Guitar Lessons in Memphis, TN

Instruments: Saxophone Flute Clarinet Bassoon

If you have a Music Degree, what is it in (Performance, Education, Musicology, Theory, Composition, etc) and why did you choose that degree?
I have three music degrees. My first degree is a Bachelor's in Music Education. I entered this field because my initial goal was to become a band director exactly like my high school director. I've since developed my own more individual goals rather than just becoming someone else, but the love and necessity of teaching has always been present in my musical experience. I continued afterwards to get a Masters Degree and an Artist Diploma in Music Performance, because I really love spending time on my instrument. Becoming a strong performer requires so much more than hours in the practice room, and pursuing this path has led me to really understanding my own musical fulfillment that I aim too share with each of my students.

What is your dream piece to perform and why?
I actually have performed my dream piece, but I would love to do it again! The piece is Ciranda des Sete Notas by Heitor Villa-Lobos, and it is a short solo piece for bassoon and string orchestra. It's extremely exciting, and flashy, and touching, and ends in the most beautifully profound and intimate way, especially compared to how large and grandiose similar pieces end. It's such a fun and engaging piece that shows off so much of the instrument and so much of the player, and really means so much to me musically.

What does a normal practice session look like for you?
My practice sessions are actually split up into multiple sessions per day. I always begin with fundamentals, which I have a routine that is constantly adapting based on what my performance needs are. The constants are a focus on finger facility, tone production and maintenance, and articulation. This often translates to scales, long tones, and some home-brewed articulation exercises. After fundamentals, I have my "daily excerpt" maintenance session. For professional, auditioning musicians, there is an expectation of pieces we should be able to play on every audition. This section of my day is based on keeping the technique for those excerpts in shape. I'll isolate sections at a reduced tempo, ranging from 80-95% and focus on fluency for each piece. The third section of my practice is the "right now" session. This includes preparing music for anything I have upcoming urgently: auditions, performances, lessons. It is similar to the daily excerpt practice but much more focused on smaller segments, again practicing slowly to build comfort. The last section of my day is for me, I play music that I love playing to remind myself that even in the midst of preparing and working, this is a fun and beautiful thing to do. I am forgiving of mistakes, and only play music that makes me happy.

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