I enjoy working through all of the challenges and triumphs with my students. I know how important it can be to have a mentor for bass playing and also just for life itself, so I like filling that role. It’s satisfying to be able to help my students progress technically, but it’s especially important to me that they also learn things like self-confidence, perseverance, hard work, and how to use the bass as a tool for emotional expression. What advice do you give to aspiring professional musicians, and bassists, in particular? The practical advice I most often give is to focus on time management. I think it’s incredibly important to figure out which time of day is most productive for practicing. For some people, that’s nighttime or afternoon. Some people focus better in small chunks throughout the day, others one long session. For me, I concentrate best in the morning, so I used to schedule my classes and the rest of my life around a three-hour window of practice each morning. It’s easy to end up busy and stressed throughout college, but if
The more Yoda answer is not to sell yourself short. Confidence can be a goal. It’s good to be hard on yourself to a degree because it will help you continue to progress and grow, but you have to know your worth and not let selfcriticism take over. Which musicians inspire and influence the way you play? Bassists who inspire me are François Rabbath, Edgar Meyer, and Renaud Garcia-Fons. Non-bassists who inspire me recently are Kendrick Lamar, TuneYards, and Vulfpeck. I love a funky bass line just as much as any classical piece. What’s the most rewarding part of your job? Looking around while we’re playing and knowing that we’re all feeling the same thing. During our recent Pops concert, the strings section performed Barber’s Adagio for Strings, and the emotion among my colleagues was apparent. In day-to-day life, it often seems like we’re trying to temper and conceal our feelings, so for 76 people to get onstage and play something powerful together is incredible. It’s like being part of a big team that’s committed to expressing the human experience. I’m always hoping that our audience can feel it, too. What’s the most unexpected thing about you? Last summer, I took a month off from playing to hike 220 miles of the John Muir Trail in the High Sierras in California. For three weeks, I ate out of a bag, didn’t shower, and averaged about 15 miles a day going up and down over mountain passes. It was one of the hardest things I’ve ever done but also absolutely incredible.
Literary Arts’ annual celebration of remarkable literature created right here in Oregon.
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When I first started playing, I was obsessed and immediately began practicing as much as I could. I was a pretty shy kid, but I always felt completely comfortable when I was playing. It was a way to express myself. I was also lucky to have teachers who both inspired me and gave me a solid technical foundation. However, I had a hard time when I arrived at Rice University because the pressure of supporting myself as a musician after college became very real. The excessive practicing and stress caught up to me, and I ended up with a severe nerve injury that sidelined me for an entire year. Looking back, I’m thankful that it happened because I was able to spend that time breaking old habits and growing as a musician beyond playing the bass. I re-learned how to play in the most relaxed, efficient way possible.
the goal is to win an orchestra job, practicing should be a top priority, with the understanding that the quality of practice time is more important than quantity. Also, days off are incredibly important, mentally and physically!
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How was the process of learning the bass for you? What is it like to usher students through that process as a private teacher?
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April 22 at 7:30 p.m. Gerding Theater at the Armory Tickets start at $12 BrownPaperTickets.com
The 2019 Oregon Book Awards celebrates the state’s most accomplished writers in the genres of poetry, fiction, nonfiction, young readers, and drama. The evening will be hosted by Cheryl Strayed, author of the #1 New York Times best selling memoir Wild, New York Times best sellers Tiny Beautiful Things and Brave Enough, and the novel Torch.
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