MIKE VACCARO

professional musician, teacher and businessman

"I grew up in Southern California about 12 miles south of Los Angeles in an Orange Grove which along with Avocados where the local crop for a mostly agricultural area. Over a 10 year period, I saw all the trees cut down and replaced with homes and suburbia. Over my lifetime I saw the modernization of the area and a massive freeway system. Now from Los Angeles to San Diego it is one big city. I studied with Ralph Gari a noted woodwind soloist and Luella Howard, a flutist from the Los Angeles Philharmonic and 1st Flute at 20th Century Fox studios."

My Passion

"My passion, being a multi-instrumentalist, is to learn more about my instruments, people, business, and life in general. Learning never stops for me. I even learn from my students. And I keep a journal of great thoughts that I come across in my travels in life. My various recordings are on my website as well as electronic outlets. They vary from classical music, including what I believe to be the most iconic version of the Stravinsky Octet, to jazz, to pop music. My other passion until I contracted a permanent injury was golf. I also enjoy making clarinet and saxophone mouthpieces in my garage shop, where I teach a couple of students a week."

My Desire

"My new desire and passions are to learn the art of being a recording engineer and publish my own recordings. I have purchased a new recording rig and am taking private lessons with my recordist and videographer Thomas Zink. I have to say at my age this is a hobby more than another career. With the recent pandemic and changes occurring in music, this seems a normal growth pattern as the music business is changing rapidly. I do believe though that art music, including classical music, of all types, will endure in some form. The music is just too powerful to be ignored."

My Music

"Chamber Music has always been my favorite form of music. My chamber music group “Trio Musique” travelled for the Columbia Artists Community Concerts division along with many other concerts, live radio broadcasts and our record “Caprice,” which features mostly the music of Jack Reidling. Yes, I have been at it for a long time. I currently perform with a saxophone quartet and a clarinet quartet and teach in my semi-retirement. I now know what they mean that musicians never really retire. I have performed for 10 years with the Long Beach Grand Opera. I have also performed full time with The Pageant of the Masters Orchestra, The Las Vegas Symphony, and Las Vegas Chamber players and as an added musician with the Los Angeles Philharmonic, The Pacific Symphony, and the Long Beach Symphony. In the Jazz field, I have performed with the Stan Kenton Orchestra, Woody Herman Band and the Paul Horn Concert Ensemble. I also performed for Broadway Musicals and accompanied hundreds of Pop Music icons. I have also played on over 100 motion pictures. I have taught at Cal State Irvine, Orange Coast College, and Cerritos College and have done concerts and clinics in High Schools and Colleges for most of my career."

My Business

"I have owned MikeVaccaro.Com for 35 years and have been the Music Contractor for the Cerritos Center for the Performing Arts for 27 years and the Ram football band for 10 years. In addition, I have contracted musicians for motion pictures, recordings, and live performances throughout the United States. My company also specialized in corporate events for many years and provided and produced industrial shows including sound, lights, staging, set design, scripts, original music, talent and much more. All of my recordings, videotapes, and articles are on my website for your perusal."

My Course

"I hope to help you get through your career in the music business as easily as possible with my experiences of 50 years of playing Classical, Jazz, Pop, Broadway, and Motion Picture music. I think you will find a few gems that you will keep throughout your life. Be sure and read the PDF’s that offer business and people philosophy for success. I also hope you enjoy the musical tidbits between sections of each video. I urge you to sign on to my website and sign up for my bi-monthly broadcast in addition to watching the videos, reading the articles and listening to my music on the site. I also urge you to keep current on new additions to the iClassical website for new lessons at the highest level of performance."