Eclectic Music Press Release Posting (Private Music)
David Datta
Eclectic Music
Press Releases Posted April 1990
Eclectic Music is not affiliated with any of the record companies in the
accompanying posts, these press releases are being reprinted here with full
permission from the record labels and are being reprinted in full with the
sole intent of disseminating information.
Although some of these releases are rather dated, I feel that many people
would like to see where the major magazine "reviewers" are plagiarizing
their articles from, sometimes almost word for word....
In this post, you will find the following press releases:
From Private Music
Optical Race Tangerine Dream
Neverland Suzanne Ciani
Shadow of Urbano Michael Colina
There Were Signs Bill Gable
Secret Luminescence Lucia Hwong
River's Gonna Rise Patrick O'Hearn
Subject: Press Release-------------------------------------------
TANGERINE DREAM
"I look at our compositions as travel music; adventure music, much of which
has been inspired by the places we've visited over the years," describes
Edgar Froese, Tangerine Dream founder and visionary. And, from the opening
sequencer drive of "Marakesh," with its deft rhythmic shifts and engaging
melody, to the wistful "Mothers of Rain," Optical Race boldly announces
Tangerine Dream's return to once again inspire those who listen and take
them on a musical adventure. Optical Race also represents Tangerine Dream's
first album for Private Music, the innovative label founded by Peter
Baumann, who was himself a member of the group from 1971- 1977.
Fueled by psychedelia, political activism and the experimentation of Pink
Floyd and Jimi Hendrix, Tangerine Dream has, over the past 21 years of its
existence, created stormy, surreal sonic landscapes. Ask any music
synthesist who their major influence was, and the name Tangerine Dream is
likely to leap from their lips with the precision of a sequencer pattern.
As pioneers of electronic rock in the late 60's, Tangerine Dream's music
would move from airy space walks full of haunting sounds and ambient
effects, to pounding, hypnotic grooves, driven by sequencer rhythms that
sounded like cosmic rubber bands. Their mid-seventies records, Phaedra
(1974), Rubycon (1975), Ricochet (1975) and Stratosfear (1976) established
a sound that was both evocative and introspective, heroic and meditative.
Founded in 1967 by Edgar Froese, Tangerine Dream was among a generation of
German artists to break with the conventions of western rock and create a
music that transcended nationalities and borders. "We could not compare our
talent with American musicians," claimed Froese in a Downbeat interview.
"What we had to do was step away from that and move through the back door
into different ways of expressing ourselves through music." The
universality of that sound may account for their success not only in their
native West Germany, but through-out Europe, America, Australia and the
Eastern Bloc, where they have performed and recorded the live albums
Pergammon [sic] (East Germany) and Poland.
Froese fit easily into the creative environment of the time. He worked With
surrealist painter Salvador Dali, playing music for his exhibitions as part
of a group called The Ones. Tangerine Dream's first album was recorded in
1970 and 18 years later, its title, Electronic Meditation, seems like a
paradox to the often violent music inside. Synthesist Klaus Schulze, then
the drummer with Tangerine Dream, called Electronic Meditation the "punk
album of electronic music."
But Tangerine Dream refined its sound through the shifting personnel on
Alpha Centauri, Atem and a two record set of textures for string quartet
and electronics, Zeit. They settled on a trio of Froese, Christoph Franke
and Peter Baumann and were discovered by British DJ, Jonathan Peel, which
led to a contract with the British Virgin record label.
On Virgin, they entered the British Top Ten with Phaedra. Tangerine Dream
became notorious for its long, improvised concerts, sometimes performed in
darkened cathedrals, sometimes in flashing planetariums. It was music for
the imagery of the inner mind.
Today the band's concerts, like their albums, are meticulously crafted,
full of the sonic detail that has been a hallmark of the ten albums they
have released in the 1980's. Beginning with Tangram, the first album after
the departure of Peter Baumann, up through Le Parc and Underwater Sunlight,
Tangerine Dream has been at the forefront of digital and computer
instrument technology, continually discovering new sounds for their
exhilarating journeys into often strange and mystifying lands.
