By Sean Greene
Madison, WI

Hardly a day goes by that I do not appreciate the gift I received from Bill Thiessen, tuba instructor at Music Arts. He is one of my musical heroes and one of my greatest mentors.

I began playing the tuba during the summer between my 8th and 9th grade years at Robertsville Junior High School. Ted Reeves, my band director and a great tuba player himself, suggested I take lessons from Bill Thiessen to supplement my study of the instrument in band class. I knew other students that took lessons from Bill and it struck me how good they all were and that the all really loved playing their instrument.

My first lessons with Bill were at the Unitarian Church on the Turnpike. My lessons were right after Eric Seay's, one of my good friends from Robertsville. I remember listening to the hooting and hollering mingled with Blazhevich etudes while I waited for my turn with Bill and wondered what I had gotten myself into. Oh, if I had only known!

The only music I had to take with me to those first lessons were the tuba parts to my marching band music and a few major scales I had learned for band. Bill didn't care how simple or 'unimportant' my materials were. He treated each 'oom-pah' like a Paganini caprice and urged me to do the same. All music was sacred to Bill, and he used these simple tuba parts to teach me how to make the most music out of whatever I was playing.

It was during this time that Bill was flooding my brain with names of great tuba players: Arnold Jacobs, Bill Bell, Winston Morris and Sam Pilafian. All were masters of the instrument and people who had a direct influence on Bill and his teaching.

Bill poured on the music theory in those early lessons, too. I quickly learned about intervals, phrases, chord progressions- surprisingly advanced concepts for my age, now that I think about it. Thinking back on it now, Bill had incredibly high musical standards- even for his most basic students (which I considered myself).

The most important thing I learned from Bill was to always make music. You may be playing the tuba, but you should always strive to be as musical as the best violinist, pianist or singer. A close second (and essential to playing tuba) thing I learned was the concept of just "sucking air". Bill would always say, "Air is free. It's one of the few things left that we don't pay taxes on. You can afford to waste it." These are very simple concepts, but had (and still have) a tremendous effect on my playing.

I have since moved away from Oak Ridge, earned music degrees and started a professional performing career of my own. I have performed and studied with some of the greatest musicians in the world. However, regardless of how experienced I think I am, whenever I'm in town, I try to play something for Bill. He always seems to know the right thing to say to put me back on track when I "lose my way" musically and spiritually. I will always consider myself lucky to be one of Bill Thiessen's students and hope that I can be the same kind of force in my own students' lives.

A native of Oak Ridge, tubist Sean Greene is a doctoral candidate in tuba performance at University of Wisconsin-Madison, where he studies with Professor John Stevens. He holds degrees from the University of Tennessee-Knoxville and UW-Madison, with additional studies at Indiana University and Tennessee Technological University.

Currently Principal Tuba of the Oshkosh (WI) Symphony Orchestra, Sean has also performed with the Knoxville, Oak Ridge, Kingsport, Dubuque and Madison Symphony Orchestras and in concerts with Janet Planet, Matt Neiss, Byron Stripling, Ray Charles, Bill Conti, Rosemary Clooney and Slim Goodbody. Sean is the Conductor of the Madison Brass Band as well as the annual Madison TubaChristmas concerts.

An active teacher, Sean maintains a private studio, coaches the Wisconsin Youth Symphony Orchestra brass sections and is on the faculty of the UW-Summer Music Clinic. When not teaching or playing music, Sean enjoys reading, golf, art and cooking. Sean and his wife Melissa live in Madison with their two dogs, Sophie and Hilda.