Lifetime Achievement in Music Education: Steve Masakowski
OffBeat Magazine|January 2020
Steve Masakowski never focused on making teaching his career.
GERALDINE WYCKOFF
Lifetime Achievement in Music Education: Steve Masakowski

While attending Boston’s Berklee College of Music he earned a Professional Diploma rather than a degree in music education. When pianist/educator Ellis Marsalis offered him a full-time position in 1992 at the University of New Orleans, he remembers thinking, “Oh, I’ll give myself five years.” That, of course, was almost 30 years ago and the guitarist has gone on to become a full professor of jazz studies and holds the Coca-Cola Endowed Chair of Jazz Studies at the university.

“I basically learned by playing and of course I studied with some fantastic teachers like Hank Mackie,” Masakowski says. “I personally never really put much credence in degrees. At the time, it was more important for me to play with as many great musicians as possible. I feel that professional experience has been much more valuable in my career. From the bandstand is where most of my education came.”

That includes, of course, his decades with Astral Project that he joined in 1987. “I’m the junior member,” he adds with a laugh.

“My goal as a teacher is to turn out creative and productive individuals,” Masakowski says. “I love helping students discover who they are and finding their own path in music.”

Masakowski grew up in the last house on Magazine Street and recalls being able to listen to the Paul Crawford Jazz Band through his open window— the family’s home didn’t have to air-condition. As a kid, he had the opportunity to hear brass bands and marching bands as they rolled nearby. His home was often filled with music; his mother was a semi-professional vocalist who would sing around the house and play records.

Diese Geschichte stammt aus der January 2020-Ausgabe von OffBeat Magazine.

Starten Sie Ihre 7-tägige kostenlose Testversion von Magzter GOLD, um auf Tausende kuratierte Premium-Storys sowie über 8.000 Zeitschriften und Zeitungen zuzugreifen.

Diese Geschichte stammt aus der January 2020-Ausgabe von OffBeat Magazine.

Starten Sie Ihre 7-tägige kostenlose Testversion von Magzter GOLD, um auf Tausende kuratierte Premium-Storys sowie über 8.000 Zeitschriften und Zeitungen zuzugreifen.

WEITERE ARTIKEL AUS OFFBEAT MAGAZINEAlle anzeigen
Celebrate While We Incinerate
OffBeat Magazine

Celebrate While We Incinerate

Malevitus has never sounded weirder or more beautiful.

time-read
4 Minuten  |
March 2020
Anjelika “Jelly” Joseph [talks back]
OffBeat Magazine

Anjelika “Jelly” Joseph [talks back]

As eclectic as the New Orleans music scene is, it’s still hard to imagine an artist having a more diverse career than Anjelika “Jelly” Joseph, who, at the age of 31, sings in three bands that could hardly be more different.

time-read
8 Minuten  |
February 2020
Indie Rock's 10-Year Anniversary
OffBeat Magazine

Indie Rock's 10-Year Anniversary

New Orleans rock artists have always been a part of the city’s music scene.

time-read
4 Minuten  |
March 2020
THE ICEMEN COMETH
OffBeat Magazine

THE ICEMEN COMETH

THE ICEMAN SPECIAL MAKES MUSICAL MAGIC WITH A CROSS-GENERATIONAL COLLABORATION AND FAMILY TIES

time-read
10+ Minuten  |
March 2020
Christone ‘‘Kingfish'' Ingram talks back
OffBeat Magazine

Christone ‘‘Kingfish'' Ingram talks back

A native of Clarksdale, Mississippi, Christone “Kingfish” Ingram comes from the land of Muddy Waters, Robert Johnson, John Lee Hooker and Skip James. Just turned 21, this young man with the blues respects his music’s past even as he shapes its future.

time-read
2 Minuten  |
March 2020
Mr. Z
OffBeat Magazine

Mr. Z

Matthew Zarba is Upbeat Academy’s unflappable rap principal.

time-read
4 Minuten  |
March 2020
A Walking Spirit
OffBeat Magazine

A Walking Spirit

Victor Harris, the Spirit of Fi-Yi-Yi, celebrates 55 years of beauty and culture.

time-read
6 Minuten  |
February 2020
Playing For His Life
OffBeat Magazine

Playing For His Life

Darius Lyndsley is on a mission to turn his art into something more.

time-read
3 Minuten  |
February 2020
The Supreme Green Fairy
OffBeat Magazine

The Supreme Green Fairy

Tank and the Bangas reign over krewe Bohème.

time-read
10+ Minuten  |
February 2020
Felipe's Mexican Taqueria
OffBeat Magazine

Felipe's Mexican Taqueria

Everyone has a handful of go-to restaurants they count on for consistently delicious dining experiences.

time-read
3 Minuten  |
February 2020