musicians is that I tend to expound about the sorts of things that highlight my frailties rather than serve as promotional material. It’s a…
Practice is good. Common sense tells us it’s necessary for progress and essential to maintain our skill. In my lessons, I rarely teach people how to play- it’s mostly about diagnosing what makes something difficult and then developing strategies and…
I was watching SportsCenter when the coverage turned to NASCAR, whose championship was determined last night by the narrowest margin in history. It came down to the wire with Carl Edwards and Tony Stewart, who had been in…
Veterans Day. This morning, I was scanning what people had to say in their blogs and various social media outlets. One guy, a friend of mine, said something to the effect of “Happy lip service day! Too bad…
By hook, crook, bell, book and candle, I managed to infiltrate the ranks of the jazz department when I was at CSUN. Classically trained folks are usually a liability in such settings: stuck to the page, desperate for…
Note: I sat on this post for nearly two weeks, debating whether or not to publish it. Few topics are as sensitive and reflective of one’s world view as happiness is. It’s easy to glibly opine about the stuff burbling…
As a kid, people always asked what I wanted to do when I grew up. Maybe they could already detect my ill-fated and inconvenient relationship with music and were testing the waters for a more rational direction. It was around…
Getting good at something happens in cycles. My latest learning adventure has been Lindy hop. After my first 2 lessons, I was emboldened. I dove into the deep end and got crazy serious about it. I’ve had a few rough…
Ok peeps. Here’s the flyer for the Rockville lesson preview. I’m typically more old-school: I revere word of mouth and taking the time to establish a reputation, so being enterprising about lessons is a little uncomfortable for me. Nonetheless, I…
EDIT: The date has changed for this event! I’ll have confirmation up ASAP. Thanks. As part of my expanding private studio, I’m brewing up a little sample lesson/Q&A session in Rockville on the 25th. Here’s the flyer for…