I just got some awesome news from Markus this month. He was placed into the top jazz band at Roosevelt High School for the coming school year. This is the band that recently won the Essentially Ellington national competition for high school jazz bands in the US.
Let me tell you some of Markus’s story. He came to me asking about private lessons last fall. He was starting his junior year at Roosevelt and playing guitar in Jazz Band 3. (Jazz Band 1 is the top, basically “varsity”.)
I was delighted to find out that he had previously purchased one of my courses, Solo Like You Mean It, and he had made great improvements in his jazz soloing already.
Here’s what he said in our first meeting last fall:
“I want to become really, really proficient at guitar. My big goal is to try to make it into Jazz Band 1 at Roosevelt next year (for my senior year). Beyond that, I think I want to continue to play in college and possibly have music be part of my profession in some capacity.”
“I’m willing to devote a lot of time for practicing. Honestly, I bring my guitar to school and play at lunch. I sneak and play quietly in my bedroom before bed.”
Since then, he has maintained that laser focus on Jazz Band 1 and an obsessive commitment to practicing. He had his audition a few weeks ago, and I was thrilled to find out that he’d accomplished his mission.
Watch Markus play his transcription of Joe Pass on “Night and Day”, which he played for his Roosevelt audition: