Meet Neil Teller

We’re excited to introduce you to the always interesting and insightful Neil Teller. We hope you’ll enjoy our conversation with Neil below.

Neil, so good to have you with us today. We’ve always been impressed with folks who have a very clear sense of purpose and so maybe we can jump right in and talk about how you found your purpose?

I found my purpose at an early age but wouldn’t really know it was my purpose until much later in life. I started playing the saxophone when I was ten years old in Gainesville, Florida under the private instruction of a musician named Lavell Kamma. The joy in his eyes and the vibrancy of his spirit when he performed or talked about music helped to form the foundation for what would be my purpose. I knew from that point that I wanted music to be a part of my daily life but I wasn’t sure how. After high school I moved to Pensacola, Florida where I attended the University of West Florida and graduated with my BM in Classical Saxophone Performance and a BA in Telecommunications & Film. I moved to Portland, OR to pursue my MM in Jazz Studies at Portland State University and to live in a city with a more active music scene. I realized my purpose in an independent study with professor Darrell Grant during the last term of my graduate studies at PSU. We were studying the ability of music to enact social change in a community and the final project for the course was to write a plan for a community program that encompassed the values we had been studying. This project and the discussions that followed were what led me to the decision to start Swingin’ Sounds. My purpose is to use music to build community and inspire young musicians to pursue their own purpose.

Let’s take a small detour – maybe you can share a bit about yourself before we dive back into some of the other questions we had for you?

The Swingin’ Sounds: Music Program provides a no-cost jazz-focused music education program at 5 public schools, including 2 Title 1 middle schools, during school hours in the Portland, OR area. We provide equitable access to instruments and music education to students from historically marginalized and underserved communities as well as schools with existing programs that have a need for support. Our instructor supports the instruction of music theory, large and small ensemble rehearsals, the history of jazz, and approaches to improvisation. We also offer extracurricular performance and recording opportunities for students interested in building their professional music portfolios and playing music outside of their school programs. We will serve an estimated 250 students in our in school program ranging from age 11-18.

Our monthly community engagement events will take place at different schools in the PPS district where students can participate in community-led presentations about music theory, performance techniques, jam session etiquette, and music composition as well as a chance for students to perform with the house band and their peers.

Thanks to funding from the Mount Hood Cable Regulatory Commission’s 2024 Community Technology Grant; we will be able to provide professional recording services at no-cost to participating students and community members. The Swingin’ Sounds: Recording Project will provide participating students the ability to make content for their professional music portfolios that can be used to apply to future academic or professional opportunities. We will also record a weekly rehearsal at each of the schools we serve to be used as a rehearsal tool by the band directors, all participating school band performances which we will offer to families at no-cost, all community engagement event presentations and performances, and all extracurricular student performance opportunities that we provide.

We will collaborate with local organizations to lead community dialogues and provide additional educational and professional opportunities for our students. We will serve as a connecting force that will draw young musicians together to learn as a larger community outside of their school programs.

One of the organization’s goals is to provide equitable access to music education and community events to students that would normally face barriers of cost, transportation, and unavailability. Seeking additional music instruction and purchasing equipment can be expensive. When we remove the barriers of cost and unavailability by providing equipment, in-school instruction, and access to the existing music community at no-cost; we open access to students from historically marginalized and underserved communities and those from low-income households to participate in music.

If you had to pick three qualities that are most important to develop, which three would you say matter most?

1) Strong work ethic- try to develop good habits early on and set attainable goals for yourself along the way. Decide what you want and consistently work hard for it. “There is no easy way, the hard way is the easy way”- Wayne Shorter, “There is no luck. Luck is when prior preparation meets opportunity”- Joseph Spaniola

2) Good Communication Skills- Sometimes being good in a room and making people like you can create positive opportunities. Relax. Listen. Be present.

3) Be pleasant to be around- no one wants to work with the person that kills the joy in the room. Be humble and respect those around you.

Okay, so before we go we always love to ask if you are looking for folks to partner or collaborate with?

We are looking for people that believe in the importance of music education and jazz education in public schools to help support our program in whatever way they can. We accept support through donation of space for our events in the Portland, OR area, volunteer services, donation of used instruments that are in good working condition, and financial support to help us expand our current services. We accept support from individuals and businesses that wish to donate to our cause. If you are a professional musician in the Pacific Northwest that would like to volunteer your services to host one of our monthly community engagement events please contact us directly.

Please contact us at swinginsoundsportland@gmail.com for any questions. You can also reach us on Instagram @swingin_sounds_portland.

If you wish to make a financial donation online you may do so through the link below or contact us for direct routing information:

https://secure.givelively.org/donate/swingin-sounds/swingin-sounds-music-program

Contact Info:

• Website: https://swinginsoundsmusic.weebly.com/
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/swingin_sounds_portland/

Image Credits

Patrick Randak