Throughout my life, I have had an increasingly strong desire and capacity to serve and help others. I believe that service is most effective when it comes from a place of love, strength and objectivity, rather than from anger or ego. I frequently try to find alternative ways to solve problems, to identify root causes, to plan ways to create systemic change and to facilitate evolution of current circumstances. In this process, I try to cultivate common ground, as opposed to negatively exploiting our differences to further an agenda. I also have a strong sense of practicality and common sense, knowing that change tends to arise most easily when people can clearly see how they can personally benefit.
~ click on bio links to see photos ~
Since his distinguished beginnings at age three sitting at his piano and making swooshing sounds
to his favorite children's book, John has gone on to write,
record, and perform what he would describe as "acoustic guitar-based, often brooding, singer-songwriter
folk rock which hints at funk, country, heavy indie rock, middle eastern, afro pop, and bluegrass." John
would also add that his music is "pretty darn good," and that "you [the public] would likely like it
if you like that kind of music... Yep." It all began when John was not born a musical child prodigy. In fact, outside the now-infamous Swooshing Suites in C
and a brief attempt to play the flute in 6th grade, his childhood in the small ski town of Crested Butte, Colorado was pretty non-musical.
His path of musical greatness did not truly begin until his teen years, at which time he did not become a world-wide musical teen sensation.
Instead, his geeky affinity for computers and programming grew into a geeky desire to program something that made sounds and culminated in the
purchase of a synthesizer. This geeky desire soon gave way to the undeniable
passion of writing and recording a lot of bad songs which John liked to think where somewhat similar to Depeche Mode, New Order, and The The. John also
liked to think he was somewhat similar to George Winston while learning to play a friend's beautiful piano. As high school finished up, John figured that instead of pursuing something "practical, yet soulless,"
he would instead pursue his main interest music.
So he some how convinced the CU College of Music in Boulder to let him attend as a piano performance major,
even though he basically couldn't read music. After a year at CU, and recording his critically acclaimed, best-selling, debut tape, The Id,
John transferred to his "dream school" of Berklee College of Music in Boston
only to find the 9 to 1 male to female ratio, the wall-to-wall egos, the lack of creative opportunity, and the big East Coast city living were
unappealing to say the least. So with the shedding of his "electronic past," which had mostly to do with the weight/bulk of synthesizers,
it was back to Boulder to become a pseudo-hippy-in', free thinkin', acoustic guitar playin', semi-Buddhist-in' freakboy
at Naropa University, from which he holds a legitimate, genuine, certified, Bachelor of the Arts degree in Music.
While at Naropa, John experimented sonically, created uninhibitedly, and branched out musically by studying among other things,
African drumming, Balinese gamelan, and classical Indian singing. He continued his world music pursuits by following college with a year long trip to SE Asia where, besides developing a strong affection for fresh mangos and papaya, he studied Suling Gambuh (long flute) in Bali and
tablas (classical Indian hand drums) in Nepal.
Upon his return to the States, John officially proclaimed, "I shall pursue music... Yep." Much to his surprise,
he started to write some decent music.
After several years of forming bands, watching bands fall apart, consistent foundering, major life crises, honing avoidance techniques, lack of serious commitment,
and weighing through mountains of unfounded fear, John is proud to call himself a semi-fledged professional musician.
All and all, through his illustrious and colorful career thus far, John has never been short on moxy. As a wise person once said,
"If you increase your efforts to make up for lack of skill, there is no end to what you can't do."
Fortunately, John is not (usually) an idiot, and through strong determination and probably some innate talent in there somewhere,
he has grown to become a fine songwriter and performer as well as overcoming his greatest single
nemesis, a singing voice someone once likened to the sound of a whale. In fact, since John is incredibly narcissistic, he proudly likes to point out that, "I get a lot of compliments
on my singing voice now. So there!"
So what's up with John now? Well, writes and records original music, and some times thinks about "putting the band back together". In addition, he teaches private/group lessons for acoustic guitar and voice.
And you'll be happy to know he still keeps his inner geek alive by writing software and doing web design here and there.
John lives in Denver, Colorado with his giant, fluffy cat,
Momo
Work Experience
Make Great Music: www.MakeGreatMusic.com
Owner/Teacher: 2004-Present
Make Great Music offers unique, practical, down-to-earth private vocal and guitar instruction for students of all levels and abilities. I started this business, and I continue to run all aspects of it including teaching, lesson planning and development, customer service, accounting, marketing and web design. Additionally, I am in the process of self-producing an instruction singing DVD/CD/book package based on the highly effective, practical, to-the-point techniques that I have developed during my years teaching. Starting in 2011, I plan to sell this package and phase out teaching which will allow me more time to devote to nonprofit, social justice and community projects.
