I am writing to you on a plane coming back to NYC from Stockholm. Having been on an unforgettable, immensely successful tour of Sweden with my brothers in Sweet Plantain . You can read the tour summary below. It has been a long month of travel and I’m looking forward to getting back and seeing my family again. November has Sweet Plantain traveling once again for a one-week residency at Quad Cities, IL and a concert in Iowa. My jazz trio returns to the stage in NJ after a long hiatus, and there is a big announcement from STRATOSPHEERIUS….
After months of teasing all of you, I am happy to announce that the new Stratospheerius single, “Behind the Curtain,” is officially available for streaming and downloading. You can stream it at Reverbnation and download it for a buck on CDBABY and BANDCAMP, and of course, iTunes, Spotify, and anywhere that mp3’s are in orbit. The track was written by me, and features myself on electric “Viper” violin and vocals, Lucianna Padmore on drums, @Aurelien Budynek on guitar, and @JamieBishop on bass, as well as our secret 5th member benny Koonyevsky on percussion. Engineered and mastered by the incomparable Rave Tesar, mixed by the incredulous Alex Salzman. produced by Stratospheerius.
Sweet Plantain is looking forward to our residency at Quad Cities. A week of school performances and clinics, culminating in a concert on Nov 8 in Bettendorf, IA. Here’s the info:
After a month traveling all over Sweden, this tour has finally come to an end. An experience that started with a professional catastrophe we wouldn’t wish on our worst enemies ended as one of the greatest experiences of our lives! We clawed our way out of a seemingly hopeless situation. We have travelled throughout this incredible country. Places we hadn’t heard of and couldn’t pronounce, with names like Udevalla, Sveg, Båstad, Helsingborg, Linköping, Tingsryd, Västerås, Ljusdal, Östersund, Hudiksvall, Vänersborg, Goteborg, Växjö, Sandviken, and Nyköping.
21 concerts! Rave reviews across the board and the presenter said it was one of the most successful tours he has organized in his career! We have met some beautiful and generous people who showered us with gifts, food, and uplifting energy that inspired us to no end. We witnessed how well this country is run both interns of economics, efficiency, and respect for people’s health, the environment, and quality of life. We have formed new friendships that we will always cherish. There are many people to thank, but here are those who were most instrumental in making this tour possible:
On September 25th, we were standing at the gate at JFK about to board the plane to Stockholm and our cellist was nowhere to be seen! We could not reach him or his family, and it turns out he fell ill and was not physically able to make it on tour, but we did not know this at the time. This is a person we had rehearsed with for months preparing for this tour. We all frantically got on our phones and called every cellist we knew. By the grace of God, Leo Grinhauz was available to clear his schedule for a month and hop a plane the next morning. I emailed him all our music right before I had to turn off my phone for takeoff. He arrived 3 hrs before our first concert, never having played with us before! Mind you, this is mostly original music that is very difficult to play and is rooted in jazz and Latin rhythms and improvisation. Leo worked his ass off and singlehandedly saved our tour! Also, I might add, he was a blast to hang with, which anyone can tell you is of utmost importance on a tour.
Our thanks to Guido Frackers for hooking up a flight for Leo and his cello on ridiculously short notice at an amazing rate.
We want to thank our driver, technician, spiritual advisor, and drinking buddy Stefan Hansson. A lousy driver but a true genius in audio engineering!(:) In the words of Joe Pesci, “He’s a good kid, that kid. “
And finally, we want to thank Mats Brostrom and the International Chamber Music Alliance of Sweden. Mats saw us perform at APAP in NYC many years ago. He had the vision to bring Sweet Plantain to Sweden and organized this whole tour for us, convincing local presenters in each city who are used to more traditional chamber groups to take a chance on a band that mixes hip hop, Latin music, and Jazz with classical music. Thank you, Mats!
As we head home and look towards the future, we feel immense gratitude and overwhelming emotions. The stars aligned for this tour at the 59th minute of the 11th hour and we are extremely blessed. Sweden, you will always have a place in our hearts. We raise our glasses to you and say “Skål” and a heartfelt “Tak tak!”
