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BA, Yale University, 1992. Played with the Yale Symphony Orchestra, Yale Jazz Ensemble, Yale Concert Band, and Yale Glee Club. Clarinet studies with professors Keith Wilson and David Shifrin. Saxophone studies with James Forger and William Street.
I have been teaching clarinet and saxophone lessons for over 25 years, and continue to really enjoy helping students reach their full potential. I have introduced many beginners to both instruments, and have also taken on students who are in middle school or high school and never had a lesson.
I have played many diverse styles over the years. In addition to being well known in the world of classical saxophone, where I have worked with and studied with several world famous players, I have always enjoyed playing in jazz ensembles and playing clarinet in both chamber music and symphony orchestra settings. Music has given me the opportunity to tour to a dozen countries and perform in some of the world's great concert halls, from Carnegie Hall to Lincoln Center in New York to halls in London, Moscow, Kiev, and Tokyo. I perform regularly with the Sound Beach Community Band and the Westchester Symphonic Winds. I have made professional appearances with the Norwalk Symphony Orchestra, the Greenwich Symphony Orchestra, the Fontenay Chamber Players, the Norm Hathaway Jazz Orchestra, and Music On The Hill. While studying at Interlochen, I performed with the World Youth Wind Symphony and Jazz Ensemble.
I have a set of six books that I use with beginning student, and gradually add a few more when they have been studying for a year or two. One book I use with all my students is a compendium of scale exercises that I wrote and published myself. I have continued to refine this method over the years and make it available to all my students. The results have been outstanding! Over the years, my students have consistently placed high in the Western Region Band, Jazz Ensemble, and Orchestra, and several of them have gone on to the extremely competitive Connecticut All-State Band, Jazz Ensemble, and Orchestra. Four of my students have successfully auditioned for the summer program at Interlochen. I have had two of my high school aged students have gone on to Harvard, one to Amherst, and three to Yale - all of whom played in the Yale Concert Band, Yale Jazz Ensemble, and/or Yale Symphony Orchestra.
I am looking for students who have the time and energy to dedicate themselves to practicing a minimum of four times per week. My lessons are fast paced and fun, and students who practice regularly can expect to see noticeable improvement in their playing each week. In each lesson I will introduce some new techniques and will work with you on scales, fundamentals, exercises from a method book, and music (classical, jazz, or both, depending on the player's preferences).