persistent students in Portland, OR, Tina Frost and Laura Quigley, have been quite successful. I also had the opportunity to teach Joan Jeanrenaud in a class I gave in Bloomington, Indiana. Joan became the original cellist with the Kronos Quartet. RS: Are you aware of the challenges women face in the male-dominated music industry? GM: I am very aware of the challenges that women face in a male-dominated world. I treat men and women the same.
Essiet Okon Essiet: His name shows his Nigerian lineage but he was born in Omaha and raised in Portland, after a peripatetic childhood that accustomed him to frequent travel. Today, Essiet lives in New York but he is a world citizen. Early important gigs with Don Moye and Abdullah Ibrahim set the stage for his tenure with Art Blakey’ s Jazz Messengers, perhaps his most visible gig. Since then, Essiet has toured the world with jazz greats Gary Bartz, Donald Brown, Victor Lewis, and George Cables, staying in demand in NY and beyond.
RS: What advice do you have for younger men and women entering the world of music performance? GM: I show them everything I can about the music they are interested in and introduce them to techniques that can enable them to enlarge their perspective. Accepting the challenge of different styles is very important. I played with a folk singer at the Woodstock Festival and it led me to life changing opportunities.
He leads his own band, IBO, which made a cd entitled “Shona”. His life partner is excellent drummer Sylvia Cuenca - they frequently work together in each other’s bands. RS: How did you come to music as a child? EE: My mom, Arit was my first influence on my musical path. She loved music and wanted me to play violin so at the age of ten I started taking lessons and four years later, I switched to bass. RS: Do you compose music? EE: Yes, I compose. I’ve written more than thirty songs. RS: Do you have a publishing company with ASCAP or BMI? EE: Most of my songs are on BMI but I have a few on ASCAP. RS: Have you worked with women musicians? Are you aware of the challenges women face in the male-dominated music industry? EE: I’ve worked with many female musicians. My fiancée’ is an accomplished world-renowned drummer, Sylvia Cuenca, whom I’ve worked with many times. I’ve had discussions with her about the challenges females face in the music industry and am well aware of the hardships they face. RS: What advice do you have for younger men and women entering the world of music performance? EE: I tell young up and coming musicians to never stop learning, don’t give up, have a burning desire for the music and just have fun with it and life in general.
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