A great student is a thing of beauty.....

One of the great joys of my life is teaching. I maintain a small studio of students (typically around 15) and have done so since the 1970's. One of my teachers often told me that "whenever I give you a lesson, I get one myself, because I have to remember how to do things correctly and set a good example". There's a lot of truth in that statement.

Since I retired (for reasons of health) from playing gigs five years ago, playing with my students is often the only significant amount of time I get to spend with a saxophone in my hands. I'm unhappy about this situation, of course, but it's part of my reality. My playing skills have gotten pretty rusty. I still REMEMBER what to do and how to do it, but there is that small matter of precision execution that only comes with daily practice....

I suppose that I must now live vicariously through my students. Most of them play professionally, and I love to hear the stories of their gigs and laugh with them at all the disasters that often befall a working musician. I would be less than honest if I didn't admit that there are a lot of aspects of the music business that I don't miss at all. I started playing for money when I was 13 years old, and did it continuously until age 55. I used to play six nights a week, sometimes three gigs a day. I was fortunate enough to be able to make a pretty good living as just a simple saxophone player. I also picked up a lot of bad habits which were hard to rid myself of, but on the plus side, I do have some really great stories to tell in the nursing home!

James Martin began studyihng saxophone with me when he was around 15 years old. He amazed me from day one. James was like a sponge, soaking up every bit of information sent his way. I sincerely believe in genetic musical ability, and James has plenty of it. More importantly, he understood from the very beginning that a powerful work ethic was necessary, and over the years he proved himself far more than simply self motivated to improve his skills.

As time went by, James attended Loyola University, earning a degree in Music Business. I watched with great pleasure as his skills improved and his playing matured. James began to get better and better gigs, and before long was appearing with the most popular bands in the city. Later, he began extensive touring, and I believe I am correct to say that he has now appeared professionally on every continent but Antartica. He has appeared with many of the top acts in the business, including Lenny Kravitz, and I expect even greater things from him in the future. I am very proud to have played a part in his success.

Here's a video we made this week so you can get a small taste of his playing



Here's another video we made last month



If you want to hear some of his great original tunes (James is QUITE the songwriter), go here

http://www.myspace.com/jamesmartincoverband