About Me

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Atlanta, GA, United States
When I suffered a lip injury that ended my career as a classical trombonist, I thought my life as a musician was finished, but I fell in love with music all over again when Santa gave me a guitar for Christmas in 2003. Even as I was struggling with my first chords, I was planning a new performance career. As a trombonist, I performed with the Heritage of America Band at Langley Air Force Base, the Ohio Light Opera, and in pick-up bands for touring acts that included Rosemary Clooney, George Burns, and the Manhattan Transfer. Reborn as a jazz guitarist, I sing and play my own solo arrangements of jazz classics, am half of the Godfrey and Guy duo, and hold the guitar chair in the Sentimental Journey Orchestra. I have been a freelance music copyist since 1995, served as Director of Music at Northwest Unitarian Universalist Congregation from 2011 to 2017, and currently serve as Contemporary Band Director at the same congregation.

Saturday, July 4, 2015

Fortunate One

At last night's weekly Godfrey and Guy gig at Noosh, a customer asked the manager to ask us to turn down the music. I don't believe that the customer is always right. We use the volume knob judiciously, and as a guitar/voice jazz duo, our music tends to be gentle, with a lot of space. The rest of the customers were so loud that we could barely hear ourselves. Maybe the customer felt like the only thing she could possibly control was the music, because she certainly couldn't tell the other customers to be quiet. We grumbled through the rest of the night about this.

As I woke up this morning, I reminded myself that, despite the occasional annoyance, I'm very fortunate to be doing what I'm doing. As a matter of fact, things are really coming together this summer, and I find myself doing exactly what I want to be doing. I teach private guitar lessons three days a week, hold down two weekly gigs, and work part time as a church music director.

Am I satisfied? Well, not really. There is always another hill to climb. I'd like to find another weekly Godfrey and Guy gig. I'd like round out my student roster by filling in the remaining slots on the days I teach. I'd like to land a few more corporate and wedding gigs. I'd like to build the Godfrey and Guy duo into a full fledged jazz band. But honestly, things are humming along. It feels like the pieces of my life's puzzle are finally coming together. I'm lucky to be doing what I'm doing, even if I have to turn to volume down sometimes.

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