Dr. J.B. Faires
About
JB Faires is a freelance bassist and educator in central Illinois. He holds a Doctor of Musical Arts degree in jazz performance with a minor in ethnomusicology from the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign, as well as MA and BM degrees in music performance and jazz studies from Eastern Illinois University. JB regularly performs on double bass and electric bass with many diverse and popular groups, playing styles from Appalachian to Zydeco and everything in between, in addition to providing live sound engineering and entertainment services.
"Growing up in a musical family has its advantages and disadvantages. For one, learning formal music theory is easy when you've been surrounded by it your whole life. Things like family singalong time in 4-part harmony on long car rides to grandma's house, mom directing the church choir, dad in the barbershop quartet, and having two older sisters proficient in voice and piano to help keep you entertained on those long summer days before the era of cable and video games, sure go a long way to building a solid musical foundation. But then there's the time you invite your girlfriend to eat with the family and forget to tell her that you sing the blessing at dinner (Awkward! Sorry, Honey!)
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But after learning some piano and cornet, I found the most expression and pleasure playing the bass. The way the sound moves through a room, moves through people, giving them a sonic massage in the process, and provides a pathway for the rest of the music to reach for those heights that keep us listening for more, just felt good to me.
So I played bass every chance I could get in as many different musical configurations and styles as I could find, some years playing as many as 100 gigs, and decided that my life would be dedicated to learning everything about music and bass.
The idea of lifetime learning was further reinforced during my academic studies at Eastern Illinois University and the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign, and aided by the access to vast volumes of information available therein.
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A lot of interesting things can happen when music is the focus of your life. I hope to share some of the more
sublime moments with you soon!"
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Serenity Sessions: Relax & Sleep
Dr. J.B. Faires
Take a break from the hustle and bustle of everyday life and prepare to unwind and get a great night’s sleep. This 2-disc set of therapeutic music - one disc for relaxation, one disc geared toward sleep - is composed with you in mind. Real people playing real instruments, not computer generated sounds. Perfect for combining with other therapeutic activities such as yoga and meditation.