In the late 70's, Tangerine Dream found a second career in film music,
beginning with William Friedkin's "The Sorcerer" in 1977 and continuing
through "Flashpoint," "Firestarter," "Vision Quest," "Legend,"
"Wavelength," "Shy People," the short-lived TV series, "Streethawk," and,
most recently, "Miracle Mile," due out in August '88. "The only group that
can claim the electronic sound as their own," said Music and Sound Output,
"...Through their scores... Tangerine Dream have altered the sound of
cinema as well." While Tom Cruise may have lipsynced to Bob Seger's "Old
Time Rock Roll," he still made love with Rebecca De Mornay to the strains
of Tangerine Dream in "Risky Business." And to listen to Tangerine Dream's
film scores for "Thief" in 1980 and "The Keep" in 1982, one can hear the
origins of Jan Hammer's popular "Miami Vice" sound designs in 1985. Not
coincidentally, Michael Mann was the producer/director of all three.
Tangerine Dream has never fit comfortably into any category, even after 25
group albums, 9 solo Froese albums and over a dozen soundtracks. At any
given time they could have become a New Age group, a progressive rock band
or simply retreated into the studio as a soundtrack machine. But, they have
consistently experimented with their music, from the rock vocals of Cyclone
(1978) to settings of William Blake poems on Tyger (1987). They have been
packaged as rock, yet their music is more classically structured and
influenced by minimalists like Philip Glass. With almost no U.S. airplay or
conventional media attention, they have managed to earn five gold albums
and sell out two cross-country American tours.
With Optical Race, Tangerine Dream begins a new era. It is the first album
since the departure of Christoph Franke, leaving the 44 year old Edgar
Froese as the only long-time member. But he is aided by Paul Haslinger, who
joined the group in 1986 for Underwater Sunlight, and newest member Ralph
Wadephul. This youthful infusion may account for the upbeat, rhythmic drive
of Optical Race. Haslinger was only 8 years old when Tangerine Dream
recorded Electronic Meditation. He brings serious classical chops into the
group and he is now an integral part of the composing process.
Tangerine Dream have evolved into a style that is equally both unique and
rooted in the philosophies and technology of the late 20th century. Optical
Race's "Twin Soul Tribe" pulses with a dark brooding atmosphere, a delicate
lilting melody weaving through it like a frail reed. "Cat Scan,", "Sun
Gate" and "Atlas Eyes" are full of the triumphant themes, sonic cues and
interwoven sequencer melodies that make Tangerine Dream's music immediately
recognizable.
Optical Race is music for the soul's ears and the mind's eye, a vision of
sound sprinting into the future.
August '88
Subject: Press Release-------------------------------------------
SUZANNE CIANI
In 1987, no development had greater impact on the radio industry than the
arrival -- and massive public acceptance -- of Adult Alternative, or "New
Age", music programming. And no artist had a greater impact on these
alternative radio stations than did composer/synthesist Suzanne Ciani.
"Suzanne Ciani's music helped define this format," says John Sebastian,
president of the Eclectic Radio consultancy, who served as program director
at WBMW/Washington, D.C., in 1987. "One of the first big hits of this genre
was 'The Velocity of Love' (the title track from Suzanne's last album). Her
music entrances people. It produces tremendous response from listeners."
"Without question, 'The Velocity of Love' was our most-requested song of
1987," says Steve Feinstein, program director at KKSF/San Francisco. "What
made those requests extraordinary was the nature of the calls. People were
awed by what they heard. The song strikes a very deep emotional chord in
people."
"The response to her music was overwhelming," agrees Chris Brodie, music
director for the nationwide Wave Network, including its flagship station,
KTWV/Los Angeles. 'Our No. 1 song in 1987 was 'The Velocity of Love.'
