All I Want is You

The music I compose is deeply rooted in my experiences and also extremely improvisational.  When asked what I do, I say—

Extreme musical improv, and you?

I ran into Mr. Avery at Big Ed’s, a local diner; he popped his head in, sat down with his friend, commented how big my son Ronan was getting, and began to fill us in about how grad school was going. He told me that in his communication class they discussed how every human interaction was improv. I thought that’s it! That is: I converse musically in an improvisational way.

I don’t write sheet music; it’s all by ear. I read and play jazz music and I think I enjoy the essence of the unknown in music. So essentially I memorize my stuff, and it’s complex because of all the layering I do.  When I perform, I know the basic premise of the tune, but the rest I make up on the spot.  I wouldn’t have any other way. The process keeps my mind alive.

I just recorded a song called

All I Want is You

I listened to it and realized that I’m sniffing again—sniffing out rhythms. I’ve been doing it since I was a child. Using my breath as a staccato metronome, I sniff the beat. I make up rhythms using my nose by puffing my breath though it. If you listen carefully to the baseline, you can hear it.

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