About

Education is a key that opens a multitude of opportunities and enrich one’s life. As an educator, I strive to cultivate a positive and nurturing learning culture. One where students are encouraged to express their artistic selves and focus on improving as an individual player as well as an ensemble. I am delighted to foster musical growth with the understanding that not everyone internalizes information the same way. By synthesizing different teaching strategies, my goal is to maximize comprehension, promote technical proficiency, and inspire intellectual curiosity. To this end, I balance verbal and visual instruction with peer/self evaluation to encourage critical analysis and artistic inquisition. My aspiration is that the principles I instill within in my students will resonate in other facets of their lives, thus improving their quality of life. 

From the outset of instruction, I promote particular awareness to technical fundamentals on their instrument, from posture and breathing, to tone production and intonation. As a composer and arranger, I enjoy custom tailoring materials and exercises that address areas of improvement while also making the learning experience fun and engaging. This, combined with listening studies of professional players give the students very real goals for which to strive. My overall expectation is that my students will mature as thoughtful, astute listeners as well as competent players. 

Critical listening becomes a fundamental of its own when players are joined together in an ensemble. I instruct my players to ask what their purpose is in service to the music and how to strike a balance among their peers. I take great consideration in choosing repertoire that is challenging yet manageable while also introducing the students to music of historical significance. My hope is to inspire a level of appreciation for the repertoire with which my students interact, that they may connect with a culture or time period they may otherwise not have the opportunity. 

The profession of educator is one that carries with it great responsibility. As a perennial student, I am honored and privileged to guide others in achieving their potential through the study of music, as this becomes a learning experience for myself. I am humbled by the opportunity to see students excel and to know that I have made a positive impact in enriching their lives. 

• Daniel

Developing as an Educator

My professional goals as an educator is to better understand the challenges of producing music and exploring various approaches to concept mastery. To this end, I plan to frequent professional development opportunities as well as actively reach out to my growing network of professional musicians/educators.