Listeners swamped us with accolades for the song. People felt compelled to
call us when they heard it. That's satisfying, because Suzanne is one of the
very nicest people you'll ever meet."
For Suzanne Ciani (pronounced CHAH-nee), 1987 will be remembered as the year
when she became a certified "overnight sensation." It represented a year-long
coming-out party for a gifted musician whose distinguished composing skills
have long been admired in the film and advertising industries.
The technical brilliance and personal warmth that captivated programmers and
consumers alike on The Velocity of Love is further explored and expanded on
Neverland. Once again, Suzanne crafts rich musical textures that, rather than
merely dazzling the senses, elegantly articulate some of our deepest
emotions, our innermost yearnings, our highest aspirations. Her arrangements
are graceful and stirring, as evocative as a slow-motion sunset. It is, as
John Sebastian describes it, "quietly powerful" -- a fitting description of
the 10 songs found on Neverland.
For Suzanne, Neverland is a musical compendium of moods and exotic places. lt
is an imaginative journey where Ciani invites listeners to join her for a
horseback ride through the surf (the title track), a late-night desert stroll
("Life in the Moonlight"), a joyous day of sailing ("Aegean Wave") or an
afternoon of daydreaming ("Summer's Day"). The music on Neverland inspires
both celebration and contemplation.
That, Suzanne says, is exactly the point. "People are wonderful creatures,"
she says. "We all have practical, day-to-day experiences that we must deal
with routinely. But we're also capable of something much grander through our
human spirit. That's the part I like to express through my music, to touch
people through their emotions -- to feel joy, freedom, contentment, mystery,
pain, passion, awe. I want people to know they are alive, to help them to
feel passion, to experience beauty -- real beauty, where you can feel safe
and relax."
Ciani feels Neverland contains some of the finest compositions of her career
-- a career that traces its beginnings back to the early days of electronic
music.
Schooled at Wellesley College in Massachusetts, Ciani also holds a masters
degree in musical composition from the university of California, Berkeley,
where she studied with America's founding fathers of computer/electronic
music: Max Matthews, John Chowning and Don Buchla.
"I first heard electronic music when I went to a seminar at MIT and a
professor made his computer sound like a violin," Ciani recalls. "I was
stunned by the possibilities. When I was doing my graduate work on the West
Coast, I happened to be in the right place at the right time and met all of
these extraordinary people. I finally bought a Buchla synthesizer and went to
work for him, soldering and drilling in the assembly line. I broke a lot of
fingernails, but that's where my real education took place, studying the
schematics every day. No one offered courses in electronic music in the early
'70s."
In 1975, she moved to New York City to perform her electronic compositions in
art galleries. She introduced her avant-garde musical skills to corporations
and landed her first account with Macy's where marketing executives were
amazed by Ciani's electronic artistry. "I created the sound of a fur coat for
them," Suzanne says, "and they loved it."
Demand for Ciani's talents grew so dramatically that Suzanne now occupies an
elite tier in the ad world. Today, she is the owner of Ciani/Musica, Inc.,
regarded as one of the nation's leading commercial music production
companies. "You name a product," she says, "and Ill bet I've done music for
it. I've done all the cars, food, cosmetics, appliances, major corporate
IDs... a lot of commercials. I've never kept a count, but the total is in the
multiple hundreds."
Ciani's compositions and sound designs have served as the aural backdrop for
everything from Merrill Lynch ads to arcade games to feature films (including
the orchestral score for Lilly Tomlin's "The Incredible Shrinking Woman" and
the theme for "Mother Teresa,'' which won the 1987 Moscow Film Festival Peace
Prize). Neverland, in fact, features a moving new arrangement of "Mother's
Song."
It was her own private music, however, that Ciani wished to explore, and she
began recording tracks for her first album in the late '70s. Unable to
interest mainstream record companies in her compositions, she handled the
expensive production chores herself and finally found a receptive audience
for her music in Japan, where Seven Waves, her debut LP, was first released.
