We caught up with the brilliant and insightful Alex Hahn a few weeks ago and have shared our conversation below.

Alex, appreciate you joining us today. Everyone has crazy stuff happen to them, but often small business owners and creatives, artists and others who are doing something off the beaten path are often hit with things (positive or negative) that are so out there, so unpredictable and unexpected. Can you share a crazy story from your journey?

My “I made it” moment:

When I was a grad student at the University of Southern California, I was a teaching assistant for Professor Jason Goldman. This meant that I took roll, graded assignments, and sometimes taught his classes. For those not familiar with Jason Goldman, Goldman is one of the most brilliant musicians I know. He is an amazing saxophonist, incredible composer/arranger, producer, and one of the best teachers I have ever had.

During my time at USC, Goldman was asked by Michael Bublé to produce his next album. Goldman had previously been in Bublé’s touring band and had written many arrangements for him over the years as well. Producing Bublé’s new album meant that Goldman would be composing/arranging the songs, contracting/choosing the band, and essentially being in charge of the creation of the album from start to finish. Goldman got so busy with the project that he handed over almost all of his work at USC to me. I covered his classes, his ensembles, graded assignments, and taught his private lessons. This was all on top of my normal class load too. In addition to covering his duties at USC, Goldman got so swamped with the Bublé project that he also asked me to cover the rest of the semester at the Los Angeles County High School of the Arts, where he also taught. So to summarize, I was covering his USC classes and ensembles, LACHSA classes and ensembles, all in addition to my normal grad school course load.

Now, of course I wanted to do a great job to ensure that the students in these classes at both USC and LACHSA were getting a great experience. But, in the back of my mind, I wanted to show Goldman that I could handle anything he threw my way and trust me with whatever he needed. I knew that him producing Bublé’s album meant that he would have final say on the musicians who recorded on the album and I wanted to make sure my name was on the front of his mind when that decision time came.

Weeks went by as I juggled everything at USC, LACHSA, and my USC grad school course load. I learned so many valuable skills during this time including time management, being prepared, efficiency, creating and grading assignments, leading a class (high school & college), running a rehearsal for big band and combo, and so much more. These skills were absolutely essential during this time in my life and are still skills that I use to this day.

As the semester came to a close, so did Goldman’s work on the album. He was finishing up writing/arranging/producing the songs and putting the band together. And it just so happens, he needed one more saxophone player. That one more saxophone player ended up being me.

The Michael Bublé album recording was in Hollywood, CA at Capitol Records in legendary studio A, where the likes of Frank Sinatra, The Beatles, Michael Jackson, Nat King Cole, and many others have recorded. Bublé was at the session and sang live with the band, I was over the moon. The band was incredible, Goldman’s arrangements were fantastic, Bublé sounded just as good in person as he does on recordings, and the whole day went amazingly. This was the first moment where I felt I had truly made it as a musician.

I love to tell this story because so many people in the music industry talk about “it’s who you know.” But, if you aren’t prepared and have the necessary skills when you meet that person, than who you know doesn’t matter. I also love to share this story because this opportunity didn’t come out of thin air, I made this opportunity happen through fostering my relationship with Goldman and my hard work.

That Grammy Nominated Michael Bublé album recording with Jason Goldman has now led to 3 more Michael Bublé albums, me taking over as the Director of Jazz Studies at the Los Angeles County High School for the Arts, becoming a professor at USC, as well as countless live performances, film/commercial recordings, and teaching opportunities. I am so thankful for Jason Goldman for these opportunities and I hope this serves as a reminder to all musicians the power of relationships and hard work.

Alex, before we move on to more of these sorts of questions, can you take some time to bring our readers up to speed on you and what you do?

Alumni of the prestigious Thelonious Monk Institute of Jazz Performance and 1st Place Winner in the Michael Brecker International Saxophone Competition, Alex Hahn is a Grammy Award Winning saxophonist, composer, and educator based in Southern California. Hahn has performed and recorded with notable names such as Herbie Hancock, Esperanza Spalding, and has recorded on Michael Bublé’s last three Grammy Nominated Albums including “Higher,” which won a Grammy Award in 2023. Hahn currently serves as the Director of Jazz at the Los Angeles County High School for the Arts and is an adjunct professor at the University of Southern California Thornton School of Music

He is an endorsed artist with Eastman Winds, D’Addario Woodwinds, and Key Leaves.

Contact Info:

• Website: [email protected]
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/realalexhahn/?hl=en

Image Credits

Cam Covello & Ricky Chavez