The Short Story
(I've since lost the moustache and the tie!)
I'm in my fifth decade as a professional musician and fourth decade as an educator. I played piano well enough to, at eighteen, leave the jazz and country music bands of my youth in Northern Ontario to earn a Bachelor of Music degree at Berklee College of Music in Boston. I then spent the next two decades working as a commercial musician in the entertainment industry working with “the famous, the infamous, the hopeful, and the hopeless.” It was a colourful time. To close that chapter, in my forties, I began studying piano pedagogy at the Royal Conservatory of Music in Toronto and after five thousand hours of practice I graduated with an Associate of Royal Conservatory of Music diploma (ARCT) earning local, provincial, and national scholarships. The next decade was spent traveling coast to coast adjudicating music festivals and piano examinations. The next pivot, at fifty, was taking up drumming which led to jazz performances in Rome Italy, New Orleans LA, Wrocław Poland, Louisville KY, and Toronto ON. Now I’m happily giving online piano lessons from my online studio in Toronto and in my spare time playing music with retired professional musicians, holding a percussion chair in the Toronto Concert Band, and completing an undergraduate degree in the Humanities.
The Long Story
Act one:
I began piano lessons in high school. Despite my unfocused practice habits, I was soon earning money playing jazz and country music in the bars of Northern Ontario. I can still smell the smoke, perfume, stale beer of the sweaty quarrelling patrons. Think "Urban Cowboy" meets "O Brother, Where Art Thou? Such was the life of a North Bay musician in 1978.
Act two:
So off I went to Boston at 18 to attend Berklee College of Music in Boston. That went well; I left with a Bachelor of Music in Jazz Composition, and enough skills to launch a sustainable career. For the next 20 years, I worked in the musical trenches as a pianist, studio musician, bandleader, music copyist, arranger, music director, and finally agent/ producer in the Toronto entertainment business working with "the famous, the infamous, the hopeful, and the hopeless." Along the way, I spent two decades as a volunteer music director with the Canadian Youth Synthesizer Orchestra and later the Westdale Secondary School Senior Jazz band travelling around North America competing at music festivals.
Act Three:
It was time for a mid-life career change: Classical piano teacher. To that end, I pursued my ARCT in Piano Pedagogy at the Royal Conservatory of Music in Toronto. Bingo, four years, and five thousand hours of practice later I graduated a local, provincial, and national scholarship winner. I began to enthusiastically teach fulltime, give workshops, and for a decade, adjudicated music festivals and piano exams across Canada.
Act Four:
At age 50 I took up the drums in response to a challenge from an older piano student who said, "you have no idea how hard it is to learn to play a musical instrument after age 50!" (He was 70-year-old retired anatomy professor) A dozen years later I'm a percussionist playing around Toronto in numerous types of ensembles including classical, jazz, country, rock, and wind orchestra. The insights I've gained from learning to play the drums I bring to my teaching practice working with adult beginners. I look forward to helping you with your piano adventure too.
The Full Story Of My Musical Education
The Long Story
Act one:
I began piano lessons in high school. Despite my unfocused practice habits, I was soon earning money playing jazz and country music in the bars of Northern Ontario. I can still smell the smoke, perfume, stale beer of the sweaty quarrelling patrons. Think "Urban Cowboy" meets "O Brother, Where Art Thou? Such was the life of a North Bay musician in 1978.
Act two:
So off I went to Boston at 18 to attend Berklee College of Music in Boston. That went well; I left with a Bachelor of Music in Jazz Composition, and enough skills to launch a sustainable career. For the next 20 years, I worked in the musical trenches as a pianist, studio musician, bandleader, music copyist, arranger, music director, and finally agent/ producer in the Toronto entertainment business working with "the famous, the infamous, the hopeful, and the hopeless." Along the way, I spent two decades as a volunteer music director with the Canadian Youth Synthesizer Orchestra and later the Westdale Secondary School Senior Jazz band travelling around North America competing at music festivals.