"I brought this music to record companies in New York, but they didn't
understand it," Ciani says. "I was shocked. I thought my musical career would
take off very quickly."
In 1986, RCA's Red Seal label released Suzanne's The Velocity of Love album
without much fanfare, but when Adult Alternative radio stations discovered it
last year (The Wave's Chris Brodie says she encountered the LP by accident),
Ciani's career finally -- and abruptly -- flourished as she had always
dreamed it would, only a decade or so behind schedule.
Her first project for Private Music came about in 1987, when the label's
owner, Peter Baumann, invited her to contribute to the Piano Two compilation.
Three compositions were recorded. The delicate yet haunting "Tuscany"
(featured on Neverland); "The Fifth Wave: Water Lullaby" from her 1982 debut
album, Seven Waves; and the title track from her 1986 RCA Red Seal album, The
Velocity of Love.
One of five sisters in a family of six children born to a surgeon and his
wife, Ciani grew up with an Italian influence that included a passion for
music. "I suppose I was fortunate to be a girl," she says. "No one forced me
to become a doctor." Because of her ability to play by ear, Ciani taught
herself how to read music and play the piano. She studied classical music on
her own. Suzanne is now the guardian of the Ciani family Steinway, which she
keeps in her home in New York City.
After the release of Neverland, the next step for Ciani is to tour --
perhaps, she hopes, even to international sites. "I've always fantasized
about doing concerts in Russia or China," she says. "Music is such a
wonderful cross-cultural language. (Ciani speaks French, plus some Italian
and German).
"Rock 'n' roll works as that kind of language too, and I love rock 'n' roll.
But this music is a non-violent, nonaggressive music. That doesn't mean it
isn't strong. It conveys strength without aggression."
"In a sense, there is a female consciousness in this music, a sense of
compassion and humanity. But you can also hear that in the work of Vangelis,
whose work I greatly admire."
"There's a sensuality involved too. We're all very vulnerable as human
beings. We don't have hard shells for protection. I want to create an
environment in which people are allowed to feel vulnerable. "
We invite you to experience those feelings when you listen to Neverland--the
1988 installment of Suzanne Ciani's ongoing success story.
May '88
Subject: Press Release-------------------------------------------
MICHAEL COLINA
Throughout the 1980's, Michael Colina established a reputation as one of the
premier producers of contemporary jazz. His long-standing relationship with
saxophonist David Sanborn yielded such successful albums as Hideaway, Voyeur,
Backstreet and last year's A Change of Heart, Sanborn's first album to go
gold. Other notable credits during the decade include Michael Franks' Objects
of Desire and Marcus Miller's solo debut, Suddenly.
But in spite of all the success, Colina yearned to be on the other side of
the glass, expressing himself. "After seven years of producing other great
artists, I was kind of getting tired of being in that role," he says. "I
really wanted the opportunity to focus on my own music. Now I've been given
that opportunity, and I relish it."
Shadow of Urbano is Colina's solo debut. After 18 years as a professional
musician, he is finally getting a chance to tell his own story. All his
influences-- from his strict classical studies back home in Charlotte, North
Carolina, to his days as a jingle writer and film scorer in New York City to
his seven-year stint as record producer---come to bear on this very personal,
extremely eclectic project. Moods shift from the evocative ballad, "Shades,"
given a particular sensitive treatment by Colina on acoustic piano, to the
torrid funk of "Fast Break." It flows from the dramatic ode to his Cuban born
father on the title cut to an adventurous romp through the Orient on the
cinematic "Hong Kong Flew," then on through to the spacious, serene vibe of
"Drifter." And it is all Colina.
"I'm really proud of this record," says Michael. "It's really exactly what I
wanted to say, so I'm pleased with how it came out. And I know it's just a
starting point for me. If I'm given the opportunity to continue, I know it's
just going to get better."
