What I'm Doing Now

(This is my now page. You should make one too.)

The Brass Junkies is returning! After my dear friend and former co-host’s accident I didn’t have it in me to do the show, but it’s coming back next week! The first episode will feature horn icon Gail Williams who was an absolute treat to talk to. She is a gem of human and I can’t wait for everyone to hear this one. Season 3 kicks off October 15th!

Tomorrow I head north to play an annual jazz gig at this magical event. It raises a ton of money for a good cause and any gig where you get to eat the food of nine of the best chefs in America is okay by me!

Earlier this year I realized I needed a new musical challenge and decided to make it my dear friend Andy Bove’s problem! Andy had been holding down the tuba/euphonium/baritone book in the Tony Award-winning Broadway musical Ragtime at the Lincoln Center Theater in New York City and I asked him if I could sub for him. After jumping through quite a few hoops, I finally got the chance this summer!

The biggest challenge was that I had never played a single note in public on either the euphonium or the baritone. So I figured why not play two instruments for the first time ever at Lincoln Center??!

I will talk about the experience at length elsewhere but the basic timeline is I sat in the pit next to Andy while he played the show (he is one of the best musicians I know — just incredible stuff!) and then played one myself. At that point the conductor gives you a thumbs up or a thumbs down, Gladiator style. Then I was given the green light to play more shows.

It was so incredibly stressful in all of the best ways. Thank you, Andy, for allowing me to fill the seat for you. It was so good for me!

28 years after starting the first one I am finally got a Master’s degree! I ended up being “kicked out” of grad school back in the day because I was on the road playing gigs too much to go to class. (The call I got from my mentor, Sam Pilafian, telling me I was getting “kicked out” is a cherished memory because he was so incredibly proud. “Congratulations man! You’re doing it!” ❤️❤️❤️)

The degree I received was an MBA in Arts Innovation from the Global Leaders Institute. It was an intensive, one-year degree that was online plus a week-long Innovation Summit in the western Spanish city of Cáceres. I learned so much from both the curriculum and my incredible colleagues. The workload was almost overwhelming at times but we persevered and got it done. I am finally a Master!

I recently got to perform with Carole King at one of these only-in-DC type gigs that featured Supreme Court justices, US Senators, billionaire sports owners, Hall of Fame athletes, famous scientists, and a bunch of other rich and powerful people. There was one song with Carole that featured an exposed tuba line that swung pretty hard and when we played it during rehearsal she shot me a big smile and I thought about retiring on the spot!

I have released my first ever online course! It is titled “Practice Room Mastery: The Four M’s Method - Double Your Practice Room Results Through Mastering Mindset, Momentum, Motivation, and Mindfulness.” It is a culmination of everything I’ve ever learned about practicing and I am really happy with how it is turned out. You can check it out here.

At the very end of January I was the host for the annual National Band Association event at West Chester University. It is such a cool event. I get to interview the band clinicians in the middle of their clinics to give the audience some insight into what they are working on with the kids. It’s really fascinating to hear some of the best in the business comment while they are doing the work. And then I get to give clinics to six high school bands. It is one of my favorite events of the year!

2025 ended with a bang. I returned to North Carolina to play with the North Carolina Symphony which is always an honor. I also conducted Tuba Christmas at the Kennedy Center. I think it was my 8th year doing it. Somewhere north of 200 tubas was wonderful. It felt very therapeutic this year. And I performed with the Princeton Symphony for a second time.

It took me until I was 26 years into my professional career but I finally played gigs in North Dakota and Vermont! That makes 49 states. No idea how I performed 10 times in Alaska before playing in Vermont when I’ve spent every summer of my life 40 miles away. Anybody in Hawaii need a tuba player to finish this off?

I’m currently brainstorming the formation of a new ensemble. Itching to get creative. More to come…

The first new project from Hitz Academy is called Inside the Practice Room. It kicked off with Jeff Nelsen of Canadian Brass, Principal Trumpet of the Cleveland Orchestra Michael Sachs, Patrick Sheridan, Rex Richardson and Julie Landsman and Weston Sprott. More events will be announced soon!

Winning the Audition with Hiram Diaz was really incredible. He is such a gifted teacher. He blew me away.

After years of talking about doing it I finally launched a website just for The Entrepreneurial Musician. Check out tem.fm and let me know what you think!

What I’m Listening To: I’ve been listening to a lot of Grateful Dead recently. I go through phases with them — not with how much their music means to me. Just with how much I am listening to it at any given time. They always hold a very special place in my heart.

What I’m Watching: I am watching the Netflix series Beef. I knew nothing about it. Watch this one! There are two seasons and each one is entirely independent from the other so you can watch either first. It is incredible storytelling.

What I’m Reading: I am currently reading two books. The first is The Power Broker by Robert Caro. This is one of the most famous books ever written and I could immediately see why. Caro is master storyteller and the book’s subject, Robert Moses, was one of the most interesting people of the 20th century. It is a massive biography that is going to take me quite a while to get through but it has been a joy so far. The second book is one that I am rereading, Whitey Bulger: America’s Most Wanted Gangster and the Manhunt That Brought Him to Justice by Kevin Cullen and Shelley Murphy. I have read multiple books on Whitey Bulger who I would argue was also one of the most interesting people of the 20th century. Both Moses and Bulger were bad people. Maybe that’s why I’m so angry all the time LOL

What I’m Making: I am working on the next course for Hitz Academy, Networking for Musicians. The script is probably 70% complete. I am happy with it so far!

What I’m Practicing: I’ve practicing a lot of improv lately - specifically call and response exercises from Shelley Berg’s wonderful Chop Monster series. I have been using a website to transpose each play-along exercise into all 12 keys and tracking how each one is going in each respective key on a spreadsheet. It is kicking my butt in all the best ways!


(Last updated September 30, 2026)