Act Three:
It was time for a mid-life career change: Classical piano teacher. To that end, I pursued my ARCT in Piano Pedagogy at the Royal Conservatory of Music in Toronto. Bingo, four years, and five thousand hours of practice later I graduated a local, provincial, and national scholarship winner. I began to enthusiastically teach fulltime, give workshops, and for a decade, adjudicated music festivals and piano exams across Canada.
Act Four:
At age 50 I took up the drums in response to a challenge from an older piano student who said, "you have no idea how hard it is to learn to play a musical instrument after age 50!" (He was 70-year-old retired anatomy professor) A dozen years later I'm a percussionist playing around Toronto in numerous types of ensembles including classical, jazz, country, rock, and wind orchestra. The insights I've gained from learning to play the drums I bring to my teaching practice working with adult beginners. I look forward to helping you with your piano adventure too.
The Full Story Of My Musical Education
- 1972 I attended my first summer music camp in Kirkland Lake ON. I met Harry Forbes, a composer, guitarist and synthesist who introduced me to the ARP 2600 synthesizer. I was hooked!
- 1974 The following summer I attended a rock music camp with the Canadian rock band Lighthouse. Bill King, a jazz pianist, former Janis Joplin music director, Beaches Jazz Festival Music founder and radio personality, introduced me to rock piano styles and more importantly, how to make a living as a pianist.
- 1982 I graduate from Berklee College of Music, Boston, MA with a Bachelor of Music in Jazz Composition and Arranging. My music teachers included Ray Santisi, Herb Pomeroy, Andy Jaffe, and Michael Gibbs.
- 1981-1984 I took private studies in Boston and Hamilton ON in counterpoint and composition the late Dr. Hugo Norden, Professor Emeritus Boston Conservatory and Dr. Hugh Hartwell, The School of Art, Drama, and Music, McMaster University.
- 1998 to 2002 I worked with the late Donald Himes, of Mr. Dress-up fame, on healthy piano teaching methodologies. I needed to work to overcome and restore my piano skills after sustaining serious injuries playing the piano.
- 2002 I had my eyes, ears, and heart opened with Free Jazz studies with Victor Bateman in Toronto, which lead to performances with Glen Hall and redShift, a creative free jazz performing unit in Toronto. Other free jazz performances followed with Jason Hammer, Michael Morse, Alan Molnar, Cheryl o, and many others.
- 2002-2007 I began Classical piano and music education studies with Leon Karan. Additional music education, theory and music history studies with Francine McIsaac and Dr. Janet Lopinski. I sat for my first piano exam, Grade 10, at age 44. I won a scholarship.
- 2007 I earned an ARCT Teachers diploma from the Royal Conservatory of Toronto. I was the recipient of the Adelmo Melecci Scholarship, the Gordan Hallett Scholarship from the Royal Conservatory of Music Toronto, and a Hamilton ORMTA Scholarship
- 2013 More Classical Piano with Leon Karan and drumming with Paul DeLong
- 2014 Jazz drumming at the Jamie Aebersold Summer Jazz Workshop at the University of Louisville Kentucky. Jazz drumming with Kevin Dempsey in Burlington Ontario.
- 2014 Coursera online course: "Introduction to Music Production".
- 2015-2017 Jazz drumming at the Jamie Aebersold Summer Jazz Workshop at the University of Louisville Kentucky.
- 2015-2017 Jazz drumming with Terry Clarke, CM, Terry Clarke is an invested as a member of the Order of Canada. He has also been honored as Drummer of the Year at the Canadian National Jazz Awards (2002, 2004-2008). I was his keenest student.
- 2018-2019 Traditional jazz studies in New Orleans with Hal Smith and Gerald French.
- 2018 Jazz drumming in Poland with Ali Jackson and Pedagogy with Aaron Goldberg.
- 2019-2020 Classical piano with Dr. Jacqueline Leung and Jazz Pedagogy with Mark Eisenman.
- 2020 Facilitating Adult Learning Workshop at the Francis Clarke Institute, New Jersey USA.