Michael Colina was born in Charlotte, North Carolina on November 16,1948. He
showed an early inclination toward piano and by age six he began taking
lessons. By age ten he was composing simple pieces of music and by the time
he was 15 he was already writing symphonies and piano concertos, some of
which he performed in recital with his high school orchestra.
His focus was strictly classical when he enrolled at the North Carolina
School of the Arts in 1966, but he gradually began working in other
disciplines as well. "It was really a cauldron of high intensity cross
fertilization of ideas. There was a dance department, a drama department and
a music department and we all interacted, exchanging ideas and collaborating
on projects. I was exposed to everything there. I wrote music for dance,
theatre productions, I wrote for the orchestra. I even founded a rock band,
to the utter horror of my composition teacher."
Upon graduating in 1970, he headed directly to New York City to find fortune
and fame as a professional, classically-trained musician. It was not long
before reality set in. "By then I was fully immersed in the attitude and
snobbery of being a classical musician and composer, and it took five or six
years of being exposed to the reality of earning a living to overcome that
and to finally enjoy making just light music, pop music, jazz, r & b. And all
during my years in the jingle house, I gradually broke through this snobbery
that I had about other forms of music. Now I really love pop music and enjoy
writing outside of the classical tradition."
As a jingle writer and session man throughout the 1970's, Colina grew up with
all the advancements of technology. He was there when Bob Moog, one of the
founding fathers of sound synthesis, unveiled his elementary Moog
synthesizer. He has seen it all come and go in subsequent years and now he is
right up to date with all the latest MIDI gear available. Shadow of Urbano
is, in a sense, a product of that technology. "For this project I had a whole
arsenal of keyboards at my disposal: a Yamaha DX7, Roland Super Jupiter,
Roland D-50, Kurzweil D-250, Roland Super JX, Prophet Vector, Mini-Moog and
my IBM computer with IBM software. It's total technology here."
But behind the machines beats the heart of a sensitive, creative composer who
is able to convey his feelings through all the MIDI data. That point is
probably best exemplified on the title cut to Shadow of Urbano. As Colina
explains: "My father is from Cuba. My mother is a native-born American. My
father played Cuban music around the house when I was a kid and every summer
we used to go down to Cuba to visit relatives. When we went there we would
always end up at some dance hall in some small town where the local Cuban
bands played piccolo and guitar and piano and bongos...really authentic
stuff. I think in some ways that stuff was the most subconscious influence to
this date that I can tell in my music. And obviously, this album is about all
that. It's about my Cuban heritage and the environment that I grew up in, and
the music I heard as a kid. And the piece "Shadow of Urbano" is about my
father when he was a little kid."
"I had a great uncle named Urbano who brought my father up after he was five
years old. The custom is, you let the kid go with an adult chaperon. And he
took him everywhere. Everywhere that Urbano went, my father went. And they
ended up calling my father Shadow of Urbano. And my feelings about that come
through on this song. It just worked out into a really beautiful song for
this album."
Elsewhere on Colina's debut album, he is accompanied by guitarist Nicky
Moroch, percussionist Rick Galway and such illustrious guests as tenor
saxophonist Michael Brecker, alto star David Sanborn and the ultra-funky
Tower of Power horns.
Shadow of Urbano is a fine first step in Michael Colina's new career.
September '88
Subject: Press Release-------------------------------------------
BILL GABLE
"It's strange to think that I cannot recall a thing before a time when I knew
how to play music. In kindergarden, I wrote in my classbook that when I grew
up I wanted to be a great piano player. "Regrettably, this never happened!
But I feel I've lived a charmed life in my lucky discovery at such a young
age of something the love of which I have never had the slightest cause to
question."
