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Quality Used & New Instruments, Orchestration/Performance/Clinician,
Mobile Service upon request to Schools & Community ensembles: Ph: 0416 150 213 - Australia-wide delivery available - sounddimension@bigpond.com |
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G’day My name is Mick, as you have already gathered I’m a ‘Muso’
The opening blurb on a website can be written in many ways and can sometimes be larger than life, I’ll keep mine candid.
: I started playing as a kid in Brass Bands in Western Australia and because school and I didn’t get on I joined the Army as an apprentice musician at Balcombe in Victoria at the age of 16.
The Army promised me they would honour my wish to turn me into a Trombone player, so after basic training I was given a French Horn! I fumbled for a while but eventually attained some qualifications.
After being shifted around from instrument to instrument I finished up on Saxophone, dunno why, it just happened. After more fumbling I started to really ‘love it’ and was sent to Brisbane.
I hung with the Army for a few years but started to freelance on the side with the help of some great pro-muso’s I had met, and became a woodwind doubler on Flutes, Clarinets, even a bit of Oboe.
Gigs ranged from the local RSL to recording sessions, jingles, albums, movie scores and live television.
So I took a punt and left the Army, all parties involved were happy with this occurrence.
I lived off music for a couple of years but decided food and a dwelling were important so I took a job with Education Qld as an instrumental teacher, a day job that lasted well over 34 years but I remained a pro-player.
I have had some great moments both as an educator and player with and worked people such as;
Sinatra, Bassey, Tom Jones, Peter Allen, Bob Hope, Whitney Housten, Frankie Valli, and lots of others.
I maintained my association with local band The Allan Brown Big Band whilst as a teacher witnessing many of those year 5 kids in Junior Concert Band develop into a hot player in year 12 and being accepted at tertiary level,
Directing some great bands at a very high level at some prestigious venues and the odd not so great band at the local fete.
Disappointed in some of the charts out there at pro and school level I got into writing my own.
After a few disasters I sought heaps of advice, read a few books and realized my true passion ‘arranging’ with the odd composition. This lead to a little production work combining all the arts to present educational and entertaining concepts in Australia and overseas.
Currently I still play gigs, run my own band ‘All Brassed Up, do the occasional workshop, a bit of adjudicating and have recently got into buying and selling of quality used instruments. I am very passionate about students and families receiving quality instruments, I do not sell the current wave of off-shore Asian generic junk all my instruments are from the genuine factories and all are serviced/refurbished as needed.
I also orchestrate and custom build arrangements for pro-bands, school based ensembles and the intermittent jingle.
As a semi retired educator I’m trying to complete my little recording studio.
So if your seeking a chart, clinician, director, or a good horn, please give me a yell
Mick M
Staff Profiles
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