I am 27 years old. Born in Phoenix, Arizona. I started taking piano lessons rather late, around the age of 12, but I have always had a fascination for the instrument. I come from a non-musical family. Nevertheless, my parents always supported my passion.
While in middle school, my Mom would listen to jazz radio in the car. I remember listening to the classic John Coltrane quartet and falling in love with his music. The passion, creativity, expressiveness, mastery that he displayed was ( and still is) overwhelming to me. From that point on, jazz became a goal for me. I wanted to be able to establish my own sound. When jazz heads hear Coltrane, they know it’s Coltrane. It’s unmistakable. That has been the goal for me and my music since adolescence.
I went to a regular high school. No performing arts curriculum. No music classes. But during this time, I was able to strengthen my relationship between myself and the music. I was not a prodigy! Never was close to one. The music did not come easy. The transition to college was tough. I attended Chicago College of Performing Arts at Roosevelt University. I was accepted and granted a partial scholarship. I believe the professors saw my potential. I had little to no knowledge of music theory or music composition and I was technically inept. In those aspects, I was indeed deficient, to say the least. What I did have was passion and a desire to be great. That being said, my first year in college was an uphill battle. A lot of the other students came from a high school that provided a music curriculum. I worked hard, cramming the vast amount of classical theory into my mind, studying the technicalities of music and my instrument. A blue collar student. That is what I was. My private instructor, Jim Trompeter, was very helpful in getting my musicality up to par. He realized the passion I had. His goal was to help me reach my potential by laying a solid foundation of theory and technique. As lessons progressed and the semesters passed, everything started to click. Somewhere along the way, I found my own voice as a musician.
Studying the greats of many different genres has allowed me to manufacture a sound of my own. In college I was exposed to many different styles of jazz and classical music. I have spent personal time studying legends such as Thelonius Monk, Art Tatum, Cecil Taylor, Oscar Peterson, Keith Jarrett, Herbie Hancock, Chick Corea, Debussy, Liszt, Chopin, Beethoven and many more. Time spent with the great educators and musicians in Chicago, along with my innovative approach to musicianship has molded me into the musician that I am today.
Improvisation is a daunting aspect of composition and arrangement. In my music, it is a conduit of emotion and a looking glass into my soul. These recent years have led me astray from traditional jazz and into the realm of assimilating avant-garde/free jazz with elements of classical music. A lot of my music is through-composed. I find vast beauty in classical composition. I try to execute some of the qualities of classicism, romanticism, expressionism and impressionism while putting my own twist of jazz. My goal is to always create music that keeps the listener intrigued and wanting more. I also want to make music as intimate as possible for the listener and myself.
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