INTRODUCTION: A little bit about me

I was born in London, England in 1981 and raised for most of my childhood in Edinburgh, Scotland. My grades for most subjects sucked except for music and so by the time it came to choosing a college course and career there was really just one obvious choice. I didn't put as much effort into college as I should have and so I managed to scratch and crawl my way through and barely earn a degree in music" a "BA Honours in Jazz Studies" to be precise.

I took up the saxophone when I was still in primary school (that's elementary school if you're stateside) because my parents asked me if I wanted to learn an instrument. I still can't really remember exactly what is was that led me to the "saxamaphone" but I do vaguely recall hearing some old recordings of the sax that I thought sounded really cool.

I started clarinet lessons when in high school. It seems an obvious choice since it's closely related to the saxophone. It's fortunate that this happened because, as I found out later on in life, anyone who wants to find work as a saxophone player is usually expected to be able to play clarinet and flute. Speaking of the flute, it was this aforementioned necessity that led me to learning that particular instrument. To be precise I was told by my agent that I would need to learn flute, so shortly before I joined my first ship I bought a flute and a beginner book and a few basic lessons.

I haven't always been passionate about travel. I greatly enjoyed my family holidays which were usually to warmer climates in Europe & the Mediterranean but I didn't really have any travel aspirations when I was growing up. I just assumed that people spend most of their life at home and then get to go on holiday for a few weeks during the summer. Even by the time I reached college I still wasn't giving the matter much thought. It was only after I started working on cruise ships that I really started to realise what a wonderful place the world is. Looking back I can't believe it took me that long to figure out something that startlingly obvious.

One thing is certain though: I've always been passionate about music. It's always made me happy, even when I'm just listening to it. This has been the case for as long as I can remember. I would love to elaborate on this but really is simple enough to be expressed in one succinct phrase: I love music and can't live without it. Perhaps that's all that needs to be said.