About

My parents bought me my first snare drum when I was 12 years old.  From then on, I was hooked on music.  I had a dream as a young child to become a highly skilled musician, one where I could build a career by performing professionally.  I could not be more happy to be currently living out this dream.  What I did not realize as a young boy is how much I would eventually enjoy teaching other people how to play music.            

My passion for teaching others is such that I get the same satisfaction out of teaching as I do performing.  My passion for teaching and sharing the information that I have collected over the years has driven me to pursue writing a technique book that focuses on relaxation and visualization, which leads to actualization.  All musicians can benefit from these concepts.  

Music has taken me all around the country.  My drive and commitment to music has yielded me an undergraduate degree in music business from East Carolina University and a master's degree in jazz composition and arranging from North Carolina Central University.   

I have had the opportunity to perform with some of  the industry’s finest performers and artists, including: Maceo Parker, Christian McBride, Mulgrew Miller, Grady Tate, Mary Wilson (of The Supremes), Gogi Grant,  Wynonna Judd, Vince Gill,  Amy Grant, Chip Shearin (of "Rapper's Delight" fame), and Chip Crawford (who backs up vocalist Gregory Porter).   I have played in over a dozen musicals, with several symphonies, in big band jazz ensembles, with several salsa bands, and in numerous versions of pop rock/dance/R&B/funk and soul groups.  My playing is best represented on a dozen albums not listed here, but available upon request.