For those of you who aren’t familiar with Pat Metheny, he is a legendary jazz guitarist who has won 20 Grammys. He is a bridge to the past, but is a very contemporary composer and player. I saw this interview - which is absolutely packed with wisdom. Not knowledge - musical wisdom.
This is worth your time, but it is a longer piece (about 90 minutes). I listened to it in three sittings, a half hour at a time. Enjoy:
Last night we were joined by guest instructor Rob Swanson, who is one of the region’s first call bass players (in any genre). Rob is a consummate professional with decades of experience and last night’s session was loaded with practical advice and real world playing tips.
Rob is an incredibly versatile player, and it is rare to find a bassist who is equally adept playing electric and upright bass. This provided our percussionists an opportunity to cover a wide variety of musical genres: rock, blues, Motown, jazz and latin.
This is the tip of the iceberg in terms of expanded programming at the studio and I look forward to sharing those new programs with you after New Years.
There are instrument competitions for every type of musical instrument imaginable. These competitions provide a framework for students and performers to hone their skills, and grow as performers. The 2021 grooveKSQ Virtual Percussion Competition is designed to provide that environment for high school aged drum set, rudimental and mallet percussion performers throughout Pennsylvania, New Jersey, Delaware and Maryland.
It was two years ago on October 1, 2018 that grooveKSQ opened its doors to aspiring drummers and percussionists. This is a thank you message to all the aspiring musicians who have or are studying here, and especially their families for their support and also to our donors and financial supporters who recognize the value of arts education and community building through the arts.
I am very much looking forward to year three and beyond. One great way to stay in the loop is to join our email list, by texting GROOVEKSQ to 66866 on your smartphone. If you are interested in studying at groove, or want to know more about any upcoming programming, please email me.
Congratulations are in order to David R, who has been prepping for his University jazz program audition here at grooveKSQ. As one progresses through high school and into the college and university ranks, the material gets tougher in all subjects. This is also true with music schools and the audition process gets more and more competitive as well at the university level.
So, those going through University auditions know that they have two challenges: 1) harder audition material, plus 2) more competition. The audition material David had to navigate was some serious stuff.
David worked hard to prep all the audition material here at groove and once he was ready, we filmed and recorded his audition video here at the studio.
Again, we see that hard work pays off.
David was accepted into the jazz program and University of Delaware for this Fall semester. Congrats, David!!
One more way grooveKSQ can help young musicians advance their craft is by providing professional video and audio recording services in house!
The studio upgrades were designed to both facilitate distance learning and provide young musicians with a way to record themselves for solo performances or collaborations with other performers. grooveKSQ can now work on Protools (or any other DAW) based projects remotely.
