Michael Renfroe

What instruments do you play?

I first played clarinet; that was my first instrument. Piano – I always messed around when I was younger, but never took it seriously until a year ago. I play bassoon, as well; and trombone.

Those are very unique instruments…

Are you a solo artist or do you play in a band?

I guess solo? It would be cool to play in a band, but I don’t know how… yet. Even though Brady says I do, I have a tendency to overcomplicate things.

You have played with a group here, right?

Yeah.

How was that?

It was very fun and interesting with how it first came to be. First you have Thalia and Adam working on the chords. She was singing, and then Tako hops in on his guitar…. and then Naps hopped on drums… then I listened to it and hopped on the bassoon and the song just… happened.

Born out of a jam session?

Yeah.

That’s cool!

Tell us about yourself as an artist. What started your journey as a musician, how did you get to where you are now?

Well, [it] started as a kid… I’ve always been interested in music – mainly classical and piano. They had those things at Walmart where you press the CD things and they would play… When I was younger, my mom would worry about me because I would just be there playing the same thing over and over again, just sitting in the same spot. And then we got a piano and I just messed around on it; I played super Mario bros and I’d let the theme run through, and then I’d play it on piano, but I never took it seriously… Then, come 5th grade, I saw they had a band thing going and I was like, “you know, I’ll try it out.” That’s how I started clarinet. From then on, I [played] clarinet until 9th grade, until… I saw… this weird looking instrument – which was a bassoon – and was like, “I wanna play that! I don’t know what it is, but I want to play it.” So, I asked my teacher about it and he said… “yeah, I’ll give you a try, but don’t be disappointed if you can’t play it.” I came back in 2 days and could play a chromatic scale on it, and had a good tone… and he was like, “okay, well damn. Alright.”

Tell us about your time at Norco, in the Norco Music department.

At first, when I was going to Norco I was only – I had only [been] here for one semester; I hadn’t taken any music classes yet. That was in 2016. Two years later, 2018, I was going to go back to college and I was going to take my General Ed… but because I registered late, the only available classes were the music classes. I was like, “you know what, why not? I’ll dive back into it.” So, I took Pro Tools and Choir, and then from there… just kind of spread out… I absolutely love it. The people you meet [here] are amazing, and you learn from each other, and there is no one I’ve met so far that is super egotistical or super self-centered; everyone wants to help each other, from varying different skills. You have someone that’s just barely learning four chords on the guitar, and you have someone that’s amazing at it, but they’ll still try to help each other out. It’s just like a… it feels like family, whenever I come here.

Do you have a favorite memory or experience from being in Norco Music?

I’d say, probably, my favorite experience would be, honestly, what happened that day when Thalia’s song, River, came into creation, because I feel like that was the true essence of what the music department is. You have people with very different instruments and they just all come together and make a song out of it.

Did you guys even know each other at that point?

That was my first time here. I know Tako and Adam knew each other. Thalia… I think she knew them as well. I was barely getting to know everyone. I think Naps was… I think he didn’t know many people as well… and then there was also Chris on the bass… I met everyone there.

What are you doing now as far as school, music, or any other professional pursuits?

What I’m doing right now is studying music – all that I can, especially for piano. One of the reasons I want to continue going to MIS-1 is [so] that way I know how to work with other people in different genres. That way I’m not just stuck playing classical pieces; I’ll also know how to collaborate and improvise.

So, you’re going for Performance, as opposed to Audio Production?

I would say it’s… my main thing I’m going for [is] composition. I want to graduate here with [degrees in] Music Performance and Audio Production.

Do you have any hobbies outside of music?

I really love woodworking. Which is kind of a dangerous thing because you’re working with your hands around saws, and your hands are like your moneymakers! But there’s woodworking; riding dirt bikes… off-roading; also, I guess, gemology – finding gems – because I live in the mountains, and there’s a map online that tells you where there [are] gem deposits, and you can scout around. I actually have a pickaxe and shovel, and I go mining for actual gemstones. I have chunks of quartz in my truck that I forget to take out.

Are there any goals that you’ve set for yourself, either short-term or long-term?

Yes, actually. I think that helps a lot – setting goals for yourself. Because long-term goals are great… like, several years from now I want to [compose] at least 3 big pieces… I want to compose a piece for Norco Choir, as well. And you also have to have short-term goals to keep you reminded… [that] you need to work on little things to go up to there. As far as short-term goals… right now, it would be just learning the pieces I know on piano and trying to focus on more. Because when I look at a piano piece, I don’t just see it as playing notes, I see it as gaining technique from each piece; each piece you play or every little thing you learn – whether it be jamming with someone, or reading a piece, there’s something to be gained from that.

And you did mention that you wanted to get a degree… and maybe transfer?

Yeah… I’m definitely going to be transferring. I don’t know where yet, I have several colleges in mind.

But you wanted to do more along the lines of traditional music, right?

Yeah, because my whole thing is I want to compose for TV, film. That’s my end goal, or a goal I’d like to reach.

Is there anything else you’d like to add? Anything you want to tell whoever might be reading? Anything you want people to know about you?

I guess one thing would be… let me see how to put this into words… It’s a thing that I always repeat to myself a lot… Don’t view life as being really short. In reality you have a long time – you’re given a pretty lengthy life; it only feels short when you do nothing with it. So, try your best to constantly learn and do something, even if it’s little things, just don’t do nothing. Always try to grow.

Album Credits:

Beneath the Surface

River
Vessel