There was a piano in our home, played often by my Mom and siblings. At age nine I began playing the trumpet. I’m sure it was awful to listen to -- I remember my dad once telling me to practice outside. He loved music, too, but a beginning player on any instrument an be tough to handle. One of my sisters had a guitar and encouraged me to play. With her help, and that of a brother-in-law, I learned my first few chords. By age 15 I was gigging in my first band, Ticket To Music. I was hooked.

It would be years before I learned enough about music to be much more than a ‘garage band’ guitarist, yet the mysteries that awaited kept me playing. Through the influence of my band director, an accomplished pianist named Manny Brothern, I dabbled in other instruments throughout my school years, and spent a lot of time on tuba and bass. But I always came back to my first, true love: the guitar.

In 1983 I did something that caught a lot of people -- me among them -- by surprise; I joined the Marines. The driving forces behind this decision were my family’s involvement in the Marines (my Dad and two sisters preceded me in the Corps), and being curious if I had what it took to become one of the Few, the Proud. It turned out to be one of the best decisions of my life.

Enlisting originally as a computer programmer, I had the opportunity before leaving for boot camp to audition for the Marine Corps Band. I was surprised to learn I passed the audition; kudos to the Corps for raising its standards significantly since then. I entered active duty in November of 1983, just a month after the bombing of the Marine Barracks in Beirut. Over the next 23 years I served in five different Marine Corps Bands and was lucky enough to perform thousands of times for audiences numbering in the millions. Most of the gigs were with the marching band, but there were plenty with the jazz combo, big band, concert band, and show band. I played and conducted, and even drum majored for a while. Best of all, I was surrounded by patriots who were also professional musicians. We trained for combat and practiced for concerts. I simply loved it, and still cannot believe I got paid to do it.

I am now retired from the Marine Corps and living in Australia. Teaching guitar and bass is tremendously rewarding, and I live for those moments when the light comes on in a student’s eyes as a new musical concept is grasped. Playing the guitar is good for the soul and cheaper than therapy. After all, any problem that can’t be solved with a good guitar is either unsolvable or is not a problem. Happy picking. -- Lauren