His Musical Journey

Mr. Landsperger, Director of Orchestras at CCHS, grew up in Greensboro, NC. A product of the North Carolina public school system, he began his music studies in the 4th grade as a violinist at Mt. Zion Elementary School under the instruction of Mr. & Mrs. Fred & Martha Rierson. In the 7th grade he switched from violin to double bass at Kiser Junior High School under the instruction of Ms. Jeannie Artley. His double bass studies continued at Walter Hines Page Senior High School under the instruction of Ms. Lynn Auman. While at Page High School he earned honors as a double bassist in the NC Governor's School Program, the NC Western Regional Honors Orchestra, the NC All-State Honors Orchestra, the Greensboro Youth Symphony Orchestra and the Philharmonia of Greensboro.

After high school Mr. Landsperger was accepted into the School of Music at the UNC School of the Arts in Winston-Salem. There he pursued undergraduate studies in double bass performance under the instruction of Ms. Lynn Peters. While a student at UNCSA Mr. Landsperger became a member of the Salisbury Symphony Orchestra and the Western Piedmont Symphony Orchestra in Hickory, NC. During his sophomore year at UNCSA he and a few of his classmates formed the jazz quartet Tone Spoken and began playing gigs around the state. By the time he graduated with his BA in Music, Mr. Landsperger was working steadily as a freelance musician.

After graduation from UNCSA Mr. Landsperger spent the Summer of 1992 performing in a country-western show at Busch Gardens in Williamsburg, VA. In the Spring of 1993 Mr. Landsperger began playing bass in a Dixieland band aboard the Delta Queen Steamboat: an antiquated wooden paddlewheeler that was based in New Orleans, LA. For decades the DQ carried her passengers and crew members up and down the Mississippi, Ohio, Cumberland, Tennessee and Arkansas Rivers. For a year and a half Mr. Landsperger lived aboard the DQ, playing bass and experiencing a truly unique side of America. Soon after he left the DQ Mr. Landsperger joined The Glenn Miller Orchestra, touring the Eastern US, Central America, Japan and Guam, playing all of the old Glenn Miller hits for countless fans of big band swing music. After leaving The Glenn Miller Orchestra Mr. Landsperger was invited to return to the Delta Queen Steamboat Company. This time he was hired to be a member of the innaugural band aboard the newly-christened American Queen Steamboat. After a nine-month stint on the AQ, Mr. Landsperger moved to Asheville, NC where he became a member of the Asheville Symphony Orchestra and rejoined the Western Piedmont Symphony Orchestra. While living in Asheville he also served as a substitute bassist for the Savannah Symphony Orchestra and the Tuscaloosa Symphony Orchestra, and became involved in the Asheville jazz and bluegrass scene. In the Spring of 1999 he moved to Winston-Salem, NC and began working as a member of the AS-IS Ensemble, an improvisational acoustic quintet created by some of his UNCSA classmates. The AS-IS Ensemble toured regularly in the Southeast US and played concert halls and clubs in New York City, including Alice Tully Hall at Lincoln Center and The Blue Note.

In the Autumn of 2000 Mr. Landsperger decided to step away from the music business to pursue a new career in pastry and bread-making. That December he began his professional cooking studies at Peter Kump's New York Cooking School and soon found himself preparing breads and sweets in some of the finest restaurants in New York City. In 2003 he moved to Napa Valley where he continued his career as a pastry cook. Throughout his culinary career music remained a significant part of Mr. Landsperger's life. He continued to play gigs and jam sessions whenever the opportunity arose. He also found his musical voice and began singing, forming his own jazz trio The Slippery Nickels which performed at wineries and restaurants around Napa Valley. Eventually he discovered a passion for ukulele and now loves to unwind by strumming his uke and singing old songs for himself and whomever is within earshot.

In 2014 Mr. Landsperger moved back to Greensboro, NC to be with his mother and care for her in her waning years. Soon after his return to Greensboro he decided it was time to make another career change. In 2016 he began earning his NC Music Education Licensure at UNC-Greensboro. His vision was to become a high school orchestra teacher in the NC public school system and give back to his educational roots where his musical journey began so many years ago. Mr. Landsperger has a lot of gratitude in his heart for the teachers who nurtured his passion for music-making and helped him live his dream. As the Director of Orchestras at Central Cabarrus High School his mission is to pour his gratitude into the school's orchestra program and nurture every student who seeks to make their own music.