In addition to a busy performance schedule, I also stay very active as a marimba and percussion teacher in the greater Boston area.
In addition to my private studio, I am an Assistant Professor of Core Studies (Music Theory) and Composition at the Boston Conservatory at Berklee. I teach a unique curriculum of rhythmic ear training called “Time & Rhythm” in addition to other music theory courses. I also run the Composers’ Performance Ensemble where I coach composition majors in the art of performance. I am also a Course Author and Course Facilitator for Berklee Online, where I authored an interactive online version of Time & Rhythm I.
High expectations, infinite patience, and a good sense of humor are the cornerstones of my teaching philosophy. Helping students overcome personal fears and challenges to create a product of which they can be proud is my primary goal as an educator. Through my 10 years of private teaching, my students have reached a variety of achievements. I have helped a freshmen mallet player with a fear of rudimental drumming progress and become the leader of her high school’s drum-line. I have worked with drum set players who couldn’t read written music and helped them develop the skills needed to get accepted to music schools after just a year or two of study. I have also invested time into students with physical ailments. I will never forget teaching a ninety-one year-old piano player with arthritis to play drum set along with his old Buddy Rich recordings. What matters the most to me is that students perform at the highest level they can and that they walk away with a greater appreciation for live music as a result.
