|
The first music related memory that
comes to mind is me sitting on the floor of our home taking a saw (yes I
said SAW) to my fathers acoustic guitar! I don't remember what type it
was - but I seem to remember it being gray... and hard to cut! I
can't say exactly how old I was then - I am guesstimating 4 or
5. Shortly after I was introduced to the piano (the tool
boxes were kept locked at all times) and the music bug started to take
hold. A couple years later I wanted to play in the school band but
the only instrument available to me was the accordion that my brother
played (and was quite good at!) or the flute. Since elementary
school bands in New Jersey don't have accordions I had to play
flute. I also started learning to play accordion and would play at
classroom parties and such - very few people were subjected to
that...
I continued to play flute up through High School at which time I
also started to play bass guitar and became fascinated with Electronic
Music after hearing Walter Carlos "Switched On Bach" album.
Shortly after High School I joined the US Navy and became an Electronics
Technician, married my wonderful wife Sue, and started our family.
During this time I was playing in cover bands and listening to and
playing Emusic and building electronic circuits to process my
instruments through. This continued for many years. In 1998
I was privileged to have one of my songs - "Sequential Seas" -
included on an Emusic compilation CD called "GoldTri Volume
Two" that was published by Stonk! records and is no longer in
print.
Disk 1, track 4. Click HERE
to download or listen. (9.00 MB)
So where does the Chapman Stick come into all
of this?
Fast forward several years to Fall of 2003. Due to several issues
happening in my life I decide to finally take the plunge and buy a Chapman
Stick. I had seen them off and on since they came out but kept
putting it off. So, after some competitive bidding on Ebay I
finally got my first Chapman Stick - a 10 String Teak. At first it
was daunting - but the sound was amazing - and listening to people play
who knew how to was very inspiring! Me being the
"dismantler of instruments" decided to put not just one, but
TWO midi pickups on it. Out came the Saw and after a few
hours - it was done. Months are going by and I am practicing Stick
and playing bass in local cover bands. Life is good. In time though
due to life's responsibilities and in general tiring of the
classic rock cover band scene I decided in August of 2005 to retire from
the cover band scene. I had decided it was time to
concentrate even more on playing Stick and getting back to the music I
really wanted to work on - Electronic Ambient and Space Music.
I hope to be able to utilize the Stick along with my synths to create atmospheres
and musical worlds that the listener can lose themselves in for a few
moments....
May
5th, 2008 UPDATE: I decided to get back
into the ring playing cover music and have done so quite aggressively.
- I've joined back up with The Norm. A new singer, new energy,
it's really doing well. Check out the band here: www.thenormband.com
- I've also started playing in a power trio - Matty T and the Road to
Ruin - a great bunch of guys that play their hearts out! Similar
in some respects to what the Norm does but very different in so many
others. Check out the band here: www.ther2rband.com
-
I'm
teaming up with Tom Shaw, a local solo artist and leader of the Tom Shaw
Blue Soul band. Tom and I will be performing as a duo playing
music from the Beatles, Pink Floyd, U2 and many, many others. We
are also going to be working on some Ambient Music projects and
performances! Check our website at: www.tomanddave.com
~~~~~~
|
