COMMUNITY MUSIC

Thanks for your interest in this other side of my life — playing music in community settings.

I come by my love of music honestly — my mother taught piano. Back in the 1960s, she charged four dollars per lesson and came home with her coat pockets stuffed with crumpled singles. For some reason, she never folded the bills. My job was to straighten and stack them. I was about seven years old. My father showed me how to run a bill back and forth along the edge of the kitchen table to smooth out the wrinkles. Our house was always filled with musicians; in addition to teaching piano, my mother played chamber music, and the sound of flutes, violins, and cellos was constantly in the air.

In my dream career, I’m a virtuoso jazz guitarist performing at the level of Joe Pass in renowned clubs around the world. In reality, I’m a dedicated amateur playing in local pubs, private homes, street fairs, restaurants, art openings, and various community events in and around New York City.

I am particularly proud to participate in the nationwide program Musicians On Call, which brings the healing power of music directly to the bedsides of patients and their families. I also serve as a staff musician at the Hebrew Home, an assisted living facility in the Bronx.

Although modern life has changed the way we often listen to music — privately, through earphones — the simple pleasure of live music remains as vital as ever.

As Shakespeare put it: “If music be the food of love, play on.”