About Dr. Bob

Dr. “Birdman” Bob (aka Dr. Bob, The Birdman or Dr. Price) is a professional clarinetist, composer, and instructor. With an extensive background in public and private school music classrooms, as well as performance for a range of audiences, Dr. Bob offers a wide variety of experiences to his students, including improvisation, classical instruction, and world music.

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School Performance & Residency

Dr. Bob has been teaching music to children for over 40 years.  You can bring him to your school with funding from your Run for the Arts Fund with Arts for Learning NW (formerly Young Audiences).  He has been teaching with Portland Public Schools since 2004 and has a variety of workshops planned that are compatible with your school’s music program.   If you don’t have a music teacher, his workshops will help students experience the National Core Music Standards in fun and creative ways. Creativity is the cornerstone of the music standards and this is emphasized in his workshops which approach creativity from a global perspective. Follow the links below to the form and instructions for Arts for Learning funds to bring Dr. Bob to your school.

Pick the best of three residencies for your class:

Multicultural Festival Residency – In five one-hour sessions, Dr. Bob will help your class prepare for your school’s Multicultural Festival.

New Music Improvisation Residency – Open your students’ minds and ears to new ways to think about sound, while we create music together through improvisation.

Popular Music for Character Traits Residency – Students will share their favorite songs and, together with Dr. Bob, they will find songs that support the character traits promoted by your school.

Each residency is for five 1-hour sessions with up to 35 students at the cost of $500 per residency.

Arts for Learning Instructions for Booking Off-Roster Artists
Arts for Learning Form

“As a teacher, Dr. Price has inspired children and adults, particularly in indigenous communities.  He has taught on every level, from young children through students in college, in areas of creative writing, art, music, and all kinds of improvisation.  He is also concerned with political and human rights issues – conservation and ecology in his work with installations and land reclamation and Native People’s cultural and political rights; essentially, he sees the artists as a role model for integral consciousness and aesthetic freedom.  He is truly an interdisciplinary scholar and thinker.”

Roni Natov, Core Faculty The Union Institute, Professor of English, Brooklyn College, CUNY

“…a kindred spirit in working with children, working in music, working with diversity and democracy very much in mind as you create curricula that will open up ears and minds to other people in their neighborhoods, communities, and worlds.  It seems you have a serious project in mind, and that’s grand, working through material to put together an earful of experiences that they can tune to (and turn to, all their lives long).”

Patricia Shehan Campbell, Donald E. Petersen Professor of Music, Head, Ethnomusicology, University of Washington, Chair, Smithsonian Folkways Board

“I have observed Bob Price on many occasions and in many different situations and have found him to be a competent musician and a sensitive teacher who has the ability to design realistic, attainable goals for his students.  Bob worked for several months at this school; and during this time he demonstrated his ability to serve clients functioning at all levels… He was well-respected by both staff and those whom he taught.  Bob has continued some of this work on a volunteer basis, and this attitude of service is characteristic of him and his work.  I have also observed his work with the contemporary music ensemble BL Lacerta, and in this medium Bob demonstrates a keen sense of musicianship coupled with the ability to create and exchange musical ideas instantaneously.”

Joe Pinson, RMI, M.A., Director of Music Therapy, Denton State School, Texas Department of Mental Health

Arrows don’t work? Click here to see more testimonials.

Private Lessons

Dr. Bob also has openings in his private teaching schedule.  Dr. Bob is qualified to teach clarinet, flute, saxophone, Native American flute, penny whistle and recorder.  He is also certified to teach the Japanese Shakuhachi by his teacher, Hanzaburo Araki Kodo VI, iemoto of the oldest established school of shakuhachi in Japan: Kinko Ryu.

Lessons are taught either remotely (Zoom, FaceTime, etc.) or at Dr. Bob’s studio in St. Johns, Portland, OR and cost $50 for an hour lesson and $30 for a half-hour lesson.

Book Private Lessons

Performance & Workshops

Dr. Bob’s solo performances involve a range from traditional clarinet repertoire and world music to new music improvisation.  His improvisation depends greatly on the sounds of the audience.  He incorporates movement as well as visual art into his performance.

Please reach out if you are interested in booking a performance and/or community workshop with Dr. Bob.

Book A Performance
Visit Dr. Bob’s SoundCloud