About

I'm a bass player and music teacher in Connecticut. I've been playing stringed instruments since the mid-1970s. I heard a banjo on Glen Campbell's television show and badgered my  mom into buying one. My first bass was a guitar held vertically. Along the way I taught myself to play the other bluegrass instruments, all except the fiddle, which is The Devil's Instrument and should be avoided :). The first instrument I played in a band was the bass.

My favorite thing about music is the people. I have met some great musicians, and played in some really fun places. Here are some lists:

Bands I've been part of:

• Bob Perilla's Big Hillbilly Bluegrass, Washington, DC
• Michael Cleveland and Flamekeeper, Charlestown, Indiana
• The Dale Ann Bradley Band, Berea, Kentucky
• Buddy Merriam and Back Roads, Long Island, New York
• The Yankee Express, Hartford, Connecticut
• The Valley Grass, Syracuse, New York

Recordings as a sideman

• Patrick McAvinue, "Rutland's Reel" Patuxent Records, 2008. [iTunes] [artist]
• Tad Marks, "Callin' In the Dogs" Tad Marks Music, 2008 [cdbaby]
• Michael Cleveland, "Let 'Er Go, Boys! "Rounder Records, 2006. International Bluegrass Music Association Instrumental Album of the Year, 2006 [iTunes] [artist]
• Dale Ann Bradley, "Catch Tomorrow" Compass Records, Album of the Year for 2006, Bluegrass Now magazine [iTunes] [artist]
• Ron Feinberg and Marjorie Kelting, "Adirondack Rail" 2005 [iTunes] [artist]
• Terri Ann McLean, "Echoes of Goodbye" 2005 [artist]
• Miles to Dayton, "A Long Way Back" 2005 [iTunes] [artist]

Workshops

A sampling of workshops I have taught ...

• "Bluegrass bass" day-long workshop, "Beginning to improvise," Joe Val Bluegrass Festival, Framingham, MA, February 2011
• "Beginning to Improvise," "Making the Most of Limited Practice Time," Podunk Bluegrass Music Festival, East Hartford, CT, August 2010.
• Eight-week basic bluegrass course, East Hartford Middle School, East Hartford, CT, Spring 2010.
• "How to Learn New Songs," Joe Val Bluegrass Festival, Framingham, MA, February 2010
• Bluegrass bass, beginning and intermediate, Podunk Bluegrass Music Festival, East Hartford, CT, 2009
• Bluegrass banjo, Appalachian & Bluegrass Music Festival, Omagh, Northern Ireland, UK, 2008
• Bluegrass bass, U.S. State Department tour, Santo Domingo, Dominican Republic, 2007
• Assistant workshop teacher, Pete Wernick Jam Camp, Joe Val Memorial Festival, Framingham, MA, 2005
• Intermediate banjo, SPBGMA Convention, Nashville, TN, 2003
• "Practicing effectively," "Jimmy Martin banjo style," "Identifying and correcting weaknesses in your playing," Maryland Banjo Academy, Buckeystown, MD, 2002
• Adjunct faculty, Banjo Camp North, 2001