The Jazz Mindset
Glenn Drewes is one of the most in demand trumpet players on the NYC Freelance scene today. His diverse career has spanned the likes of jazz greats: Wood Herman, Buddy Rich, Dizzy Gillespie, Garry Mulligan, & Mel Lewis, to today’s pop artists, Michael Jackson, Madonna, Harry Connick Jr, David Sanborn & P-Diddy. In addition to being heard on hundreds of jingles, feature films, network awards shows and sports themes, Mr. Drewes has been the trumpet voice, on the popular children’s education show, Sesame Street for 17 years. Currently Mr. Drewes is playing lead trumpet on his 17th broadway production, Chicago, and leads his own jazz quintet, serving as a clinician for high school & college festivals. He’s also served on the teaching staff at C.W. Post college on Long Island NY and the University of Bridgeport in Connecticut.
- As a professional musician, Glenn doesn’t have a steady 9-5 job (which can be tough sometimes) and he gets called on a diverse spectrum of musical interpretation.
- Glenn said it very simply. A Positive outlook breeds more Positivity. A Negative outlook breeds more Negativity.
- In his world, if you have a,“I don’t want to play this” type of attitude than you won’t get called for the job.
- “It’s so easy to smile, physically. It’s much harder to frown”
- “Life is going to kick you in the teeth sometimes, you can’t take it personally”
- “You never know where the call is coming from” 15 years before Glenn got the call for the Sesame Street gig, he did a free rehearsal in the basement of a restaurant with a big band and the sound engineer at sesame street was the piano player at that restaurant gig.
- Failure moment: Was fired from a gig once because he wasn’t doing the right job. “It was the first time I got let go for something because of my playing”
- “If you did everything right the first time you wouldn’t want to go out and do it again”
- Mentor: His parents and his high school/college music teachers. They were tough on him out of love.
- Gratifying moment for him: helping one of his students get a gig for a Pops Orchestra out of St. Louis (gave her a few simple tips)
- Broadway show Chicago – a really tough gig but rewarding. 13 musicians on stage with some of the best musicians from the 80s
Resources:
Glenn plays at Birdland Jazz Club every Friday in NYC from 5pm-7pm
Glenn’s email: drewblue@optonline.net
Book recommendation: A Lifetime of Observations and Reflections On and Off the Court by John Wooden
Glenn: remember me, Paul Bogosian. We played trumpet together on some gigs (Jeff Hest) including the Lionel Hampton band, I do believe.
I understand that you met my friend and fellow West Point Band alumni trumpeter John Baker at Birdland and I do believe you also met Larry Morse, both world class trumpeters from souther Florida. We were all at West Point, together in the late 60s and early 70s. I would love to have a ‘chat’with you for old time’s sake, if I can get a phone number, if this is OK with you. Your schedule must be non-stop.
I went through a career change, and have been in chiropractic practice for some 35 years (in Philadelphia, PA). I continued to play through the change until about some 6 or 7 years ago. Now, when I pick up the horn, the frustration level is so severe, I tend to put it down after 20 minutes of struggling. Yet I want to get back into playing, if I can find my ‘chops’.
Before retiring from music full-time, I had some golden moments: Angela Landsbury’s revival of “GYPSY”; “JESUS CHRIST, SUPERSTAR, both on Broadway. Don Ellis, 1971, Lead Trumpet with 2 album recordings, short stints as a sub with Count Basie (Paulie Cohen), Glenn Miller, plus a ton of weddings/bar mitvahs (Steven Scott music). There was Tito Puente and Machito, as well. These were my young and great days of the past.
Anyhow, I work 3 days a week in my home-office as a chiropractor in northeast Philadelphia. I will give you my phone: h/w: 215-342-2225 cell: 215-920-7911 fax: 215-342-3232 e-mail: paulgb11@verizon.net ADDRESS: 7801 Anita Drive, Philadelphia, PA 19111
Glad to know you are having a stellar career.