Hope you’ve had an unforgettable summer. I’m gearing up for a jam-packed fall season! Highlights include a month -long tour of Sweden with Sweet Plantain, as well as performances in Quad Cities and Athens, WV. A sept 18th NYC performance with Stratospheerius and release of our new single, and my jazz trio will be performing as well. Read more here:
Ladies and gentlemen, Sweet Plantain welcomes our new cellist, Wayne Smith, and will be embarking on a 20-town tour of Sweden, followed by some dates in the Midwest in early November. Stay tuned and visit our website for updated information. here is everything we can tell you so far:
Hello there! I hope you’ve been enjoying your summer so far. My apologies for not keeping you abreast of my goings on for so long. I’ve been in a transitional period with my newsletter person and needed to revamp and restructure a few things. SO….. here’s what I’ve been up to and all the amazing things that lie ahead.
June
I recently had the privilege of playing at Katie Couric’s wedding at her posh Hamptons estate with my musical partner-in-crime, Steve Benson and an incredible young cellist named Greg Byers (www.gregbyersmusic.com). It was a fun mix of Beatles, Bach, Beach Boys, and plenty of standards. A real blast and her and her husband John were very particular with their musical requests and a really fun couple to play for. Congratulations to the newlyweds and wishing them best of luck!
July
From July 14th-19th, I taught for my 4th year at the Mark Wood Rock Orchestra Camp. (www.mwroc.com) In Olathe, KS.
This is the only camp in the world dedicated to electric /rock string playing! I’ve said it many times before and I’ll say it again and again and again: This is an INCREDIBLE 5 days of music, camaraderie, and inspiration! I cannot recommend this camp enough for (especially) string players, guitarists, drummers, singers, musical educators, and musicians in general. Other faculty all-stars included the incredible Rachel Barton Pine, Daniel Bernard Roumaine, Tracy Silverman, Doctor David Wallace and many more! Here are a few highlights from this year.
From MWROC, it was on to Wichita on July 20th, where I gave an improv workshop and solo electric/acoustic violin/vocal performance for Vance Music. It was a blast to come back and play for the nice folks in Wichita. Thank you to everyone at Vance Music for having me back.
For the 14th year, I will be returning to the Grand Canyon Music Festival August 25-29, with an August 28th performance at the Shrine of the Ages (South Rim) With harmonica virtuoso Robert Bonfiglio (www.robertbonfiglio.com)and guitar guru Steve Benson. Also involved with the festival will be the Catalyst String Quartet (http://www.catalystquartet.com) and legendary modern string band, ETHEL (www.ethelcentral.org)
This also marks the 8th annual School of Rock, a one-week workshop I co-founded where Steve and I teach local canyon kids how to form a band and rock out. We put together a full concert in merely 4 days and it is truly exhilarating!
Ladies and gentlemen, Sweet Plantain welcomes our new cellist, Wayne Smith, and will be embarking on a 20-town tour of Sweden, followed by some dates in the Midwest in early November. Stay tuned and visit our website for updated information. here is everything we can tell you so far:
Upcoming shows:
Date Time Venue City
9-27 16.00 Pingstkyrkan Uddevalla
9-28 18.00 Biblioteket Båstad
9-29 19.00 Dunkers Kulturhus Helsingborg
9-30 19.00 Artisten Göteborg
10-2 19.00 Wallenbergssalen Linköping
10-4 16.00 Söderportkyrkan Tingsryd
10-5 16.00 Utvandrarnas hus Växjö
10-6 t.b.c. Hall to be confirmed Vänersborg
10-7 19.30 Festsalen, Folkets hus Vänersborg
10-8 17.30-18.15 Musikskolan, Workshop Arboga
10-8 19.00 Musikskolan, Concert Arboga
10-12 16.00 Nyköpings teater Nyköping
10-15 19.00 Svegs kyrka Sveg
10-16 t.b.c. Hall t.b.c., School concert Östersund
Hello there! I hope you’ve been enjoying your summer so far. My apologies for not keeping you abreast of my goings on for so long. I’ve been in a transitional period with my newsletter person and needed to revamp and restructure a few things. SO….. here’s what I’ve been up to and all the amazing things that lie ahead.
