Woodwinds Faculty

"A good saxophonist, first and foremost, has to have a tremendous sound. Without a great sound, there is only noise. Secondarily, he or she needs a strong command of the instrument. The saxophone is a great instrument for demonstrating speed and dexterity. The saxophone is also one of the most expressive instruments. It probably resembles the human voice most closely in flexibility and nuance, as well as the personality of the sound. Every saxophonist has a personal sound."

"I teach private instruction for saxophone, focusing on getting a good sound, reading, and improvisation. Sometimes a lesson turns out to be more like a counseling session. Students are always going  through stress, family problems, anxiety, etc. So we just talk. . . . I try to be a good listener. One problem some individuals have is how to use their time wisely in order to accomplish their goals/dreams. A suggestion I've given is to write down on a piece of paper a plan for the week, month, or semester. I think this is very helpful for kids who are scattered or lack discipline. I tell them that I have to make choices every day, too. It's all about priorities in one's life and making good choices."

"I feel that the school environment should be opening students to try different things. Then they gather what works well for them, and ultimately it creates their own voice. I try to be very open and all-inclusive, and I also try to approach a particular topic in a bunch of different ways: visually, aurally, and kinesthetically. Since a lot of woodwind students are classically trained, I want them to have the freedom to be able to explore and try new things, to free the mind from negative self-talk and just go ahead, dive in, and take a chance and explore. When you're in school, it's the time for exploration, for seeing what's out there rather than being close minded. So I do teach classical students, but I also teach people who are interested in branching out in other types of improvisation."

"Playing with Art Blakey's and Tony Williams's bands, I really felt a part of a jazz lineage. And I was able to play with them long enough to be part of a living, growing organism. Over a period of time playing with the same people, the music morphs into something more than the composer may have intended. It develops into more than the sum of its parts. Because of that experience, I can convey to students the significance of a group concept, a band concept. Music is a source of communication between people, regardless of whether you want to be a star or not."

"I tell students to try to have a long-range goal of five years, a shorter-range goal of a year, and then we start breaking it down to what we want to do by next week. And of course, what are we going to do today? Then we can jot down some short notes, and look at it every few weeks and evaluate. The plan can always be altered over time. I always tell them that if they more than double their age, I'm still older than they are, so they have so much time on this planet! Don't worry about the time pressure. Things need to cook at their own rate. As long as you're enjoying the moment—that's it, stop there. Have a generalized plan, but you can reevaluate at any point. Take the pressure off. Enjoy what you're doing."