About Me:

Ever since I can remember, the sound of music was heard in our house. My Dad played the horn and so did my brother. My sister played clarinet and my mom loved to listen to music. I loved listening to my Dad play the horn and I new it was only a matter of time before I got into the act too.

Growing up, I would always bug Dad to let me toot some notes on his horn. I played euphonium in 7th grade, great fun but I really wanted to play the trumpet so I finally started on the trumpet during the summer before I entered 8th grade. My parents got me started well by making sure I had a quality instrument, (a mid 1960's 38B Conn Connstellation). Once I got going, I played in every school or community band that would have me. Later on Dad & Mom wanted to make sure I got some lessons, so they arranged for me to study with legendary Vancouver trumpeter Stewart Barnett. Every Saturday morning my brother and I would each get a 1 hour lesson with Stew and it was one of the best parts of the week. Growing up in Richmond B.C. Canada, I was fortunate we had excellent secondary school music programs. Many of the students that went with me through that program are today some of the finest musicians in the Vancouver area. I am indebted to my all my music teachers, especially my high school teachers Ken Hackwell, John Hudson, and Len Kay, for their devotion, intelligence, and passion!

After high school I knew I wanted to study music, and I was very fortunate to be able to attend Berklee College of Music in Boston, Massachusetts. I was constantly amazed (and a bit intimidated!) at the level of talent and ability of my fellow students. Being around so much music all day long was fantastic! I got to study with phenomenal trumpeters like Wes Hensel, Jeff Stout, and Greg Hopkins. I played in student groups under the direction of John LaPorta, Jimmy Mosher, Wes Hensel, Tom Frazee, Ben Elkins, and many other incredible faculty members. Living in Boston provided opportunities to play in R&B bands, pit orchestras, big bands, jam sessions, student recitals, recording projects and more. After receiving my bachelors degree, I returned to Vancouver in September 1988.

Since returning to Vancouver, I've had opportunities to play with some fine bands and I keep busy with many musical groups of all types and various freelance projects as they come along. I got back into teaching trumpet privately in 2004, working with the fantastic folks at Tapestry Music in White Rock, B.C., Canada. It is work I am very passionate about!