International Musician

Dana Leong

February 19, 2014

Playing Cello, Trombone—and Laptop—Dana Leong Brings an Energetic Edge to His Melodic Lines In a sense, that career started when the San Francisco-raised musician first picked up the cello in third grade, and then the trombone a year later. “I tried to use my knowledge of both instruments to complete each other’s spectrums,” Leong says, […]

Eliesha Nelson

February 17, 2014

Violist Eliesha Nelson Brings the Music of Quincy Porter Back to the Surface. Talking with Eliesha Nelson, her warm personality immediately comes across, thanks largely to her fantastic laugh. She laughs often, and the sound is full, rich, and hearty-interestingly, all words often used to describe the sound of the viola. Some people observe that […]

Edwin McCain

February 17, 2014

Edwin McCain found the perfect spot to watch. Tucked back stage, where no one could see him, he peered out at the audience from between two stage curtains. It was just after the turn of the millennium, and less than 15 feet away, center stage, Ray Charles played on a grand piano. As McCain soaked […]

Paul Jackson Jr.

February 17, 2014

In 1998, along the French Riviera in Monte Carlo, guitarist Paul Jackson Jr. of Local 47 (Los Angeles) sat and ate lunch at an outdoor café with percussionist Bashiri Johnson of Local 802 (New York City). They were taking in the sights during a break from playing on Whitney Houston’s European tour. “Bashiri looked around […]

Gordie Sampson

February 17, 2014

In 2006, Carrie Underwood’s song, “Jesus, Take the Wheel,” went platinum and spent six weeks at number one on the Billboard chart. Except it wasn’t exactly Underwood’s song. Underwood’s voice brought the song to life, but it was a songwriting trio made up of Gordie Sampson of Local 355 (Cape Breton, NS), as well as […]

Rachel Barton Pine

February 17, 2014

Violin Superstar Rachel Barton Pine Introduces Metalheads to Mozart Here, Rachel Barton Pine presents the image of a polished and proper classical violinist, and most of the time, that’s exactly what she is. On a typical day in the life of the 35-year-old member of Local 10-208 (Chicago, IL), Pine might take her place in […]

Larry Zalkind

February 17, 2014

Larry Zalkind’s performing career takes him, and the trombone he helped develop, all over the West Coast and beyond. A popular trombone joke asks (all in fun, of course!): “What kind of calendar does a trombonist use for his gigs?” with the punch line: “Year-at-a-glance.” Far from the truth for Larry Zalkind of Local 104 […]

Melanie Durrant

February 17, 2014

Back when live music could still be heard nightly at restaurants and clubs, a six-year-old girl tags along to a gig at a supper club with her mother, a singer. The girl’s job is to announce her mom’s band to the audience, which she does by imitating Kermit the Frog’s introduction of The Muppet Show. […]

Peter Rofe

February 17, 2014

Peter Rofe is Ready for his Close-Up When most people think of Los Angeles, they think of Hollywood: the silver screen, fame, glamour, and celebrities with their heads in the clouds–“La La Land.” But bassist Peter Rofé is an L.A. native and he’s as down to earth as can be. In fact, when the International […]

Phil Woods

February 17, 2014

Phil Woods embodies the essence of jazz, celebrating and creating great American music with breath, brass, and soul. “Music united the family instead of dividing it,” says alto saxophonist Phil Woods of Local 802 (New York City) and 577 (Pocono, PA), referring to his childhood. “In those days, everyone was on the same page in […]