Had a good laugh today when I opened up an email and there was an "urgent" call for a trombonist for a rehearsal and gig - $20. No, this was not a joke. The slap to all trombonists faces was lessened slightly by the word "honorarium" tacked on behind it, but come on! In a world where people will pay a month's salary to hear Drake, Beyonce or Beiber, can we not allow this investment in music to trickle down to the local level? If our music is not on iTunes, on Spotify or represented by Live Nation, we will not spend a dime on it. Ridiculous. What system do you think holds up these so called music stars? Do we think they descend from the heavens? If we do not nurture the local music scene that gives birth to this musical talent, there will be no idols to throw money at. And, by the way, who do you think the session musicians are behind these stars? Yes, you guessed it. Many are local players playing for slightly larger honorariums. 

I just changed my endorsement from David to "the late David." That hit me hard when I heard about it recently. I saw it on twitter over Easter. After that, I was not the best house guest; withdrawn and pensive. I considered him a friend, ally and a great mentor. I may not have made it through my doctoral studies without him and I sure did learn a lot from him, musically and over-wise. What else is there to say. Miss you man.