after several years in new york, dave decided to move back to the bay area, to resume his studies with don haas. “living and studying in new york had been a great experience, so much music to listen to and to absorb, but i knew that the remaining work i wanted to put in was ultimately going to be best accomplished back in california, working with don again.” dave returned to the bay area and resumed his studies with don. he began playing a lot of solo gigs, and occasionally a trio gig here or there. “there was a lot of work for solo playing, and while i was ultimately more interested in trio playing, the solo gigs were a great way to try out new material, and to gain experience in performance settings.” dave also began to put his compositional talents to use, writing scores for documentaries and films. “i had always been intrigued by the challenge of composing music as an integral part of the telling of a story. composing for film and documentary projects was a natural progression, another dimension of musicmaking that i found to be greatly enjoyable and fulfilling. i spent hours listening to lalo schifrin, jerry goldsmith, dave grusin, james horner, henry mancini, et al., the modern poets of the orchestra.” it was during this fertile period that dave was chosen as composer for the film “hiking the appalachian trail”, commissioned by the sierra club, and shown as the centerpiece presentation at their 100th anniversary celebration. as well as solo playing, and documentary projects, dave had also begun to teach. “my many years studying with don had been very inspiring. i had developed a true enjoyment of the process of learning, and subsequently decided to begin teaching, myself.” after many years of wearing several musical hats, dave decided that he was truly missing the one area of music where his real passion resided, his trio playing. “my trio performing had really been on the back burner for quite a few years. the balance of solo playing and teaching and other projects just didn’t always leave time for pursuing trio playing. and, for many years this was ok, but ultimately, this had always been where my passion resided. and, eventually, if you’re lucky, you reach a point in time where you truly find your passion, and want to focus on what is truly satisfying and meaningful.” dave is now living in medina, ohio, and is performing with his trio throughout the us, as well as presenting masterclasses at universities and jazz venues around the us. dave’s first solo cd, “introspect”, is also available for purchase here, by clicking on the “buy now” button at the bottom of the multimedia page. paypal and credit cards are accepted. or email dave at [email protected]. dave is currently accepting students; in person, by skype, online, and recorded lessons via mail. he is also currently conducting masterclasses on the life and music of bill evans, at various colleges, universities, and jazz programs throughout the u.s. and in europe. he was the 2019 bittle jazz artist-in-residence at this year’s university of akron jazz festival. dave was in chicago on april 14 at pianoforte of chicago to host a showing of bruce spiegel’s award winning documentary, “time rememebered”, about the life and music of jazz pianist bill evans. the film was followed by a q@a, and a special live performance of bill’s music, with bassist jeff slater and drummer jon deitemyer. dave then traveled to the sf bay area in september to teach at berkeley jazz school, followed by a performance with trio the next day at piedmont piano company in oakland. the concert was preceded by a showing of “time remembered”, and a discussion with the audience. events for 2020 will include concerts and film showings in chicago, detroit, portland, berkeley, los angeles, new jersey, akron, and cleveland.