Full Bio

I was born in 1975 in Naugatuck, Connecticut and moved to Williamstown, Massachusetts at the age of six. I always was very interested in music, but it was not until the relatively late age of seventeen that I began to play the guitar. Though I played a bit of tenor saxophone in high school band, it was nordic ski racing and mountain biking that consumed my time up through my junior year in high school. That all began to change when I got turned onto the Blues music my dad listened to every Friday and Saturday night on Mai Cramer’s “Blues After Hours” show on WGBH, Boston. I was so swept up with music that, by my second year at Middlebury College, I realized that a biology major was not in the cards for me and a music major was the only way to go.

Though I spent the first couple years of my guitar playing life as a self-professed “blues purist,” my interests widened considerably starting in my sophomore year of college, mostly due to concerts organized by the Jazz improvisation and theory teacher at Middlebury, saxophonist Fred Haas. Three exceptional performances I heard that year inspired me to explore the Jazz world; one by guitarist Attila Zoller, one by trumpeter Clark Terry, and one by the Mitchell-Ruff Duo. Likewise, when guitarist Gene Bertoncini visited the following year, he turned me onto the classical guitar as well as the rich musical traditions of Brazil. While at Middlebury, I studied Jazz improvisation with Fred Haas and guitar with Burlington-based Paul Asbell.

Immediately upon graduation, I attended Berklee College of Music in Boston. During this time I established many great musical connections and friendships and studied with Mick Goodrick, Hal Crook and other great teachers. After attending Berklee for a year, I returned home to process some of the vast amount of information I picked up there (I’m still working on that).

After a few years of gigging in Western Massachusetts, a growing interest in classical guitar led me to pursue a degree from the San Francisco Conservatory of Music, studying privately with renowned guitarist, David Tanenbaum. There I had the opportunity to perform as a member of the SFCM Guitar Ensemble in the world premier performance of Jorge Liderman’s “Open Strings,” as well as the U.S. premier of Terry Riley’s “Y Bolanzero,” two wonderful additions to the large guitar ensemble repertoire.

I’m currently based in Berkshire County, Massachusetts and perform regularly throughout the northeast with Los Mofos, Fred Haas, The Ramón Ángel-Rey Trio, vocalist Evita Cobo, and other fine musicians.

Education:
2001-present San Francisco Conservatory of Music Classical Guitar performance master's program
1997 (spring and fall) Berklee College of Music
1993-1997 Middlebury College, Bachelors degree, music major

Private Studies:
David Tanenbaum, David Leisner, Hal Crook, Mick Goodrick, Dusan Bogdanovic, Gene Bertoncini and others.

Performances:
Charles Neville, Freddie Bryant, Fred Haas, Ramon Angel-Rey Trio, Los Mofos, SFCM Guitar Ensemble, Daddy Soul Donut, Muehsam-Ennis Duo, Evita Cobo, and more.