The Fubrian Story

The Fubrian Story

Fubrian.com is a culmination of my lifelong fascination with learning and sharing, along with my heartfelt passion to help others. I have never been one to shy away from anything, as everything we experience is an opportunity to learn and grow. Even as a youngster and developing trumpet player, I would frequently show other musicians little tricks and tips that I was learning, and that was just the beginning.

Later, as a professional trumpet player, I continued to build on my knowledge of the learning process and made a massive shift in my playing approach when I realized that I was physically beating myself up. I needed to make a change or quit.

More recently, I taught myself to play golf left-handed as a neuroplasticity project and went on to win the first day of the Sunshine Coast Spring Classic golf tournament, much to everyone’s surprise! The win wasn’t the point—it was what I was learning about how to train myself.

I’ve seen many playing issues and obstacles throughout my 30+ years of teaching and coaching, and have been helping musicians of all standards overcome these and go on to develop healthy, efficient playing machines with technical ease and a beautiful sound. The brain has a remarkable ability to learn and change, and we can steer this in the direction we want until our desired outcome becomes automatic if we understand the process.

The intense work I’ve done with Julie Baxes on resolving musician’s focal dystonia is an amazing demonstration of the power of the brain and has taken me into a new realm of problem-solving. I’ve learned so much through our research together, and this website is about getting this knowledge out there.

I want to give people hope that, whether you’re dealing with focal dystonia, the mis-wiring aftermath of Bell’s palsy or some degree of stage fright, there are people who want to help and who can help. You can do this!

Enjoy the learning process!

All the best,

Greg

The Greg Spence Story

Greg Spence is an internationally renowned performing artist, educator and coach. He is the rare breed of being both a world-class trumpet player and an innovator of brass education. Greg specializes in helping musicians overcome focal dystonia, Bell’s palsy/synkinesis and performance anxiety.

With his versatility in commercial, jazz, Latin American, funk and classical playing, Greg has been an in-demand trumpeter for national advertising campaigns, theater shows, concerts, symphony features, Australia’s smash hit “Dancing with the Stars” and more. He has played alongside some of the most recognized performers in the world including James Morrison, Wayne Bergeron, Herbie Hancock, Florence and the Machine, Katy Perry, Bobby Shew, Olivia Newton-John, Jose Feliciano, Shirley Bassey, Human Nature, The Cat Empire, Ministry of Sound, Seal and Tim Minchin, just to name a few.

As a sought-after visiting artist and clinician at top-line universities, Greg has held master classes throughout Europe, the United States and Australia. He has also been a guest presenter at the International Trumpet Guild conference and Midwest Clinic.

Greg incorporates physics, neurology and psychology into a holistic, groundbreaking pedagogy that simplifies brass-playing techniques. He has coached professional players and educators from prestigious organizations all over the world including the Royal College of Music, London; University of North Texas; University Of Ljubljana, Slovenia; Sydney Symphony Orchestra; Baylor University; New Zealand Symphony Orchestra; Berlin Symphony Orchestra; RTE Concert Orchestra, Dublin; Copenhagen Philharmonic; and more.

Greg holds a B.A. in trumpet performance from the Victorian College of the Arts University.

The Julie Baxes Story

MUSICIAN'S FOCAL DYSTONIA SUPPORT COACH

Julie Baxes is an amateur trumpet player who began her music journey as a pianist, performing with church choirs, in small ensembles, and for weddings and other special occasions. She picked up trumpet in her mid40s, took lessons with various teachers over the years, and has studied exclusively with Greg Spence for more than 5 years.

Julie has performed with area bands, the Jeffco Brass, university jazz and concert bands, and the Rocky Mountain Brassworks, a British-style brass band that plays in metro area venues.

She began experiencing symptoms of musician’s focal dystonia about 6 years ago. These migrated from rehearsals to the practice room, lessons and performances, eventually requiring Julie to leave her performing groups. Fortunately, she reconnected with Greg Spence after studying with him previously. Together, they have been extensively researching musician’s focal dystonia, recording hundreds of session hours and developing effective recovery strategies. As a result, Julie has made remarkable progress and will soon return to rehearsals and gigs.

Julie has worked in the marketing communications and public affairs field for more than 30 years as a writer, editor, public speaker, staff manager, marketing and public affairs strategist, and special events manager. She holds a B.A. in journalism and a marketing minor from Arizona State University.