Why Here, Why Now?

There comes a point in every aspiring professional’s life where sometimes, we just have to take things into our own hands. This springs from a myriad of reasons, but mine….well mine comes from my passion for teaching and music.

This passion has changed and matured throughout the years. It started out with a maddening desire to create the most amazing musicians ever, but has since evolved into something more comprehensive. It has become a desire and passion to spread the love of music to all. It doesn’t matter if you’ll become a professional musician or not, if you get the chance to participate in music, and are moved by it, and forever better because of it, then I’ve done my job right.

But why here, why now? That’s a pretty loaded question. The timing is perfect, conditions are even stellar, as you may say. I’ve just received my Masters, and now have more business sense than my younger self. Plus, I’ve always wanted to develop a studio that really catered to my students’ needs, and exposed them to a variety of options for what music could do for them. While I was able to do this with my students in my schools, I had a desire to really buckle down and focus my energy on the instrument I loved the most, the cello. This coupled with years of working with all string instruments allows me to focus on cello, arrange music for string ensembles, and to coach and teach strings groups. It’s really getting to do what I love, with a schedule that allows me to also pursue my never ending quest to strike the perfect balance between work and life. It frees up my schedule so I can enjoy the great outdoors: hiking, rock climbing, general frolicking in the fields, while also giving me the chance to be with my loved ones. An important thing to hold on to, and something I believe my students need to experience. Life is wonderful, music is wonderful, combine the two and you’re set.

At the same time, I want to be the teacher that teaches the important skills to my students. Skills like: how to breathe and maintain mental clarity while under stress, how to manage your time, how to stay organized, how to approach your practicing in a critical way, all the topics I always wanted to teach to my students but never had a chance to. Now is the time to finally explore these topics with my students, and to better equip them for life beyond music. Giving students skills that will serve them in school, in the working world, and in their own personal lives.

So, here I am. Freelancing with my cello, getting back into building up a studio, and still getting to be a strings education specialist and work as a teaching artist. It’s definitely going to be an interesting journey, but I’m excited to have you along for the ride!