Piano Lessons in Westfield, NJ

Instruments: Piano Saxophone Clarinet

If you have a Music Degree, what is it in (Performance, Education, Musicology, Theory, Composition, etc) and why did you choose that degree?
My music degree, on paper, says "B.A. in Music from Bard College." Bard is a fairly small liberal arts college with a wide offering of studies with a somewhat limited offering of degree titles. If I could change my degree to reflect more accurately what I studied, it would probably say something like 'B.A. in saxophone performance and composition with a concentration in Jazz.' The reason I walked away from Bard with the vague "B.A. in Music" was because I knew I had to study music and I knew it couldn't be at a music school. I have other areas of academic interests that would have languished at a New School or a Berklee College of Music where one's only serious focus is on music. I credit my ability to write and speak clearly, as well as to communicate effectively with others, to my time at Bard. I also credit my saxophone playing and general musicianship to my time at Bard.

What is your favorite style/genre of music to play and why?
Without question, my favorite style of music to play is Jazz. Jazz is heavily improvised, as everyone knows, but it is hardly random. There are certain strictures and conventions that most jazz musicians abide by to a certain extent, and in this way it is similar to classical music. But it differs in that the jazz musician is successful when originality and creativity has been achieved, not perfection. To admit perfection would be to deny the years and years of expanding improvisational possibilities that we all know are still before us as jazz musicians. Those years of learning and improvement to come make us hungry and make jazz a truly sustainable, life long art form.

If you play more than one instrument, how did you decide to start playing the second? (Or 3rd, 4th, 5th, etc)!
My first instrument was actually the piano, so my second instrument, the saxophone, is what I actually consider to be my main instrument. But I took piano lessons for 8 years, so I certainly have some piano skills as well. The reason I chose to learn clarinet and most recently the flute (still a work in progress) is, frankly, to be a more versatile, marketable, woodwind player. The reality is that in this day and age, those wind players who can double, triple, quadruple, etc. get more gigs. I consider myself like that I actually love the timber of the flute and clarinet (especially bass clarinet), so learning them isn't just a job requirement but is also of personal interest to me.

When did you decide to become a professional musician? Was it a gradual decision or was there a defining moment for you?
Like a lot of major life decisions, I think I had all the motivation and daydreaming to decide to become a professional musician well before I actually decided to. Even as a sophomore in high school, I knew that nothing excited me the way that learning jazz saxophone did. Not english, history, politics, track, or basketball—all things a truly enjoyed. But even by the time I was applying for colleges I thought I would go in as a literature major and add a major in music if I thought I could handle it. But by the end of my freshman year in college, I knew I would graduate as a music major. I'd say my title as 'professional musician' is a consequence of my need to play music in life, and the resulting lack of preparation of making a living some other way.

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