“Those who can’t play….” Wait, let’s unpack this.

There’s this old saying that goes something like “those who can’t play teach”, implying that musicians who haven’t “made it” are sub-par as performers and better off in a classroom.

A larger piece of horse hockey does not exist in this world, and Erica’s career is a shining example proving that this adage has no place in either performance or education.

She began her career as an educator at the age of sixteen when she started a teaching studio in her hometown of West Hartford, CT. Growing up in a single-parent household, Erica had to contribute to the household finances, and decided to fill a much-needed gap in the community by becoming a private beginner saxophone teacher. What started with a few students ballooned to a studio of twenty eager and talented youngsters. Erica has found a calling, and a passion.

Her performing career has spanned everything from touring with the Jazz at Lincoln Center Orchestra to performing in the pits of Broadway, in addition to countless studio albums and sharing the stage with luminaries from all walks of the entertainment world. But teaching has always been a common thread that  has sustained her both financially and spiritually. Having the ability to guide others through the intricacies of music study is a talent completely aside that of performance. In the jazz industry many players conduct masterclasses and workshops, especially when they are on the road with their band. It’s a good opportunity to educate others on their music and also spread brand awareness. But there is only a small percentage of performing artists who truly have the gift and ability to communicate music to others in a way that helps a learner execute it themselves.

After graduating from the Juilliard School, Erica began a teaching artist position with Feel the Music, a nonprofit set up to work with families of 9/11, specifically children who had lost a parent in the World Trade Center. While Erica was tasked with providing saxophone and piano lessons, she found that her most important job was to create a safe and fun space for the kids, many of whom needed a momentary escape from constantly being reminded of the largest terrorist attack on American soil. This holistic approach to music education was foreign to Erica, especially having grown up as the high school phenom who went to Juilliard. Yes, she wanted the kids to learn technique and musicianship, but became just as happy when her students found sheer joy plucking out the melody of “Umbrella” by Rhianna on the white keys.

This experience caused Erica to reflect on how she was handled as a borderline child prodigy and chose to steer her pedagogical values to reflect a more human approach. Music education is about the experience, and if you provide a student with a great experience, they’re going to want to come back for more.

Over the years Erica has been a guest lecturer at the Manhattan School of Music, Juilliard, Stanford University, New England Conservatory, UNC Greensboro, and countless high schools. In addition, Erica has been a mainstay educator for Carnegie Hall’s NYO Jazz program as an adjudicator and faculty member. While college students are a great outlet for teaching her more advanced and nuanced improvisational concepts, Erica truly enjoys working with beginning improvisers. In 2019 she self published “A Cool Approach to Jazz Theory”, an informational workbook that walks novice improvisers through the most basic of theoretic concepts, taking the mystery out of chord symbols, progressions, extensions and alterations. The book has been used as a curriculum for several schools in the US, Canada and Cuba. Erica hopes that this book can become a go-to resource for students and band directors alike, and to prove to young improvisers that soloing is not scary, and that jazz is not complicated.

That same year, as a part of her nonprofit Groovetrail, she launched the Flathead Ellington Project, an all-star jazz ensemble of high school students from the Flathead area of Montana where she was residing at the time. Along with three dedicated local band directors and a slew of excited parents and supporters, Erica trained the band and on the music of the great Duke Ellington, providing them with opportunities to perform for the community, be showcased on Montana Public Radio, collaborate with students from Jazz at Lincoln Center, and be mentored by guest artists DeWitt Fleming Jr. and Summer Camargo. The project culminated in the students taking a trip to New York to perform at the National Jazz Museum in Harlem. This program was the largest educational endeavor Erica has ever led, and was a massive and heartfelt undertaking. Sadly, the program did not repeat again the next year as the pandemic began to take hold.

In January of 2023 Erica relocated back to NYC with an opportunity to teach business at the Manhattan School of Music. Backed with seven years of experience running her own for profit and non profit companies in Montana, Erica developed a curriculum aimed at providing basic financial and entrepreneurial literacy to budding music professionals. Her concept has now snowballed into a web series launching soon on Patreon entitled “The Business of the Music Business”, with new videos dropping regularly. 

You can learn more at ericavonkleist.com and jazztheoryiscool.com