Biography
The first thing I remember was feeling something for music. I think it was Barry Manilow. I grew up in a musical home in Montclair, N.J with an Oboist/English Horn player Dad who started me on the piano when I was about five. A guitar purchased by my grandmother at a yard sale for $5, made it into the house when I was eight. In school I paid more attention to the ticking of the clock and would create little rhythmic stories with my feet, fingers and in my head. Unfortunately we were not tested on this kind of thing and as you might imagine, this created many problems. In high school I began identifying with and learning songs by The Beatles, Pink Floyd, Neil Young, Cat Stevens and many others.
After high school I went to New Orleans to visit a friend. This turned into a four-year period in which I became immersed in the music and culture of the city. I learned how important music is as an ingredient to a community. While tending bar and working security for concerts at the legendary Tipitina’s music venue (once as an on-stage security guard for the band GWAR), I spent my days studying music theory and creative writing at a local college.
I applied to Berklee College of Music, where I was accepted but decided to dedicate some time to musical exploration before attending. I moved into my mom’s basement in Boulder, Colorado and “explored” for 12-16 hours a day for two years. I studied with avant garde pianist Art Lande and guitarist Dale Brunning. I listened to classic jazz records, impressionistic composers, and began making attempts at my own creations. I thought of music making as creating color, shape, weight or however one tries to explain it. I wrote down thoughts about whatever I was obsessing about. I started setting these thoughts to music. I paid close attention to what I was doing theoretically. After two years of this I left for Boston to attend Berklee and graduated in 2001.
By 2003 I was performing almost every night of the week: college campuses, clubs, coffeehouses, churches, theaters, on the streets of Harvard Square and in subway stations, where I managed to sell thousands of CD’s. In 2005 filmmakers John Givens and Phil Lane licensed six songs and commissioned me to compose music for their documentary “Working Title”, which has been well received by independent film festivals across the country. Since then I’ve composed music for and licensed songs to television, films and other media outlets including MTV, CBS, Eddie Bauer and “The Dialogue Project” which will air on HBO, Sundance, Discovery, PBS and selected theaters.
I’m currently writing and recording more songs to get to the people who placed my music in these media outlets, and performing live from time to time. Visit the press section to read reviews/interviews on past records, etc…
