Composer. Pianist+

Q: Is there anyone on SoundBetter you know and would recommend to your clients?

A: I'm new here.

Q: What other musicians or music production professionals inspire you?

A: Brad Melhdau, Bernard Herrmann, Waylon Jennings, Duke Ellington, Richard Wagner, Tommy Jarrell,

Q: Tell us about a project you worked on you are especially proud of and why. What was your role?

A: I just finished an album of electronic/acoustic music, cues I composed to the old silent film "Vampyr". My group NotSoSilentCinema performs these scores live but this was the first time we put out an album of the music. I think the music is quite unique, a creative probing of how to blend acoustic and electronic elements to create meditative, brooding soundscapes.

Q: What are you working on at the moment?

A: Disturbing country songs.

Q: Analog or digital and why?

A: That's a dumb question.

Q: What's your 'promise' to your clients?

A: I will crush it.

Q: What do you like most about your job?

A: Music

Q: What questions do customers most commonly ask you? What's your answer?

A: Will you work for free? No.

Q: What's the biggest misconception about what you do?

A: That music is about talent.

Q: What questions do you ask prospective clients?

A: What sound are you looking for? What is your deadline?

Q: What advice do you have for a customer looking to hire a provider like you?

A: Write in complete sentences.

Q: If you were on a desert island and could take just 5 pieces of gear, what would they be?

A: Fiddle, piano, tuning wrench, pocket knife, flashlight.

Q: What was your career path? How long have you been doing this?

A: I got my degree in jazz piano performance from Oberlin College. I then worked as a high school choir director while arranging string and horn parts for rock bands. I joined a Balkan brass band and started playing bluegrass banjo. Then I became a cartoon music composer. I just released an album of terrifying electronic music and am currently finishing an album of country music.

Q: How would you describe your style?

A: I play the ideas in my head.

Q: Which artist would you like to work with and why?

A: I would like to record with Dolly Parton because she has the greatest singing voice on anyone alive today.

Q: Can you share one music production tip?

A: Practice your instrument.

Q: What type of music do you usually work on?

A: Animation, jazz, country, rock.

Q: What's your strongest skill?

A: I play a lot of instruments, communicate well, and am responsible.

Q: What do you bring to a song?

A: Wisdom.

Q: What's your typical work process?

A: I work quickly and efficiently. I am used to turning around projects quickly.

Q: Tell us about your studio setup.

A: I own and record with a Wurlitzer 200 electronic piano, a Steinway A piano, electric and acoustic guitars, banjo, fiddle, trombone and upright bass, to name a few instruments. I track in Logic Pro with a Clarett interface, mostly using AKG414's.

Q: Describe the most common type of work you do for your clients.

A: I have worked for many years as a composer for animation, with over 500 credits on IMBD for cartoon scores. I also write string and horn arrangements for bands. I am a skilled pianist, comfortable in many genres of music. I play and record a variety of string instruments such as mandolin, guitar, banjo and fiddle.