I graduated from the Oberlin Conservatory of Music (B.M.) and from Ithaca College (M.M.). At Oberlin, I studied trumpet performance and Eurhythmics, which is a fancy name for a unique pedagogical approach that uses movement to teach music. At Ithaca College, I studied to be a conductor, the musical kind (of course).

So, why is someone with two degrees in music tutoring Reading and Writing? Writing has always been an essential arrow in my quiver of skills, so to speak. I wrote the program notes for the orchestra concerts during my time at Ithaca College and all my graduate coursework required a high level of writing. But the real reason I am a Writing tutor is that I love to write. Furthermore, I love to edit (strange, I know). I enjoy looking through an essay, tweaking words and sentences here and there to get the essay just right. There is something incredibly satisfying about constructing an expressive, potent piece of writing.

When I am not writing, teaching music, or spending time with my lovely wife, I enjoy tinkering with my home espresso machine. I never used to be much of a coffee drinker until I bought my wife a semi-automatic espresso machine for her birthday. It quickly became much more mine than hers but as long as she gets the cappuccinos that result, she is fine with that. Understand, this is not the kind of machine that you just push a button and out comes a latte. It is the kind that specialty coffee shops use which require a bit of skill and finesse from the barista. I love experimenting with all the variables of making a great espresso including the dose amount, how fine to do the grind, how hard to tamp down the espresso, etc. The result? Delicious cappuccinos, right in my own home!