IronWorks Percussion Duo Concert

The IronWorks Percussion Duo will be presenting a Faculty Artist Series Concert on Thursday, March 1, 2012 at the Bob Cole Conservatory of Music at CSU, Long Beach. The duo will perform a diverse percussion program including: Go – Robert McClure Red Tree, Yellow Sky – Bill Ryan Ollin – Tizoc Ceballos (BCCM Alumnus) Two Duets – Randall Bauer Crash – Terry Longshore A Feast of Thunder – Sherwood Shaffer Circle Takes the Square – Axel Clarke & Dave Gerhart Tickets are $10 & $7 and are available at the door. For more...

UT, Austin Residency

It has been a busy couple of weeks! Last week, I was in Austin at the University of Texas. While in Austin, I worked with the UT Steel Drum Band and Percussion studio. During the residency, the UT Steel Drum Band premiered a new piece I wrote called Samba de los Changitos. (I will post the audio and/or video when it becomes available). I would like to thank Dr. Thomas Burritt for bringing me to UT Austin and David Saad, director of the UT Steel Drum Band! I would also like to thank my sponsors Yamaha Percussion Instruments, Zildjian Cymbals, Innovative Percussion, and...

The Working Percussionist

For the past 13 years, I have been a lecturer at the Bob Cole Conservatory of Music @ CSU, Long Beach, and every semester my students ask me what it takes to succeed as a working percussionist. Now that it is February and the semester is up and running, I thought I would include some of those thoughts here. I strongly believe we need to create our own opportunities in order to “succeed” as a working musician. Sure, some of us are going to win a Symphony audition or be at the right place at the right time, but more likely, you are going to have to work hard,...

Technology and Its Use by Percussion Edu...

Over the summer, Dr. Tracy Wiggins (UNC Pembroke) asked me to contribute to an article he was writing for The Percussive Notes journal. After waiting 6 months, it has finally been released in the January 2012 issue. The article features an interview with three other percussion professors, including Norman Weinberg (University of Arizona), John W. Parks IV (The Florida State), and Thomas Burritt (University of Texas, Austin). I was honored to be a part of the article. Thank you Tracy! Technology Article For more information about the Percussive Arts Society, please visit...

Tibetan Singing Bowl Samples

As I mentioned in a previous post that I am performing an improvisation concert on Friday, February 2. The concert will feature over 50 Tibetan Singing Bowls. Carolyn Bremer has graciously shared some of the audio samples that I talked about in that post. Here are three sounds samples below. Enjoy! [ti_audio media=”234″]   [ti_audio media=”232″]   [ti_audio media=”233″]   For more information about the concert, visit the FaceBook Event Page. The concert is free and if you have a Tibetan bowl, please bring it with you!...

What is Proper Stage Etiquette?

There is so much to know about being a musician that sometimes the little things are not addressed. Some of those “little things” are etiquette issues. As teachers, we can only do so much in lessons and ensemble rehearsals. So I’ve have decided to start a list. I would like to start an open dialogue about etiquette issues and create a comprehensive list that can be turned into a PDF that we can all share with our students. I welcome any feedback and contributions. My previous blog post, Ten Things I Wish I Knew Going into my First Ensemble Rehearsal...

CV or Resume: Which one do you use?

What is the difference between a CV (curriculum vitae) and a resume? In this post I want to discuss the major differences between a CV and Resume and show you an example of each. As a student, I think it is very important to have an updated resume. You will need to use a resume for grad school auditions and job interviews. It also comes in handy when you apply for scholarships at your university or to PASIC. Keep all of your programs and try and update your resume at least twice a year (Summer and Winter Break). The main difference between a CV and a Resume is the length...

An Evening of Tibetan Singing Bowls II

Last year, the chair of the Bob Cole Conservatory of Music, Carolyn Bremer, began collecting a lot of Tibetan Singing Bowls. I am not sure the exact number of bowls that she owns, but it is probably around +/- 50. During the Spring 2011 semester, Carolyn decided she wanted to record the bowls and I asked if I could come to the session and bring a bunch of my mallets. An hour or so later, we had recorded many different sized bowls with many different mallets. (I will have to see if I can get some of the samples to post here). After the recording session, we talked about...

Bossa de los Changitos

Over the past couple of weeks, I have been working on a new steel drum piece called Bossa de los Changitos. The piece will be premiered while during my residency at the University of Texas at Austin on February 21, 2012. Here’s a midi realization: [soundcloud url=”http://api.soundcloud.com/tracks/33518847″] I hope you enjoy the recording. In the next couple of weeks, I will be refining the piece and adding percussion. ——– The photo in this post is used under the Creative Commons License: Attribution – NonCommercial – No...

IronWorks CD Review in Percussive Notes

The Percussive Arts Society is the largest professional organization for percussionists. They society publishes 6 journals yearly and supports percussion education throughout the world. In the January 2012 issue of Percussive Notes, Darin Olson gave a great review on the new IronWorks Percussion Duo CD – I. Thanks to PAS and Darin for including our CD in the recent publication. IronWorks Percussion Duo (Self-published CD) Formed in 2006, the IronWorks Percussion Duo aims to expand the repertoire written for their medium. Attempting to explore new possibilities for...