My love of music started with my fathers old 78s. At night, when I was only three or four, he would take me in his arms and dance until I fell asleep. The music might have been Bennie Goodman, Caruso or Beethoven it never mattered. Those scratchy old shellacs drove music well into my heart and it has never left me. My talent as a musician is limited (think of Salieri) but I spent more than a decade playing the piano and played trumpet throughout my high school and college years. That feeling, on stage, with other musicians around me in the moments before the downbeat were among the most treasured memories that I carry with me. Perhaps they were my finest times, who can say? The sound of the orchestra's voice bouncing off the walls of the hall was nothing short of intoxicating.

In Los Angeles during the 1970s it was oh so very hip to be in the music business, even as a pretender. The concentration of talented musicians and engineers was amazing and the competition was fierce. The people that I knew who were having success were also away from home a great deal and frequently worked late into the night and always on weekends. It wasn't for me...

Instead, I went to UCLA to study Political Philosophy and began to write. As a freelancer, I've written scores of legal documents for both litigation and research, and ad copy for everything from computer peripherals to golf clubs. I am currently a little better than halfway through my first novel. My work is nothing if not diverse. Reviewing is simply an extension of my passion for the written word and music...a most happy marriage indeed. My musical taste, like my work, is eclectic. I am just as likely to be found listening to Dwight Yoakam's latest country blues as an obscure orchestral transcription of Schoenberg's. I detest boundaries and I refuse to be categorized.

Other than music, my passions extend into the odd realm of collecting mechanical Swiss watches (I have a particular affinity for Universal Geneve, Jaeger-LeCoutre and old Blancpain Bathyscaphes). The term addiction more so than passion describes my relationship with golf. I played well and often as a boy but abandoned the game for almost 20 years. My now 40 year old body forced me to give up on other sports as competitive outlets, and golf was there to save my spirit while savaging my sense of priorities. I love it dearly.

Feel free to contact me at mlg@tnt-audio.com. I'd be happy to hear from you. I may not have time to get back to you right away, but rest assured that I will read every word and that you will hear from me.

My best to all,

M.L. Gneier

© Copyright 2001 M.L. Gneier - http://www.tnt-audio.com