In Faith

Life is a journey in which we encounter many things- love, loss, joy, despair, hope... Art mirrors life, the human experience. But it doesn't just represent the experience, it is also very much a part of the experience. It is my mission to present music to the world that is a representation of my life experience, and to evoke a feeling of humanity in my audience. While I continually strive for excellence as a composer & player in technique, it is the message behind the music- the emotional communicate-- and the delivery of that message that is most important to me. The whole idea behind In Faith is that everything that has happened to me in my journey as a musician to this day, every person who has affected my life (whether they know it or not), every pitfall, struggle & setback, every word of encouragement, every defining moment, has led me to present this music to the world and has become a part of the music at the same time. Philo's Groove was originally concieved as the soundtrack to my day-dreams of the time I spent in New York before moving there in August of 2007. My first encounter with the New York jazz scene was back in January of 2006. I reluctantly returned to Pittsburgh for the start of my fourth semester of college, and while I was in my Philosophy of Religeon class, zoned out to the music in my head with a sheet of manuscript paper while the professor gave a lecture about a hellenistic philosopher named Philo... airgo, Philo's Groove. The title track of the album, In Faith, represents the idea of humanity- reaching out to one another. Everyone has a dream; In faith, all things are possible. This song was inspired by & is dedicated to my close friend & mentour Sean Jones, who played an instrumental part in showing me my potential as a musician as well as the importance of being a good person, and he lead by example. In Faith (Mobetta Remix) the result of my musical collaboration with and is dedicated to my other close friend & mentour, Maurice Mobetta Brown. Maurice is another amazing young trumpet player and rising star on the music scene as both a player & producer, and he picked up where Sean left off when I moved to New York & started working on this project. Sentiments of Solitude is a love song inspired by the writings of the German philosopher & poet Rainer Maria Rilke. Rilke says that between the closest people, infinite distances will always exist, and if you really love someone, you will make yourself the guardian on your partner's solitude. Sometimes it can be difficult to give someone the space they need when you really love them. I wrote this song as I was dealing with that difficulty, and in the midst of my own reflection, realized how important my own solitude was to me, especially as a musician & composer. This song is dedicated to my teacher, Branford Marsalis, who turned me on to Rilke's work. 601 is a song about desire. Sometimes, no matter how hard you try, you can't get that certain someone (or something...) off your mind and it can drive you crazy. This is one of my earliest compositions and was inspired in part by some of my favorite contemporary band leaders- Jeff Tain Watts & Roy Hargrove. Letting Go is a song I wrote after experiencing love for the first time. When the relationship was over, I spent a long time feeling helpless, as though I had let it slip through my fingers, and I thought that it would be the end of me. As time went on, I realized that the only way we can move on to bigger & better things & make progress in life is to let go of the things we get hung up on- whether it's a relationship, a job, an addiction, a bad habit, even a comfort zone that's holding you back from your true potential. Doing so can pose great difficulties, but if you have faith in yourself & in your cause, you will weather the storm and be better for it in the end. Lovers' Lullaby is a song written by Sean Jones, It's about a typical evening between two lovers and the rise, fall & climax of making love. Compositionally, Lover's Lullaby is the resolution to Letting Go; I was compelled to writ