September 18, 2024
Buck Johnson rocks Birmingham, Ala., in June. This year, summer started with a bang thanks to a new live event series from Music & Arts, Gibson and D’Addario. Rock Road Show 2024 kicked off in June and traveled throughout the Southeastern United States, thrilling music fans and inspiring musicians to pick up and commit to […]
August 26, 2024
The harp-guitar master and Music & Arts instructor unpacks key concepts for players looking to lose the flatpick. The fingerstyle guitarist, multi-instrumentalist and veteran instructor Andrew Kasab, who teaches at the Music & Arts in Cary, North Carolina, doesn’t seem like the sort of guy who does anything half-heartedly—starting with choosing an instrument. As a […]
August 19, 2024
Lee Brice’s go-to drummer on Nashville, Neil Peart, Dave Weckl and the record-setting Stagecoach crowd that nearly made him cry. In many ways, Donnie Marple is the perfect drummer for the current state of country music, when old-school honky-tonk fare has given way to explosive, genre-spanning music built for sold-out amphitheaters. He’s been influenced not […]
August 15, 2024
Conquer All-County and All-State with these strategies from the eminent educator and saxophonist. Maryland-based saxophonist Paul Carr is one of those rare jazz educators who doesn’t need to bring in outside help when he wants his students to work with a respected professional jazz performer. He is that performer, with a steady schedule of festival […]
July 29, 2024
Photo credit: Michael Perry The revered shredder and dedicated Music & Arts instructor shares his favorite tips and techniques for aspiring rockers. A decade ago, Music & Arts guitar instructor Steve Bello toured Germany in a power trio led by the late T.M. Stevens. Stevens, a slap-bass god whose original music picks up where Funkadelic […]
July 25, 2024
The former principal trumpeter for the New Jersey Symphony and current Music & Arts instructor talks foundational techniques, embouchure problems, practice routines and that time Leonard Bernstein thanked him personally. Equally warm and wise, the veteran trumpeter Lawrence Clemens — Larry, to his friends and students — is the kind of educator who always has […]
June 27, 2024
Famously, the late Buddy Rich didn’t push practice. The hot-tempered genius of jazz drumming, who began his career as a child prodigy, liked to say he learned his craft by performing. Rich also trash-talked rock drummers, though he did tackle arrangements of rock songs in his popular big bands. Which begs the question: What would […]
June 25, 2024
What were you doing when you were 10? For the clarinet virtuoso Julian Bliss, it was time to start studying music at the university level. So he packed his bags and moved thousands of miles away from his home in the U.K., enrolling in the Artist Diploma program at Indiana University. “It was the most […]
November 16, 2023
We sit down with Grammy Award winning sax legend Kirk Whalum in the second episode of our ongoing Music & Artists series. Renowned saxophonist Kirk Whalum, with his deep roots in Memphis, Tennessee, embodies a rich musical heritage that spans genres and generations. In a recent interview, Whalum delved into his musical upbringing, the profound […]
November 2, 2023
Melding Tradition with Innovation in Instrument Making From the delicate, meticulous work of a seamstress to the precision required in the repair of musical instruments, Miles O’Malley has woven together a life of dedication, craftsmanship, and innovation. Deeply influenced by the art of making things by hand, Miles is a testament to the idea that […]
