I disdain bios.
How do you encapsulate a lifetime of making music into a neat little list?
Being a musician today requires a big tool box of skills.
In a way, my career mirrors all the the changes in how music is conceived and created in all the various forms and genres music is a part of.
I began like most musicians - sitting in room with an instrument and shedding for hours,days,years.
Studies with genius teachers. Played with incredible musicians.
And shed more hours,days,years.
Just out of high school and beginning to make some sessions - drum machines appeared. So I bought one (all of them over time actually) and learned.
Sampling arrived - shed that.
Mac’s and sequencing - shed.
Became an audio engineer - more things to shed.
Studied composition and arranging with legendary teachers and - yup, shed.
Built a private project recording studio before anyone used the term. Which led to owning a commercial studio. (tons of fun, not going to buy you a vacation condo in Maui). Was the one of the first to adapt sequences into live theatrical performance. Became an early adopter of digital audio and workstations (before “pro tools” became a verb) None of which because I’m a genius - but because it was inevitable and I just happened to be trying to make the most music using the new tools that were arriving.
All of this is pretty much the normal process for musicians nowadays but in retrospect, its was a drastic departure from the “old” way of doing things.
And now the speed of these changes is increasing yet again.
I’m on it. In it. Determined to use every skill acquired in a lifetime of shedding to simply make better music.
That’s the gig.
Make better music.
Compose better, Play better, produce better, engineer better, mix/master better, dream bigger.
Below are the types of lists that I hate but seems required.
Apologies if it seems self-agrandizing a bit.
It’s not. It’s just that I’ve been at it a long time and my passion is undiminished.
More better, bigger music to come.
Artists played/recorded with :
in no particular order -
Stanley Clarke
Lenny White
George Howard
Warren Hill
Brain Mcknight
Special EFX
Stevie Wonder
Vanessa Williams
Natalie Cole
Reba Mcintire
Bernadette Peters
Eartha Kitt
the Soul Survivors
Billy Paul
Kristen Chenowyth
Michael Urbaniak
Ernie Watts
Mulgrew Miller
Rick Braun
Gerald Veasley
Chieli Manucci
Andy Snitzer
(will add to list as my brain begins functioning again)
Broadway/Theatrical :
b’way chairs held -
Priscilla Queen of the Desert
Promises, Promises
Drowsy Chaperone
Sweet Charity
Fame (nyc run)
Annie Get Your Gun
Dream Girls (pre b’way- didn’t make it in)
Annie (20th anniversary run)
Grease! (first national)
As a musical director/conductor -
(all equity stock/lort productions at - keswick theater, falmouth playhouse, pocono playhouse, woodstock playhouse, bucks county playhouse, easton center for performing arts, newark pac, shubert theater phila., walnut street theater phila., )
Jesus Christ Superstar
Godspell
Baby
Man of La Mancha
Rocky Horror
Grease
La Cage
Ain’t misbehavin
Dream Girls
Little Shop of Horrors
Artists Conducted/Musical Director for :
Joe Feeney/ The Irish Tenors
Eartha Kitt
Stars of the Laurence Welk Show (yup,really)
Phyliss Dyler in concert
shows played as guitarist or bassist :
(equity stock or touring productions)
Oklahoma
Kiss me Kate
Damn Yankees
South Pacific
They’re Playing our Song
Pirates on Penzance
Sugar Babies
Joelson
Betsy Brown
Anything Goes
A Chorus Line
and many others I’ll remember tomorrow.
artist :
Solo recordings on the Telarc/Concord label, Shanachie records, Farenheit records.
Both “planet jazz” and “path to the heartland” charted in the top 5 on Gavin/R&R charts.
The single “grey day” spent two years as a top recurrent track on the contemporary jazz charts
Studio owner/engineer/producer :
Founding owner Studio Crash (phila).
It’s impossible to list all the incredible artists to bring their art to our studio over nearly 15 years.
Suffice to say that it was a privilege to record all of you.
So much talent. So much great music.
One of the last new clients to work with us before we sold the studio was a very talented guy, who booked afternoons to get a better rate. Always made great sounding tracks and had his business side together.
Talent, brains, drive ........
Those recordings led to his record deal.
Two years later he was on stage accepting the grammy for “best new artist”.
- John Legend.
Studio crash is still up and running under the ownership of our former head engineer (and genius) Mike Harmon. If your recording in Philly - CALL HIM. He absolutely top shelf.
photo : debramina falciani
