Episode 69 - Vince Gassi

Everything Band Podcast

An accomplished composer, teacher, and trumpet player, Vince Gassi has taught music for 25 years and has published over 100 works. He joins the show to share some of the wisdom that he's gained over a distinguished career.

Topics:

• Vince's early years and how a late start led to a terrific career as an educator and composer.
• Tips for young teachers including the importance of being passionate and caring and how that can help convince the school community that what you do as a music teacher is as important as any other activity.
• Stories and anecdotes from Vince's career as a composer including some stories of the earliest music that he wrote.
• Vince packing up his bags to go study trumpet with Claude Gordon and how that trip and his concurrent attendance at the Dick Grove School of Music changed the trajectory of his career.

Links:

• Vince Gassi
• Star Trek: The Next Generation "When the Bough Breaks"
• Gordon: "Brass Playing is No Harder Than Deep Breathing"
• Gassi: Tsunami
• Gassi: Crusade
• Gassi: Chesapeake Bay Adventure
• David Allen: "Getting Things Done"
• Mahler: Symphony No 4 in G Major
• Goldsmith: The Thunder of Imperial Names

Biography:

An Alfred Publishing author since 2006, Vince Gassi is a much sought-after composer, conductor, and clinician. With over 100 published titles to his credit, Vince's creative and energetic style has made him a favourite with young musicians. His works, both challenging and musically rewarding, appear on many international concert and contest lists. Vince received his Bachelor of Music from the University of Western Ontario in London, Canada and later studied composing and arranging at the Dick Grove School of Music in Los Angeles, California. He is currently pursuing a Ph.D. at York University in Toronto, Canada. For twenty-five years Vince has taught Instrumental Music at the elementary and secondary school levels. He is in frequent demand as a guest conductor, adjudicator, and clinician throughout the United States and Canada. His 'Cool Ideas' and 'Digital Workflows for Music Directors' workshops focus on ways to engage students and teachers in the creative process. Vince continues to receive many commissions and his works have been recorded and performed throughout North America, Europe, and Japan. His pieces are frequently performed at the Midwest Band and Orchestra Conference in Chicago, Illinois. Vince currently lives in the Greater Toronto Area.