... I’ve always been a truth seeker. I strive to be a truth teller, for better or for worse.
SHELAGH ABATE is an internationally renowned horn player and educator, known for her versatility across classical, contemporary, jazz, and commercial genres. A longtime veteran of New York's demanding freelance scene, she has performed on more than a dozen Broadway shows, including Frozen, The Music Man, Mary Poppins and A Gentleman’s Guide to Love and Murder. As a frequent performer with prestigious ensembles like The Metropolitan Opera, Mostly Mozart Festival, American Ballet Theater, and the Lincoln Center Jazz Orchestra, Shelagh has collaborated with legendary icons such as Seiji Ozawa, John Williams, Wynton Marsalis, Marin Alsop, Andre Previn, Gunther Schuller, among others. Ms. Abate has recorded and performed with Sting, The Who, Lady Gaga, Trey Anastasio, Joni Mitchell, Brian Wilson, to name a few. A committed educator, Shelagh joined the Berklee College of Music faculty as Assistant Professor in 2022 and has given clinics, masterclasses, lessons and lectured at numerous other institutions. Shelagh is also a longtime faculty member of The Boston University Tanglewood Institute, and is proud to serve the children of Baltimore City Schools as a Teaching Artist for The Baltimore Symphony’s OrchKids. A winner of the Coleman Competition, finalist for the Fischoff and Lyon Chamber Music Competitions she is a founding member of Triton Brass and a strong advocate for chamber music. Shelagh is a proud Stephens Custom Horns artist and continues to inspire through performance and teaching.
[Click here for full bio]
[
.... when I practice, it’s always nuts and bolts, pushups and sit-ups so that I can build castles in the sky when the time comes.
Not That Anyone Asked... 5/4/25
Not a blog. Nope nope nope.
...But some of my most impulsive purchases turned out to be amazing long-term investments. And more importantly, long-term moments of happiness.
I shop for fun. It's a problem. I have my go-to stores, and when I visit them, it's a genuine pleasure. And incidentally, when and if these stores happen to close, I grieve. Sigh; can we please have a moment for the Century 21 on W66th St? The Shoe Parlor on 7th Ave? The Irregular Choice boutique on Lafayette? The Unique Boutique from, I don't know, 1989? Rennaisance on 23rd St? Ugh, I'm still not over some of them. All this said, I am NOT a shopaholic, thank you very much. I wear and use everything I buy, and I do not always buy when I shop. My closet is not full of clothes that are still tagged, and I am not saddled with astronomical debt. From shopping, that is. (Boston College is another story...not that I'm bitter. But that's another post for another time).
Usually when I hit a favorite store, I have something in mind, but I'm open to wherever the wind blows me, and I think this is one of the secrets to successful and enjoyable shopping: being down to clown. Need a top? Look at shoes too, just because. And housewares...because they happen to be having a special on Nambé! What good fortune! The Bloomingdale's Outlet Store on Broadway at 72nd is still my ultimate jam. It's a complete disaster, but its also chock full of treasures. You just have to have some time to kill and the bandwidth to rummage through the chaos, because it really is complete and total chaos. I live in Baltimore and I work in Boston, so I cast a pretty wide (!!) shopping net these days. Buffalo Exchange in Boston's Coolidge Corner just gave me good reason to squee, and I got some mega dopamine hits without spending more than $26. And as for my adopted hometown in 'Balmer, walking into Ten Car Pileup in Towson was like entering a portal and finding myself immediately back in 1984. I was once again acting like an awkward preteen old as I chatted up the owner, Shane: impossibly cool, sitting casually at the register with the air of someone who's seen literally everything. On one particularly successful trip, I found an amazing lime green leather Frye three-quarter jacket for $50. Probably $10 too much, but you know the original price was at least $400. Amazing. One of my crown jewels. Sigh.
Anyway, if there is one thing I'm better at than spending my own money, it's spending other people's money, so let me offer some advice that absolutely NO ONE asked for: if you are out shopping and you see something and are seized by the desire to make it yours, as long as you're not going to go broke and it's not an irresponsible bonehead move, you should buy it. There's likely a reason it's grabbed your attention, and I'm a sucker for the idea that fate brought you and that killer leather jacket together. When I see something that fits into this category, the dealbreaker causing me to pull the trigger and make the purchase is the knowledge that walking out of the store without those Stewart Weitzman 5050 black suede knee high boots marked down from $795 to $89 (OMGRIGHT?) in my size when I almost never go into DSW will cause regret. I will surely want to return for them tomorrow, when, of course, they will, in all likelihood, be gone. Regret is a four-letter word. Let's call it "RGRT" here because it's so awful and the idea of it haunts me. Again and again I've proven to myself that just buying that damn raincoat was an EXCELLENT move. I have worn that effing raincoat for five years in three countries, three American cities, gained and lost 30 lbs, gained them back and stayed dry all the while...with said coat remaining in pristine condition. I continue to benefit from the $350 noise-cancelling Bose headphones that were rage-purchased en route from Grand Central to Frozen the day of the 5th Avenue Food Fair, when I truly thought that walking that 1/4 mile would give me a stroke. That was five years ago. I could go on and on, as I'm sure you can imagine at this point, but I won't. I'll simply close with a few words – and a tip o' the hat to that expensive Jesuit education that I continue to pay for:
Carpe Diem. Buy the damn shoes.
Recordings
...It’s worth it to even come close. It feels like flying. Like an out of body experience. We practice diligently, endlessly, to achieve and maintain fluency on our instruments so that we may express ourselves without the burden of technical cares.
Pedagogy
As Brass Department Faculty at The Berklee College of Music, Shelagh has a robust studio of aspiring musicians who plan to specialize in various areas of the music industry, ranging from Performance to Film and Video Game Scoring, Audio Recording & Engineering, Music Management and Production. No matter their concentration, developing and refining their horn playing skills is a vital part of their evolution. It is with immense pride that she plays a role in expanding their horizons, as in many cases she is introducing commercial and jazz concepts to her horn players. In doing so, she is preparing tomorrow's musicians to be better prepared for today's industry.
Lecturing for a Professional Development Seminar has also become a huge part of her experience at Berklee. This is very much a mentorship position, a course required for Berklee upperclassmen just prior to graduation as they prepare to enter the professional arena. Sharing her experience as an industry veteran, guiding them through the process of composing professional portfolios is an invaluable part of her students' journey. Artist Statements, Elevator Pitches, Bios, and finally a professional website are all included in her syllabus. Gig etiquette, financial literacy, assistance with navigating visa issues for her international students; all these important topics are tackled. Her students complete each semester ready to take the world by storm.
... The great composers and songwriters build the doorways, but we are the ones to walk through the portals when we succeed.
Performance Highlights
...The truth comes at a cost, but I know I’ve also saved lives – most especially my own by being honest. In music, you know you are hearing someone’s truth when their playing transcends the instrument they’re holding. That is my goal, always.
Publications
The Horn Call, 2013
Feature & Interview with NYC veteran horn player, Frank Donaruma
The Horn Call, 2014
Freelancing 101
The Horn Call, 2014
Freelancing 102
Marylin Bone Kloss' Cornucopia, 2018
Horn Players can Swing!
...I am always left awed. Grateful, sated, connected to something bigger and far more important than me. Also usually trembling, trying to keep my shit together, thinking that finally, my battery is fully charged again. Now, ever the Capricorn, I can begin the next big climb to the next time I’m lucky enough to touch upon it: The Truth.
–Shelagh Abate, January 2024.
What's coming up...