Evolving Alternatives LLC: www.EvolvingAlternatives.org
Founder/Owner: 2009-Present
Evolving Alternatives LLC specializes in the "the creation and evolution of alternatives that serve the greater good." I founded this company and occasionally do nonprofit consulting work under this name. The mission is to partner with other greater good oriented businesses and organizations, to help them evolve the way they do things and create alternative paths forward that will lead to greater opportunity, empowerment, effectiveness and possibility, and to lend a hand in creating and assisting nonprofit organizations and greater good oriented projects. In short, the mission is to serve the greater good by finding alternatives to what's not working now. Those alternatives are evolved from what currently exists or they are created from scratch.
InfoNow Corporation in Denver, CO
Web Developer: 1999-2003
I was a web software engineer and web designer for InfoNow's clients such as HP, Visa and Bank of America. I worked with a variety of programming/markup languages, systems and tools including php, java, asp, sql, javascript, html, xml and InfoNow's proprietary programming language. I worked solo and in teams. Depending on the project, I had significant responsibility in designing and managing critical aspects.
Notable Projects
One Health Insurance Plan Makes Sense: www.OnePlanMakesSense.org
Founder: 2010-Present
I founded the nonprofit, One Health Insurance Plan Makes Sense, in 2010. I have been involved in all aspects of this project: writing educational content, research, web development and design, marketing, fundraising and more. 1PLAN's mission statement is: "to educate you about why 1PLAN: one national universal nonprofit single-payer health insurance plan makes sense for you, for businesses, and for our economy and our country. Through your education on this issue, we hope you will be motivated to join us to help make 1PLAN a reality. Together, through our votes, our donations and our civic actions, we will change the government policy in our country to make 1PLAN a reality, saving trillions of dollars and tens of thousands of lives while providing health care security and greater freedom of choice to all residents. We work to achieve our mission in a truly non-partisan way. We strongly believe in and are committed to respectful, objective, honest communication. We also believe that effective change happens through the facilitation of common ground and cooperation and not by creating an 'us-against-them' situation."
Super Fun Dance
Co-Founder/Resident DJ: 2008-2009
Super Fun Dance was an alcohol/drug-free, monthly community dance open to people of all ages and abilities. The intent was to provide a fun, safe, non-club-like opportunity for people to have fun dancing and connecting in a community oriented setting. I was a co-founder and resident DJ of this dance. Some of my duties included event organizing, marketing, web-design, print material creation and producing/shooting/editing a short documentary film about the dance.
Volunteer Experience
Rocky Mountain Vipassana Association
Volunteer in various capacities: 1994-Present
Rocky Mountain Vipassana Association is an all-volunteer, religious organization that facilitates 10-day Buddhist-based Vipassana meditation retreats in the Rocky mountain region. I have served this organization in many capacities, including as a kitchen manager responsible for ensuring daily meals for 70+ people and managing a staff of 8+ people, and as a male student manager responsible for any non-meditation related needs of the 30+ male students. I have also helped with web design and course setup, takedown and organization.
Denver Hospice
Patient Volunteer: 2006-2009
My volunteer time with patients was mostly keeping them company, taking them on errands or buying groceries for them.
Big Brothers, Big Sisters of Denver
Volunteer Big Brother: 2002-2005
I was a volunteer big brother to a teenage boy in the program. I mostly took him hiking, snowboarding, to movies, to the theater and to sporting events.
Education
Naropa University in Boulder, CO
Certificate in Authentic Leadership (Equivalent to 6 graduate level credit hours): 2010
Naropa's Authentic Leadership program is an intensive four-month program that experientially teaches the following skills in: general leadership, communication, conflict resolution, problem solving, cultural and systemic change, interpersonal relations, messaging and a host of other things.
Naropa University in Boulder, CO
B.A. Music with a Minor in Early Childhood Education: 1996
Notables: For the 1995-1996 school year, I was awarded the Naropa Music Program Scholarship, and I led a successful petition campaign to reduce the proposed tuition hike that year. In 1996, I attended the Arts and Culture study abroad program in Bali, Indonesia.
Berklee College of Music in Boston, MA
Attended: 1993-1994
University of Colorado in Boulder, CO
Attended: 1991-1992
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