Taking the 'A' Train

Gig tomorrow with the Humber B Band @ The Rex at 9pm!
No cover.



Last night was baaaaaaad.

I will be playing with the B Band @ The Rex Hotel Jazz and Blues Bar this Monday, March 23rd at 9pm.
I hope you guys are free that night for some amazing big band jazz, raunchy brass playing, a couple vocal charts and awesome improvisation by the soloists.

Also stick around for the Humber Studio Ensemble(A Band) who are playing right after and is the top ensemble of the school.

P.S. There is no cover charge, it's absolutely free.

Saxophone virtuoso Chris Potter was our Artist-in-Residence for the past 3 days and it has been amazing. He has done 4 clinics and some jam sessions. He totally went all out tonight when he played with the Bruce Cassidy Jazz Orchestra and the Humber Studio Jazz Ensemble. It was ridiculous.

For the past two nights I got shitfaced. Ohh did I need it. Thank you cheap beer.

This is a recording of me playing the jazz standard "Laura." I played the head twice and my improvisation starts right after but I ended it right after one chorus. So it's not too long. Please excuse the background noises, especially fags who sign in and out on msn, well it's kind of my fault too for leaving it on. Also please excuse the crappy recording. I was just using my laptop. I'd like to get some feedback. I hope you guys will like it.

Last night Team Canada's junior team for hockey faced Sweden in the Gold medal round. It was a very intense and physical game with bad blood brewing in this rivalry. A year ago, Canada won and Sweden thinks they have a chance. Unfortunately for them PK Subban scored the 1st goal of goal for Canada and it led to 4 more goals to score a 5-1 victory, One was scored by the series hero, Jordan Eberle. This junior team had a lot to prove since a few NHLers could have played this year but couldn't. This Team Canada was an opportunistic team with players like Angelo Esposito making the team after being cut three times and becoming a big time player and goaltender Dustin Tokarski having terrible starts against Russia and USA. Aside from that they came out as champions. Their team position was excellent, they had good coverage in the defense, Tokarski making amazing saves, their powerplay was perfect, and most importantly, they kept their composure. John Tavares was named MVP and only second in scoring to teammate, Cody Hodgson.

By the way..Swedish goaltender Jacob Markström is a diving bitch.

What else can I say but 2008 was pretty cool.
I have met a lot of friends, I graduated and got into a program I really wanted.
Humber so far is really amazing and a lot of hardwork. I was practicing all the time, except the break..im slacking a little bit lol.

Well I cant wait to turn 19 for all reasons.

2009 will be good.

One of the few surviving jazz legends from the bop era has passed way today.
His intensity and melodic pursuit to imprivastion has influenced many.

P.S. I'm getting big cravings. *Sigh* I was doing so well for 3 months.

I ended up getting 'I Hope They Serve Beer in Hell' by Tucker Max. It's an old book but it's funny.

The greatest thing about facebook is that I got a chance to find my cousins in the Philippines who took care of me when I was younger. It has been a good 13-14 years.

You wont see this but congratulations ate Joanne for your engagement =) I hope we do get to attend your wedding in the Philippines.

I hope everyone had a great Christmas. I did.

I stumbled on to my old blog. Mann the things I said were soo pansy, i guess having a gf at the time makes you do that. But man so pansy LOL.

On another note I'm definitely inspired. I had the best trombone lesson with Will over the weekend and played me a Christian Lindberg song. It was just astonishing. his breathing was so mechanical. He would find the smallest place to breathe and get 100% lung capacity of air. It's nice to hear from my teacher that I have improved and I'm working hard. I just never knew if I was heading to the right direction
I'm going to kick up practicing a notch over this break and be a month better than I used to be.

Things to work on for the break:

General
- lip flexibilities (triplets, 16ths)
- scales (major, minor, bebop, pentatonics, half-whole or whole-half diminished scales)

Classical
- Arban's Characteristic Study #1
- Arban's Appoggiatura etude #37

Jazz
- chord changes( I hate trying to think about them all the time..I see a chord when I'm improvising and a bajillion scales scan through my head and by the time I figure it out..the chord changed LOL)
- Familiarize myself with ii - V to the Imajor7 to the VImin7 for ex. "Autumn Leaves"
- learn all my tunes by memory..espeically Charlie Parker's "Anthropology" its a song in 300 bpm with rhythm changes =(
- interval studies ( I want to incorporate more intervals in my improvising like the trumpet player Woody Shaw) A trumpet player name Rob Smith came to my school for a clinic and he was influenced by Freddie Hubbard and Woody Shaw. He played "All the Things You Are" as if Woody would, with intervals such as 4ths, 5ths, etc. VERY inspirational
- transcribe a trombone solo for next semester

Arban's Characteristics Study for trombone #9 page 215 is going to be the death of me.

Just The Way You Are - trombone and guitar duo


Subbing in for Trombone Ensemble is so fun. I get to play with the school's top bone players..it's just a great experience. Other than that I can't wait until school's done.

With exams and performance week coming up, I`ve just come to a point when I`m feeling incredibly insane and I just need ONE moment of clarity. I need the feeling of relaxation with no mind. I just want relief from this cesspool that`s building inside.

I feel the need to go on a retreat. My conductor just came back from Costa Rica and highly suggested getting away there. The latin music there is apparently really great and the bone players are also bad ass. I just need the money.

Holy who fucking remembers this song? it's pretty good. For the Hercules movie.

Yeeeaa Jiggs Whigham

But omg 2 transcriptions, "I Cover The Waterfront" up the octave, Arban pg. 215 #9, psych essay, and getting my shit together.

One of my favourite jazz standards. Hiromi Uehara is totally hot. The rhythm section is totally feeling her solo and complimenting it when it needed to drive.

My FIRST ever transcription and it`s of J.J. Johnson`s trombone solo for `Too Marvelous for Words`
It took me awhile to listen to it and notate it and I just finished getting through it with my own trombone. I have to play it for Masterclass tomorrow =S

I had my Improv midterm today. Overall I did okay. I killed Maiden Voyage but I was shitting all over the blues oh my gawd. I wish I played louder...I play too soft.

Brass choir was soo fun today and just recently I`ve been asked to be in school`s B Band. It is the best band I have ever played in my life.