Singer/songwriter Bill Gable knows what he wants. If it takes him a little
longer to get it, it's more important that it feels right. These
uncompromising views, and his ideals about honesty and integrity shine
through on his debut, There Were Signs, giving it a pure, naive, almost rural
quality. This simplicity is understandable when you discover that Bill Gable
is a Midwesterner, born and raised in the heartland of Bloomington, IL.
Gable is also Private Music's first vocalist, and a vivid lyricist. He paints
pictures with his words; often of reflective people who have experienced
love's transience, it's risks and the real-life difficulty of living happily
ever after:
"While I
Wandered through the streets tonight
Without you
And stood before your window
And I swore I never would forget you
Each year when the rains return
When the veil begins to close
When the web begins to fall
I will always think of you
I will always fell the same
Leaving Venice to the rain."
"Leaving Venice To The Rain"
Bill Gable grew up in Bloomington, the oldest child of an attorney and a
college professor. For all of his 37 years, music has been a major part of
Gable's life, beginning at age eighteen months, when he would climb out of
bed in the middle of the night to play the piano in his room. By age 13,
after years of classical training, he was playing full concertos on the piano
and cello. Yet, over the course of 18 years of song writing, Gable has chosen
to discard that complex structure and rely more on simple intuition to make
music with an air of romance,
mystique and spontaneity:
"Never for real
Never profound
Never a love I can believe in
That's never been up off the ground
The world gives us no guarantees
High trapeze
High trapeze
May our love always stay dangerous
High trapeze
With a canopy to save us
That don't count at all."
Growing up in the Sixties, Gable life was touched by the turbulence of the
times, from the Vietnam War to 'The Summer of Love.' In '70, he dropped out
of college and moved to L.A., with dreams of garnering a recording contract.
A year later, disillusioned by the industry, Gable moved to Colorado, where
he lived 11,000 feet above sea level in a mining cabin. He returned to
college at the University of Iowa, and graduated with a degree in literature.
Gable then moved to Boston in '74. All along, Bill had been playing dates in
coffeehouses and pubs. But once he got to Boston, he booked himself on the
New England club circuit and just played and played. After about 2,000 gigs,
living hand-to-mouth, and sleeping many a night in his car, Gable had had
enough. That previously elusive recording contract looked attractive once
again. "Playing the New England college circuit for eight years was
murderous, or, at least, I felt murderous while doing it. There were days I
resolved to give it up to become a college professor, a car mechanic, an
attorney, an economist or a pig farmer. Almost anything seemed better at the
time."
In '80, Bill moved back to L.A. and continued to write and record. Now
finally, his persistence is paying off. There Were Signs was recorded at
Gable's own Roman Foods Studio in Los Angeles and at Flying Monkey Studios in
New York with an impressive cast of musicians. The album was co-produced by
Rob Mounsey, a session keyboardist, arranger, composer and producer, who has
lent his talents to projects by Steely Dan, Donald Fagen, Paul Simon, Steve
Winwood and Michael Franks, among others. Other musicians include bassists
Jimmy Haslip (Yellowjackets) and Mark Egan, drummers Jerry Marotta and Jeff
Porcaro (Toto) and jazz percussionist Airto Moreira. Gable played guitar,
keyboards and percussion, and wrote all of the songs.
Many of the songs on There Were Signs reflect Gable's longstanding interest
in World music, most notably Brazilian music. The latin feel of "Who Becomes
The Slave" (the vocal chorus of which was actually recorded in Argentina) to
the Afro/Cuban beat of "The 3 Levels of Nigeria," draw from Bill's travels
and varied experiences in the Third World. "I've been interested in Brazilian
music for fifteen years, ever since I first heard Milton Nascimento and Edu
Lobo. Actually, I'm interested in folk music from all over the world. I find
there's a real integrity there that much of mainstream American pop lacks for
me."
Various literary, political and philosophical references appear throughout
There Were Signs. "Who Becomes The Slave" has its roots in the situation in
El Salvador, and the premise that one can become a slave to one's own power,
while "The 3 Levels of Nigeria" looks at the white colonists, the ascendent
blacks and those totally disenfranchised, through the use of parables.
