Let's try this again...

So, here it is, I've made a website. Again. What makes it different this time, you ask? Well, since my last attempt at making a music related website something major has happened... I'm actually a full-time employed professional musician now and have been for almost four years! It is so much easier to put together one of these things when you have an actual library of professional work to choose from, instead of nitpicking every old college ensemble/recital recording you have for 30 seconds of mistake-free music. Very thankful that my colleagues at the United States Naval Academy Band are so damn good, they make me sound good by default. As my old website is still archived, it is very interesting to go back and read the thoughts of a very nervous 24 year old hoping to the old Gods and the new that he somehow find a way to be a full-time musician. Maybe I'll post some of those here someday.

Ok, so, things are different this time around, I'm employed now. That doesn't answer the question of Why have a website? Or, Why Have a Blog? Fair enough.

Why have a website? To be completely honest, because I wanted one. I've worked very hard for almost 25 years now at trying to become competent at making noise out of a piece of metal and am one of the very fortunate few in the country who get to do it for a living. In some ways, having "www.MattHarriman.com" feels like validation to myself, my parents, and my grandparents, for the many years and thousands of dollars spent supporting this dream of mine. That kind of answers the next question: Why have a Blog?

"Why Have a blog? It's not like you have fans" I mean, yeah, you're not completely wrong but I do have fans. I've had them from day one in my parents and grandparents, so while at the moment I will write these entries mainly for family members, maybe one day I'll have some people who know me only from a concert and liked my playing enough to look me up.

So in the end, this whole experiment might end up with the same fate as my past three(!) sites, but as long as Im fortunate enough to continue employment as a professional trumpet player, I'll do my best to write about the experiences, be it playing for the President of the United States, being in the Pit Orchestra for a show downtown, or even if it's just to say hello, I'm still here.

Ok, time to practice.