Brian Glueck
Brian started playing cello and piano in elementary school in Austin and studied with teachers at the University of Texas, then performed in many chamber groups, orchestras, and a motet choir at the University of Chicago. After moving to California, Brian worked in the apparel industry at Michael Casey Couture, The North Face, and Mountain Hardwear while also continuing to perform music and learn to play other stringed instruments –– from other bowed instruments like violin and viola to fretted instruments like mandolin, guitar, bass, and banjo, and fretless instruments like pedal steel guitar, lap steel, dobro and slide guitar. Playing different instruments also opened up opportunities to play in many musical genres beyond his original classical training –– from Blues, Old Time, Bluegrass, Country, and Rock to Swing and Jazz. Brian regularly performs with a country band called The Trustees (playing pedal steel guitar, fiddle, and guitar) and performed for many years as part of the Alameda-based Americana band Chickens on Wood Stringband (singing and playing mandolin, fiddle, cello, guitar).
In addition to working as a freelance musician and performing in bands, Brian has been teaching private music lessons in the East Bay for more than 10 years. Brian loves to analyze song structures and teach students how to play backup over chord changes, play a solo based on the song’s melody on their instrument, and use concepts from music theory as a starting point to improvise solos and add tasteful fills that support the song.
He’s excited to get you started on your musical journey!
1.Alive or dead: What musician would you do anything to see perform/meet?
Oh, that’s hard … I would have loved to see Clarence White play in The Byrds with his Telecaster with the B-bender mechanism that he and Gram Parsons invented. I would have loved to have heard Tony Rice perform live before dysphonia took away his singing voice and back when his guitar playing (on Clarence White’s Martin D-28 guitar) set the standard that Bluegrass guitar players still try to emulate. But … I grew up in Austin and unfortunately never got to hear Stevie Ray Vaughan perform live before his death, and that’s probably my biggest musical regret.
2. Greatest musical influence?
David Grisman, from his many collaborations with Jerry Garcia and Tony Rice, the amazing Bluegrass shows with Old & In the Way, and the incredible David Grisman Quintet recordings that reimagined Django Reinhardt-style acoustic jazz music with Bluegrass instrumentation (minus the banjo, and with a second mandolin) –– all master classes in the art of improvisation and listening to your fellow musicians to leave space for the magic to happen.
3. Any hidden talents besides music?
I love cycling and used to race on the road and the velodrome after a few years spent riding ultramarathon cycling events, including the team Race Across America. More recently, I help to coach the Skyline High School mountain bike team in Oakland and I love to ride my gravel bike to connect trails in different parks with bits of road to turn them into fun adventure rides.
4. What did you want to be while you were growing up?
I wanted to be a violinmaker. So far the closest I’ve come is building my own mandolin and several electric guitars, and I’ve repaired a lot of violins, guitars and mandolins.
5. If you could have any ‘Super Power’, which one would it be?
The ability to manipulate time … imagine how much practice time I could have!
6. If you could master any other instrument which would it be?
Several years ago I would have said pedal steel guitar, but I bought one a few years ago and have really dedicated myself to learning to play both necks on it (with different tunings). I would love to play the double bass and the drums, though.
7. Have you had what people would consider your “15 Minutes of Fame”, and if so when/what was that?
Not yet. Many fun times for sure, and I hope to have many more in the future.
8. It’s your last meal: What would it be?
That’s easy: a burrito and a glass of iced tea.
9. You’re sent to a deserted island, and you only have one album to listen to: Which is it?
Okay, that’s really tough! Right now I’d say it would be the Dire Straits album “On Every Street” with Paul Franklin playing pedal steel guitar, although maybe I’d take “Live” from Alison Krauss & Union Station because it’s two discs that make me smile every time I listen to them!
10. If you could leave one lesson with your students what would it be?
Listen to all kinds of music, pay attention to how it makes you and other people feel, and try to figure out what musical elements cause those responses. Keep it fun, find opportunities to play with other musicians, and don’t give up when it starts to seem hard because that’s just your next opportunity to master something that you can use for the rest of your life! Consistent practice helps a lot: 10 minutes a day is better than an hour once a week … and that 10 minutes will often turn into an hour (or more) when it’s fun for you!
