A Lifelong Love of Music
About Me
From my earliest memories of childhood, I was a lover of music. Singing, dancing, and (eventually) playing instrumental music are my brightest joys in life. The trombone, in particular, catalyzed a lifelong engagement with my community through instrumental wind bands (marching bands, concert bands, wind ensembles, pep bands, and brass brass). Now, in addition to staying involved as a performing trombonist, I critique, teach, conduct, compose, and arrange music as integral parts of my regular musical practice.
Mandarins Drum & Bugle Corps
I marched with the world class drum corps, the Sacramento Mandarins in 2014, 2015, and 2017 in the Baritone and Mellophone sections. It was through this experience that I stretched my physical and mental capacity, pushing myself to grow as a performer. We rehearsed 14 hour days and toured from California throughout the United States over the course of a performance season that ran for two months in the summer. To this day, my pedagogy is informed by these precious memories working diligently with my peers and learning from some of the best music educators in the U.S.
University of California Marching Band
My love for teaching came to life during my time in the Cal Band. A member of the trombone section from 2015 to 2019, I was appointed as a Director's Assistant (section leader) in 2016, then as the Arrangement Committee Head of the the Musical Activities Committee in 2017, before being elected by the 200 person band to serve as the Student Director in 2018. In this position, I directed the band musically through football and basketball games, ran full ensemble rehearsals and advised sectionals, and coordinated on- and off-campus performances.
UC San Diego Pepband
During my doctoral research at UC San Diego, I had the pleasure of directing the university's pep band from 2022 to 2025 as we made our re-entrance into campus life after COVID. In this position, I was the primary liaison between the student leadership and the Department of Athletics and other campus partners. As a strong believer in student leadership, I helped advise and cultivate emotionally intelligent leaders and thoughtful communicators in the Pepband. Alongside these leaders, we went on to organize the group's first trips to Henderson, NV, Los Angeles, CA, and Denver, CO in 2025 to support our basketball teams' debut in post-season tournaments as a Division I program.
Doctoral Research and the UC San Diego Wind Ensemble
From 2020 to 2025, I was a graduate student researcher in the UC San Diego Department of Music. See my MA Thesis and PhD Dissertation below:
Sounding Institutional Memories Through the College Marching Band (2023)
Percy Grainger and the American Wind Band: White Masculinity, Masochism, and Pedagogy (2025)
During this time, I also developed syllabi and taught my own classes in the department. "Political Histories of the Marching Band" was a particular favorite of mine, as was the University Wind Ensemble, for which I guest conducted in Winter 2024, and I directed Fall 2024 through Spring 2025.
Community Groups in the Hudson Valley
Since moving to the Hudson Valley in 2025, I have had the opportunity to meet musicians in New York from diverse musical backgrounds and practices. This has meant playing in a variety of new styles (and even taking up singing in a choral setting!). I've had the pleasure of performing with the following groups in the Hudson Valley:
Unicorn Brass Band
SUNY Ulster Community Band
Mid-Hudson Women's Chorus
Saugerties Community Band
Rhinebeck Legion Band
Kingston Rotary Band
