In 1977 I transferred to the New England Conservatory, where I could take private horn lessons, be in a stronger jazz department, and live in an urban area. I studied with Peter Gordon and Thomas Newell, who was very helpful to my overall playing. Other studies were with Ran Blake, George Russell, and Jaki Byand. In Boston I began performing as a leader of a group, and after graduation, I moved to New York, where I still live three years later.
As a leader I’ve almost always led groups with no piano — just horn, saxophone, bass and drums. It is so hard for the horn to cut through drums and bass anyway, so with no piano there is a sparseness that leaves room for the horn, and it’s a sound I prefer. I think the main problem facing the jazz hornist is developing a strong yet smooth feel for swing, to get past the “choppyness” and stiffness of the instrument... When I took some lessons from the saxophonist Dave Leibman, he said, “I don’t know anything about the horn, but that’s your problem, not mine — you’ve gotta make it swing like a saxophone.” Transcribing and practicing tenor saxophone solos — Sonny Rollins and John Coltrane; also trumpet solos (eg Miles and Clifford Brown) are very helpful here. Also to learn to play lines while not tongueing any notes at all is very important — the stiffness partly comes from having to tongue the note to get clarity. Practicing all scales, modes, patterns, etc. while not tongueing helps, as does practicing with the metronome on the 2 & 4 beats help with the rhythmic feel. In case it’s of interest, I play the series N Conn 8D with a Lawson FB 114 lead pipe and a Giardinelli C12 mouthpiece. Some players prefer a triple (John Clark) or a B♭-high F (Peter Gordon).
I’m performing with my group about once a month. Even with my record out, because of being fairly unknown, young, and in New York City, it’s almost impossible to get paying jobs for my group. The studio and Broadway scene is very tight, with the economy the way it is, and it’s very hard for new players to find work. I’ve ended up just concentrating on my own music and working at jazz playing almost totally. For subsistence I work at Zabon’s three days a week baking croissants. This fall I plan to be performing in Amsterdam and Paris. Europe looks more promising for jazz playing in many ways. Also my second album on Soul Note should be out soon — a live recording, same instrumentation.
Jazz french horn is certainly a wide-open field — a long way to go for everybody. I think Julius opened the door for a lot of exploration and development, which is just starting. I’ll just keep on working, working to be a real jazz player, to show that the horn can be a “tough” front-line instrument in jazz, and to touch people with my music in this way.”