June
I recently had the privilege of playing at Katie Couric’s wedding at her posh Hamptons estate with my musical partner-in-crime, Steve Benson and an incredible young cellist named @Greg Byers (www.gregbyersmusic.com). It was a fun mix of Beatles, Bach, Beach Boys, and plenty of standards. A real blast and her and her husband John were very particular with their musical requests and a really fun couple to play for. Congratulations to the newlyweds and wishing them best of luck!
July
From July 14th-19th, I will be teaching once again at the Mark Wood Rock Orchestra Camp. (www.mwroc.com) In Olathe, KS.
I’ve said it many times before and I’ll say it again and again and again: This is an INCREDIBLE 5 days of music, camaraderie, and inspiration! I cannot recommend this camp enough for (especially) string players, guitarists, drummers, singers, musical educators, and musicians in general. Other faculty all-stars include the incredible @Rachel Barton Pine, Daniel Bernard Roumaine (@dbr), @Tracy Silverman, and many more! I’m not just raving because I’m on the faculty (hee hee). Folks, this is the real deal! It’s STILL not too late to register. Please check it out!
Although the focus of the camp is to educate and inspire string players to “plug in” and break out of the classical box, this camp is NOT just for string players. Singers and all instrumentalists are welcome! Topics covered are arranging, theory, alternative techniques, recording technology, stage presence, music business, and much more…. plus plenty of opportunities to perform and blow everyone away!
Saturday, July 20th: Clinic/performance at Vance Music
I will be giving an improvisation clinic (all instruments welcome!) and solo performance at Vance Music in Wichita, KS
July 21-26, I join my wife, son, and daughter in Vail, CO, where the NY Philharmonic does a residency every year. Spending some down time with the kids while Yulia is busy rehearsing and performing, then it’s off to St Martin for our annual family vacation!
August
Grand Canyon Music Festival/Scholl of Rock
For the 14th year, I will be returning to the Grand Canyon Music Festival August 25-29, with an August 28th performance at the Shrine of the Ages (South Rim) With harmonica virtuoso Robert Bonfiglio (www.robertbonfiglio.com)and guitar guru Steve Benson. Also involved with the festival will be the Catalyst String Quartet (http://www.catalystquartet.com) @ethelcentral.
This also marks the 8th annual School of Rock, a one-week workshop I co-founded where Steve and I teach local canyon kids how to form a band and rock out. We put together a full concert in merely 4 days and it is truly exhilarating!
Ladies and gentlemen, Sweet Plantain welcomes our new cellist, Wayne Smith, and will be embarking on a 20-town tour of Sweden, followed by some dates in the Midwest in early November. Stay tuned and visit our website for updated information. here is everything we can tell you so far:
Upcoming shows:
Date Time Venue City
9-27 16.00 Pingstkyrkan Uddevalla
9-28 18.00 Biblioteket Båstad
9-29 19.00 Dunkers Kulturhus Helsingborg
9-30 19.00 Artisten Göteborg
10-2 19.00 Wallenbergssalen Linköping
10-4 16.00 Söderportkyrkan Tingsryd
10-5 16.00 Utvandrarnas hus Växjö
10-6 t.b.c. Hall to be confirmed Vänersborg
10-7 19.30 Festsalen, Folkets hus Vänersborg
10-8 17.30-18.15 Musikskolan, Workshop Arboga
10-8 19.00 Musikskolan, Concert Arboga
10-12 16.00 Nyköpings teater Nyköping
10-15 19.00 Svegs kyrka Sveg
10-16 t.b.c. Hall t.b.c., School concert Östersund
If you are in the New York and Rockland County areas, I would like to draw your attention to two fantabulous shows that Stratospheerius will be playing with our good friend, Jeremy Beck. jeremy is an incredible singer/songwriter/organist who has played with the likes of Bonnie Raitt, Missy Elliot, Kool & The Gang, The Lennon Sisters, and James Hunter among many others.
Jeremy is from Alabama, and his band mixes Southern blues, R&B, country rock, and soul.
We are honored to be doing two double bills with the Jeremy Beck Band! Please come and support, dance, drink, and hang out with us!
Friday, March 14th
8:00 P.M. The Shrine
2271 Adam Clayton Powell Jr. Blvd.
New York, NY 10030
212-690-7807
With the Jeremy Beck Band (incredible singer/songwriter/organist/longtime friend and colleague) https://www.facebook.com/events/271472689670427/
