BRITTON PAUL FUGAZZI
About
Hello! Thank you so much for visiting my profile! I was born and raised in Kentucky and fell in love with the trombone and music my freshman year of high school! I ended up deciding there was nothing that I was more passionate about and therefore elected to dedicate my life to music!
My primary objective when teaching music is to fundamentally spread the love of music. I wholeheartedly believe music is for everyone, regardless of age, musical talent, or previous experience, and, no matter what, there is something to be learned from studying music. I feel extremely comfortable teaching advanced, intermediate, and beginner brass students and pride myself in my abilities to inspire, support, and empower them to be the best musician and person they can possibly be.
I hope you consider taking a lesson with me and look forward to growing your abilities to your full potential!
Teaching Style
My teaching style is based around a set of principles and a set of fundamentals, very heavily influenced by the Arnold Jacob's "Song and Wind" philosophy. The principles I look to instill on my students are patience, discipline, accountability, and truthfulness. These principles are incredibly important to me, as this is what it takes to not only be an excellent musician, but also an excellent person -- and the only way to be an excellent musician is by first being an excellent person.
The set of fundamentals I live by are quite simple: Sound guides, air moves, and embouchure stabilizes. The majority of problems that arise in a musician can be solved by going back to these roots. Always simplify and forever be a student: hungry for knowledge and open to new approaches.
Curriculum
I pull from a variety of resources. I have extensive experience with virtually every etude, fundamental, and method book in the brass repertoire and will recommend them as I see what I believe the student needs.
These may include and are not limited to: Bordogni Vocalises (Mulcahy Edit), Kopprasch Etudes, Arbans Method (Alessi & Bowman Edit), Bitsch Rhythmical Etudes, Blazhevich 70 Studies for Bb Tuba Volume 1, Blazhevich Clef Studies, Phil Snedecor Low Tuba Etudes, Eric Klay Routine, and many more.
Credentials & Affiliations
University of Kentucky: Bachelor's of Music in Music Education (2017-2021)
-I studied with Professor of Trombone Bradley Kerns and Second Trombone of the Cincinnati Symphony Joseph Rodriguez.
San Francisco Conservatory of Music: Master's of Music in Brass Performance (2022-2024)
-I studied with Principal Trombone of the San Francisco Symphony Timothy Higgins and also received lessons from former San Francisco Symphony Bass Trombone, John Engelkes, as well as San Francisco Symphony Second Trombone, Paul Welcomer.
University of North Texas: Doctorate of Musical Arts (2024-)
-I have studied with Professor of Trombone, Steven Menard, as well as Principal Trombone of the Fort Worth Symphony Orchestra, Joe Dubas.
I have performed with the Cincinnati Symphony Orchestra, Santa Cruz Symphony, as well as performing a side-by-side concert with the San Francisco Ballet Orchestra. I have also performed with Mason Bates Mercury Soul, recorded with Sony Records, and performed extensively with the Centre College Symphony Orchestra.
Alongside my performing experiences, I have an extensive teaching background starting in 2018, and have taught at several elementary and middle schools, while maintaining a private studio of primarily high school students. I currently have a private studio of beginners, intermediate, and advanced middle school and high schools students, both online and in-person, and am open to adding as many students as I can fit into my schedule!
I would be happy to discuss more specific details related to my degrees, such as the classes I took, specific material I learned, experiences gained, etc. from these degrees. I would also be happy to discuss further any of my professional performance experiences and/or teaching experiences. If you have any questions or concerns, please don't hesitate to reach out!