![Drawing Songs (Pre) Release Tomorrow Night 11/9 at Carrol Place, NYC](https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/58914a0d893fc0ca96b61e20/1699463069228-71OLQIT089EJSFURX1A8/feed_drawingsongs_1080X1350px.png)
Drawing Songs (Pre) Release Tomorrow Night 11/9 at Carrol Place, NYC
The tour is finally upon us! Tomorrow night Bob Lanzetti, Keita Ogawa, and I will be kicking it off at Carrol Place in NYC. Drawing Songs will be officially released by GroundUP Music at midnight on 11/10 and you will be able to stream it in all of its sonic glory at Apple Music, Amazon, Spotify, YouTube, and all of the other usual suspects.
![Weekend Classes, Armando’s Rhumba, and a new video single](https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/58914a0d893fc0ca96b61e20/1696950987767-SE7AA555LLZZK2CLT9EW/BLO+chillin.jpg)
Weekend Classes, Armando’s Rhumba, and a new video single
It’s getting cold up here in the Northeast. Soon I’ll be breaking out the humidifiers and resuming my quest for never-ending distilled water. This is my favorite season because it corresponds with the start of a new school year and a fresh season of learning.
Stablemates Class + Private Lessons this Saturday, October 7
I’m back in town and inspired to practice (WITH YOU)!
Join me in my practice room at noon on Saturdays as I tackle various and sundry topics that will help you (and me) develop greater freedom, fluidity, and ease, expand our repertoire, and have fun. These are play-along classes so bring your axe or your voice. They are not necessarily string-specific though I will cover tons of string-related minutiae.
![Polyphony](https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/58914a0d893fc0ca96b61e20/1613763079052-YI1ZD84ZKMJGLAHNOPUY/Zach+Brock_Polyphony+Album+Cover_21-02-18-01.jpg)
Polyphony
“There's a party in my mind, and I hope it never stops.” – David Byrne, Talking Heads
Over the past twelve months I've been subjected to an incessant conversationalist. No, not my wife. Not my kids either. Me. From somewhere inside my consciousness. The only respite I find while not asleep is when I'm playing music, practicing meditation, or engaging in some other activity that demands (or produces) a state of concentration. And even then my constant companion can sometimes still find me.
![I Am An Amplifier](https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/58914a0d893fc0ca96b61e20/1607602039997-SX1DON5Y3UKNKM7FLWED/F3589137-EDCA-44E2-8E65-D1A2AEAD623A.jpeg)
I Am An Amplifier
In 2019, while talking to my friend Tricia Park for her podcast Is It Recess Yet, she made an observation that I found instantly and deeply meaningful. We were riffing on the shared experience of how truly great performing artists can elevate the consciousness of an entire audience
![The Bulletproof To-Do List](https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/58914a0d893fc0ca96b61e20/1607092713092-X1WRBUA3IKTFURUBMUQW/checklist.png)
The Bulletproof To-Do List
Will slogging through a daily brain dump unlock the secret to being more focused and to getting more done? Nope. Not if you have kids, or a job, or make daily decisions, or own a pet, or have emotions. The next time you gear up to take on the world try this instead.
![What were you thinking?](https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/58914a0d893fc0ca96b61e20/1606134068898-9VTQYRG8TPXO8UHB355K/f1150f5281b3366623cdb71544da-1446825.jpg)
What were you thinking?
There is a certain mystique that surrounds improvising musicians, especially for non-improvisors who are aspiring to make “the leap.” I’m often asked “What were you thinking about while you were soloing on that song?”
![Livestream Concert 11.5.20](https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/58914a0d893fc0ca96b61e20/1639692863147-HQT44FDK876CQYXA2HMV/23555B8E-F7FC-406F-99D6-100ABBAC4311.jpeg)
Livestream Concert 11.5.20
I’m so excited to be playing a real-life (outdoor/socially-distanced) show with my friend and fellow “Snarky Puppy” Bob Lanzetti tonight, 6PM, at 118 North! The show is going to be live-streamed on the venue’s FB Page as well as on our respective Pages. However, if you live in/near #philadelphia then come on out for the real thing! We’ll turn up for ya.
![Larry Young](https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/58914a0d893fc0ca96b61e20/1592449733518-D2F8FEKZ55Z3XKZBHIH2/larry-young.jpg)
Larry Young
Back when I was in school most of the jazz records from the sixties that I needed to study were out of print. You might be able to find a copy at a used record store or at the library but you usually had to go underground. If you finally did get a copy then you absorbed every note on that record like a thirsty person suckin’ on a damp sponge in the desert.
I think of my introduction to Larry Young as my second "jazz awakening” (the first was Sonny Rollins) and it happened when Michael Kocour, now Director of Jazz Studies at Arizona State University, dubbed me a cassette of Larry’s 1966 Blue Note album Unity. My brain was not prepared for the combined impact of Larry Young, Woody Shaw, Joe Henderson, and Elvin Jones. To this day Unity is one of the only records that I kept on every iPod, iPhone, or iMac that I’ve owned. Thank you Mike!