Michael DiGiacomo: In Tune with Medicine — and Music
By Deborah Jeanne Sergeant
Is your mental image of a physician a sedate professional in a white coat with a stethoscope around the neck and a quiet demeanor?
Or, perhaps a musician performing smooth jazz with his saxophone at a concert?
If it’s the latter, you likely know Michael DiGiacomo, a psychiatrist at UB and a part-time jazz musician who has performed at events throughout the region and contributed to jazz music recordings.
DiGiacomo nearly became a full-time musician except that he did not think a career in music would support him without also teaching or moving to a big city. He was not interested in teaching music or moving to New York City to perform.
“There are already a lot of good jazz musicians on the scene in the city,” he said. “When I hear them live, I realize I made the right decision.”
Instead, he turned to another interest he had held for years: medicine.
“I always liked the idea of having a knowledge base to help people with their medical problems,” he said. “I always liked doctors and had a lot of respect for them.”
He finished his fellowship training in June 2015 and began practicing. But DiGiacomo has not abandoned music entirely.
His musical inclination began when he was a mere 5 years old, learning piano. Many musicians consider piano a “foundational” instrument. DiGiacomo switched to saxophone at age 9 in elementary band. As his technique and skill improved, he moved on to jazz ensemble. By high school, he played so often that he considered attending a musical conservatory.
After graduation, and throughout college and medical school, he played professionally at coffee shops and bookings for private events. He joined two bands and played at venues throughout Buffalo.
Through these experiences, he met pianist Ken Kaufman, a prolific jingle writer in Western New York. His jingles include “Tops Never Stops” for the grocery chain and jingles for law firm Cellino & Barnes, West-Her Automotive and Hamburg Overhead Door.
For many of Kaufman’s recordings, DiGiacomo is the saxophonist. His experiences in recording led him to his current involvement in music: recording projects. The pandemic closed opportunities for playing live, so DiGiacomo turned to digital recording to share his music with the public.
“I’m scheduled to be in a recording with Hussalonia and I’m in a quintet with Jonathan Hughes, a friend,” DiGiacomo said.
His music is available on Apple Music and Spotify.
“Being in the recording studio has been a way to keep music going without having to leave my family for hours and hours for a gig,” DiGiacomo said. “It’s fun and creative.”
Jesse Mank, founder of Hussalonia, has a professional recording studio in his home and DiGiacomo said he has a “modest” one as well.
Since the pandemic began, DiGiacomo’s work life has become much busier, but he hopes to soon finish recording an album he wants to post on Spotify and Apple.
“I think that recording music and being creative only helps me in my medical decision making,” DiGiacomo said. “It forces me to be creative in all aspects of my life. When I come to work, I’m more mindful of the decisions I’m making. I’m more careful in how I’m writing and speaking. A lot of the music I write has lyrics so editing the words. I tend to start with a melody. It’s a puzzle making component to get the right rhythms.”
He encourages other physicians to seek engaging hobbies as “there has to be more to your life than seeing patients. It can be easy to fall into a trap where you’re working all the time. There’s a need for doctors to work all the time. I’m at my best when I’m not just working.”
His band name is “Willing to Cooperate,” based on a patient’s comment made while DiGiacomo was in medical school and on the collaborative effort his group makes to combine their talents to make music together.