- 2021-2022 Classical piano with Dr. Jacqueline Leung. Drumming with Lowell Whitty.
- 2021 Online Teaching certification with the Royal Conservatory of Music, Toronto.
- 2022 Louisville Jazz Workshop with Mike Tracy.
- 2022 Summer Intensive Workshop at The Royal Conservatory.
- 2022 I begin work on another undergraduate degree in the Humanities with a focus on the history of Philosophy; percussion lessons continue.
Employment
Some Musical Highlights of my Journeyman music career:
My Hobbies:
- 1974-to present: Professional musician
- 1982 to present: Piano Teacher, Toronto: My students range from young beginners to advanced university students, professional musicians, and piano teachers.
- 2007 to 2017: Examiner Conservatory Canada
- 1998-2005 Part-time Entertainment Consultant, Elwood Saracuse Productions: I was responsible for account management and production of corporate shows in the Toronto area as a musician, producer, and agent. Our clients included Blue Chip Canadian and American firms. I had the opportunity to work with many household name entertainers from Canada and the USA.
- 1982-1988 Electronic Music Consultant: I worked with many school boards and religious organizations in the mid 1980’s implementing electronic keyboards and synthesizers into school music programs and worship services. This included classroom work, teacher training, and manual writing. School boards included Niagara, Hamilton, Halton, Peel, Durham, McMaster University Continuing Education Department, and the Salvation Army.
- 1983-1998 Piano Teacher, Long and McQuade, Burlington
Some Musical Highlights of my Journeyman music career:
- Forming a jazz quartet and hiring legends: the late saxophonist D.T. Thompson, bassist Jack McFadden, and the late drummer Bill Graham. Deep swing, simple chords, the primacy of groove, and classic jazz repertoire.
- Mediterràneo: my Latin jazz quartet with Louis Mario, Paco Luviano, Steve Lucas, Mark Sepic, Paul DeLong and many others.
- Swing music with The Jazz Extension Swing Band: Myrna Van Weerdenburg on vocals, Michael Morse on bass, Lenny Van Bruggen on drums and Nick Van Weerdenburg, the leader, on clarinet and sax.
- Being a member of the Poetiks, Credo 5 and other new music groups consisting of improvising musicians and poets. We've performed at poetry and improvised music events in the GTA. I still occasionally participate in AIMT activities in Toronto.
- Performing with Nelson Ned, a Brazilian crooner, at Canada's Wonderland in front of thousands of screaming women, and hilarious performances with The Platters.
- Arranging some music for the opening Massey Hall concert of the Toronto Pops Orchestra.
- Arranging some music for the orchestra during the Lech Walesa’s visit to Canada at Copps
- Coliseum.
- Performing in a two-piano jazz quartet with the McMaster University Orchestra in performances of Bach’s Dm Keyboard Concerto.
- Music copying for the CBC, NBC, Miss America Pageant, the Canadian Music Centre, and numerous Canadian and American composers of note.
- Jazz Duo with New Yorker Richard Greenberg, at Cravings after-hours club, Perth, Western Australia
- Jazz Duo with "Eddie B,” Tinkers Jazz Club, Boston. We were a comedic "salt and pepper act" (I was the salt) opening jazz act, six nights a week, 12 shows for Betty Carter, Chris Connor, Woody Shaw, Ester Philips and others. Accompanying the late Mr. Aso, Japanese tenor in Boston. This was my introduction to Opera.
- Performances of my orchestral compositions including "Fantasia" with the Hamilton Philharmonic Youth Orchestra under the direction of Glenn Mallory and the Canadian Youth Synthesizer Orchestra. As Fats Waller shouted out during a particularly perfect musical moment, “Shoot me while I’m happy!”
- “On the road” with the Canadian Youth Synthesizer Orchestra and the Westdale Senior Jazz Band: NYC, Boston, San Francisco, Montreal, Quebec City, Chicago and more.
My Hobbies:
- Synthesizers
- Playing drums and xylophone
- Attending the ballet
- Cooking Paella
- Riding my bike.