"The earth is but one country and mankind it's citizens" Baha'u'llah
There are choices to make every second of our lives. Choose the path of possibility.
Some brief history:
I started playing music when I was around 13 years of age in good old Freehold, New Jersey. I remember picking up a for the first time and just enjoying making stuff up. My earliest musical experiences were geared toward the hard rock "hair bands" of the 80's (I've got some funny pictures).
I moved to Miami, Florida shortly there after and started getting serious about music. I studied Classical Guitar up to graduating High School in 1991. In college, i was introduced to the amazing world of Jazz and I have not looked back since. I started teaching privately and "gigging" professionally at age 20.
I came to Texas in 1995 to continue my education in Jazz Studies at the University of North Texas, graduating in 2002.
I became a member of the Baha'i Faith also in 2002, which continues to influence and tranform my life daily both musically and spiritually.
Currently (as far as music goes), I'm focusing mainly on my original stuff (If you get a chance, check out the band site at www.myspace.com/primalpoint), the exploration of, the "generalized term", jazz and some classical. That's what really inspires me at the moment. I also play pretty regularly w/ the Chris Mcguire Trio (To see a schedule of up coming shows, go to www.myspace.com/thechrismcguiretrio) and help arrange and co-write for other musicians such as Katherine Kripke (that's me on Guitar at http://www.myspace.com/justkatmusic), Vahid Ndobe and Mandy Thompson.
I got married to my wonderfully, supportive wife, Carla November 27th, 2004 and together we've been apart of some tremendous teaching efforts as Bahai's excited about the present and future!!! We have two cats, Jazzy and Star, who are slowly trying to take over the world one hair ball at a time.
Education & Experience:
Music Performance Degree from MDCC. Major-Performance
Jazz Studies Degree from the University of North Texas. Major-Performance; Minor-Music Theory
Freelance musician (Guitar/Voice) all styles for over 20 yrs.
Specializing in Jazz, Rock, Classical, R&B, Blues, and all contemporary styles.
Composer/Arranger/Studio Musician/Producer
Private Teacher History (Guitar/Voice/Bass)
Capstone Muisc, Miami, Fla. 1993 to 1994
Kendall Conservatory, Miami, Fla. 1994 1995
Brook Mays Music, Lewisville, Tx. 1996 to 2006
Lone Star Music Academy, Flower Mound, Tx. 2006
Private Home Lessons 2005 to present
Ridglea Music, Ft. Worth, Tx. 2007 to present
As a teacher:
I believe first and foremost in supporting and developing what musically inspired a student in deciding to venture down the path of playing music at any age or level.
In order to fully develop the capacity of control, musicality and understanding of the music language, it is important to focus on several aspects of music including music theory (i.e. scale and harmonic structure/function and rhythm) ear-training, reading (depending on your aspirations) and other style related exercises.
Expectations of Students
Like any aspect of life, consistency and patience are two very important qualities to posses when working towards a goal. The duration of each practice session is proportional to the level of the student. Learning how to practice efficiently to get the most out of your time spent w/ your instrument is key for adherence and therefore reaching your goal. Overall, you have to play what inspires you!!!
