Summer Quarter 2007 June 4 – September 2, 2007

Recent Additions to the Music Arts Faculty: David King, Clarinet & Saxophone

What’s it like to play in the circus?  Ask David King, clarinet and saxophone instructor, who’s back with us after several years of ‘vacation.’

After earning his Bachelors’ degree in music at the University of Tennessee, David joined the Ringling Brothers Circus for two years.  “I couldn’t have found a better way to learn to read anything or fake anything,” David laughs.  “I was playing between 3 to 8 hours a day, nonstop.  And if I’d had my head buried in the music, I would have missed cues.”

Since taking a break from teaching with Music Arts, David has earned his Master’s degree at UT, gotten married, and is helping raise a baby now.  He’s still playing with the incredible Knoxville Jazz Orchestra, the leading Big Band in East Tennessee.  If you’ve been to any of their performances in Oak Ridge or in Knoxville, you’ll have seen David sitting in the front row, enjoying himself immensely.

David loves teaching and has a lot of experience to pass on.  “The main thing is to have fun with music,” he relates.  “Especially at younger ages, if kids can have fun with it, it’ll be easier to practice.  An example is learning to improvise.  If you take a simple tune and learn to add a few scale patterns, you have the basics of improvisation.”

David has set aside Tuesday afternoons to teach in Oak Ridge.  More information is available by calling our office at 865-482-5614.

A recent Rockefeller Foundation Study found that music majors have the highest rate of admittance to medical schools, followed by those majoring in biochemistry and the humanities.

Eric Sampsel, Trombone

What do Chemical Engineering and music have in common?  Not much!  But the two provide a good balance for our newest addition to the brass faculty, trombone instructor Eric Sampsel of Oak Ridge.

Eric, who began playing trombone at age 9, maintains a busy musical life in addition to his work at the Y-12 facility.  He is a member of the Oak Ridge Community Orchestra and keeps an active performance calendar as well, playing often for churches and other groups in eastern Tennessee.  During a three-year period while living and working in Atlanta, Eric was a charter member of the Cobb Wind Symphony, an adult community band based in Marietta, GA.  He also enjoys playing with a trombone quartet whose other three members live in the Knoxville area and are former UT bandmates.

Eric is married to another Music Arts faculty member, flute instructor Beth Sampsel.  The two met while members of the University of Tennessee Wind Ensemble and the Pride of the Southland Marching Band.  While in college, Eric studied under Don Hough and performed regularly with the UT Trombone Choir, one of the most active and well-regarded performance groups on campus.  Eric also plays piano and handbells and sings bass in his church choir.

One area that Eric likes to focus on with his students is intonation.  “Playing trombone requires that you develop a good ear,” says Eric.  “Trombone is the only wind instrument in which you hold your tuning slide in your hand, therefore it is essential that you know exactly what the next note should sound like.”  In order to help his students develop these skills, much attention is given to tone development and interval recognition.

Eric lives with his wife and two young children in central Oak Ridge.  He teaches from his home studio on Mondays and Thursdays.  To learn more about Eric or to schedule lessons, just contact us at Music Arts!

Madison Pearson Wins Big at Depot Day!

Madison Pearson, age 7, of Kingston, participated in the Depot Day festivities on Saturday, May 5 in Cookeville, Tennessee.   We’re thrilled to report that Madison won 1st place for Junior Instrumentalist and was awarded $75.00 for her fiddle rendition of "Dixie."

A student of Shannon Hamblen, Madison has studied with Music Arts since the age of 5, and recently represented Music Arts at the Arts Council of Oak Ridge presentation to the Leadership Class.

Congratulations, Madison!  We’re so proud of you!

 

 

 

 

Read Next: Music Arts Awards Scholarships
by Nancy England

861 West Outer Drive, Oak Ridge, TN  37830
865-482-5614