My diverse experience in multiple musical disciplines has given me a unique perspective and led me towards a more holistic approach to the music making process.

In my capacities as both Artistic Director of the Houston Masterworks Chorus and Director of Music at St. Philip Presbyterian in central Houston, Texas, I regularly lead choral and instrumental ensembles in performances of modern and classic staples of the choral and choral-orchestral repertoire.
Through a unique blend of expertise and experience in both vocal and instrumental mediums, along with a passion for collaboration, I aim to bridge the gap that often separates musicians of different genres.
My music has been commissioned and performed across the United States and beyond in countries such as Italy, Japan, Denmark, Sweden, and Norway, from intimate solo and chamber works, art songs, and pieces for orchestra, choir, marching bands, and pipe organs.
Click HERE to browse my original compositions and arrangements.
In addition to being an active freelance trumpet player in the greater Houston area, I am proud to be the Artistic Director and a co-founding member of the internationally renowned musical duo, Deux Voix.
Visit our website for more information on Deux Voix, such as recordings, videos, booking information, and the mission of our non-profit organization.
As an avid educator, I’m deeply passionate about teaching through a holistic approach to music making, incorporating multiple musical disciplines and perspectives to allow them to find their most authentic form of self-expression to accomplish their goals.
In my career of giving private lessons, masterclasses, lectures, and workshops, my students have consistently placed highly in region and All-State auditions, and have gone on to admission at collegiate music programs such as Sam Houston State University, the University of Houston, the University of North Texas, San Francisco Conservatory, and others.
In addition to maintaining an active private studio, I have served as Adjunct Professor of Music in the Lone Star College System, teaching a wide range of students and subject matter, including high brass, composition, and all levels of music theory and aural skills courses.
As a lecturer, I have made presentations at organizations including the Texas Choral Directors Association Conference, Texas Methodist Choir Clinic, Lone Star College, and chapters of the American Guild of Organists across the country.
As a guest clinician, I have presented masterclasses at numerous high school and collegiate music programs, including the High School for the Performing and Visual Arts in Houston (HSPVA), University of South Alabama in Mobile, and the University of Houston.
Please contact me HERE for inquires (virtual or in-person).

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RECENT NEWS

Sunday December 8

Festival of Carols at St. Philip Presbyterian, featuring handbells, ukuleles, children’s music, Britten’s “Ceremony of Carols,” and a carol sing-along.

Sunday November 20

Fall Festival of Music at First Congregational Church in Dover, New Hampshire.

Friday November 18

Performance with Deux Voix at Congregational Church of Wells in Maine

Sunday September 15

Deux Voix performance at St. Philip Presbyterian Church in Houston, TX as part of their Summer Organ Series.

Friday July 26

Co-leading reading session “Music for the Eclectic Church Choir” at the Texas Choral Directors Association summer conference.

MY STORY

I’ve known since I was a shy sixth-grade kid that music was all I’ve ever wanted to do. Since I was a young teenager, music has been my passion, my escape, my therapy, my means of self-expression, and my way of reaching out and connecting with others.

Throughout my musical training, I’ve continuously pursued as much knowledge as I could about the different musical disciplines and how they are connected. Even as a young student, I resisted being restricted to one category of music, like “trumpet player,” and instead wanted to exist without those invisible boundaries and the assumptions that come with them. Even on my first day as a college student studying music, I was asked by a professor what discipline I would focus most on, I responded that I wanted it all and did not intend to choose just one.

Eventually, I realized that by allowing myself to learn more about and experience different musical fields, without fear of not belonging to a single group, my overall understanding of how music works together across disciplines has deepened and has led to far more meaningful professional development, collaborations, and personal growth. After years of reflection, I’ve come to accept that my career doesn’t have a well-defined musical category that it fits into, but that’s just fine by me!

But, as much as I wish to have come to this place much earlier, a potentially catastrophic event sped up that process.

In March of 2021, I suffered a sudden injury that required facial reconstruction surgery on most of the left side of my face. There were five separate fractures that needed to be repaired with titanium, including the entire floor below my left eye. There was also significant nerve damage that left everything below my eye numb, parts of which I still struggle with today.

The recovery and aftermath from this ordeal completely changed my approach to music making, but also created a renewed appreciation for my life as a musician. Early in my recovery, I wasn’t sure if I could play the trumpet again, but I began to embrace my different ways of music-making in ways I had never done before. I shifted my focus my conducting, composing, and even taking voice lessons. I started to play the melodica and practiced piano every day. Eventually, as I slowly re-learned to play the trumpet, I felt strangely as if I was closer to the path I was looking for than I was before the injury.

Of course, I wouldn’t recommend anyone else take this difficult off a road, but I do believe that difficult times in life lead to a profound depth that is hard to describe. My own experience has made me more grateful for my life in music and the way in which it helps me to keep moving forward.

No matter where I go or what I do, the titanium in my face will always be part of me, and I choose to be grateful for the lessons I’ve learned from the ordeal and the depth it has brought to my life.

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