Ensemble Coaching

In my opinion the two biggest issues for new ensemble players is listening (or lack thereof) and unity. When playing in an ensemble it is important to listen to other players parts and learn how your own part fits into the complete musical framework. Often musicians new to ensemble work are listening, but only to themselves and their part, not the group sound. This issue in turn makes it so they do not adapt as readily when things sometimes go awry. In my ensemble teaching I emphasize the importance of playing together, not just being right. In ensemble playing sometimes players get lost or make mistakes. Rather than leaving those players in the dust, I teach my ensemble students how to listen for and back up other ensemble players when they make a mistake. This lends itself to a more unified band sound. Students can also expect to learn about frequency and part instrumental ranges, volume balance, and group dynamics. Working with other musicians is not just fun, but actually builds our musicianship up, often more quickly than we are capable of building it on our own. And its also a ton of fun! I am not currently forming student ensembles, but if you and your family or group of friends want to start playing music together I would love to help make that happen!

Evan’s ensemble experience:

Since starting my first band I have probably always been in some sort of ensemble. I have played in numerous rock bands, as well as small ensemble jazz groups, jazz big bands, and even a few Baroque small ensembles. From all this experience playing with other musicians I have learned first hand how to make a group of musicians into a cohesive unit. In addition to my playing experience I have coached several rock bands in preparation for upcoming performances, as well as arranged music for group lessons or “Family Bands”. It has been a joy for me to share the joys and challenges of collaboration with my fellow professional musicians as well as with musicians new to group playing.