Although it may have taken him awhile to get going, now that Bill Gable is in
gear, he's continuing to move forward. "I wouldn't for a minute make any
claims about the quality of my music. I can only say that I care about this
world and I believe irrevocably in the power of individuals to shape the
future. I have done my very best to impart some humanity -- my humanity --
into this first record I have made. I hope it is accepted and enjoyed."
February '89
Subject: Press Release-------------------------------------------
LUCIA HWONG
There are many dualities in the life of Lucia Hwong a rising young composer
whose second album Secret Luminescence, is an exotic fusion of far-eastern
music with electronic technology. Her surprisingly congruous blend of
classical poise and extreme romantic lyricism intensifies when she performs
plucking the strings of the teardrop-shaped pipa a Chinese lute she has
played since childhood or caressing the keyboard of an electronic synthesizer
to produce shimmering otherworldly timbres.
Born in Hawaii and raised in Los Angeles Lucia Hwong is the daughter of
international actress Lisa Lu. Her grandmother was the grand dame of Chinese
opera. Lucia was bred to carry on the family line in the arts. From her
earliest years she received classical training in Chinese music, theater and
dance from the foremost masters in each field.
Henry Miller, a family friend became a guide to Lucia during the last years
of his life. From Miller she learned to ground her creativity in direct
experience and trust in her imagination no matter where it might take her.
After receiving a fine arts degree at UCLA, Ms. Hwong went to New York for
graduate studies in ethnomusicology at Columbia. Research for a master's
thesis on the operas of Philip Glass brought her into contact with the
composer. He taught her about the art and business of music.
In the liner notes for Lucia Hwong's first album, House of Sleeping Beauties,
Philip Glass discusses Lucia within the context of a younger generation of
composers whose East-West fusion "represents a dual tradition" and is "not
borrowing from one tradition or incorporating the sounds of another."
John Rockwell in his New York Times review of Ms. Hwong's first record
describes the music as a "world pastiche of instrumental and vocal sounds and
aural evocation." Time magazine in a feature on "new age" music in the
September 1, 1986 issue refers to her "dreamy, asian-inflected music." It is
evident from this sort of press that Ms. Hwong's trans-pacific vision is
being recognized as representative of a movement in world music.
Secret Luminescence was produced and digitally recorded by Glass associate
Kurt Munkacsi. The sessions took place at the living room in New York City
with Japanese shakuhachi master Yukio Tsuji, Alan Stivell playing harp,
Ryuichi Sakamoto on piano Chris Stein of Blondie on electric guitar and Gary
Stockdale playing synthesizer, among other fine musicians from eastern,
western, classical and avant-garde traditions.
Secret Luminescence is an appropriate title for the compositions performed on
this record. There is a visual glow to many of the sounds on cuts like "body
currents", which opens with the plaintive cry of an ancient double-reed horn,
and "lunar seas" where the composer explores correspondences between sound
light shape and touch, each note a phosphorescent color. "Poetry and passion"
is a journey through uncharted terrain with a constant sense of anticipation
of something unexpected. On "Loretta's dance", Alan Stivell's celtic harp
combines with gamelan, soprano sax strings bells voice and synthesizer to
create a ritual space. "Paper Angels" has pipa flute synthesizer and bells
depicting a floating world. The circular repetition of acoustic and
electronic sounds in "Generic Actress #3" moves with a tidal pulse of
breathing.
Lucia Hwong's compositions are always choreographic and cinematic. Listening
to her music unlocks imaginary scenes of floating in lunar seas, flying
through tibetan mountain-scapes and dancing in ancient harvest festivals. Ms.
Hwong has gone beyond the formal problems posed by the crossover between east
and west and is entering a realm of artistic expression not bound to the
mechanics of any musical genre.
Despite its extensive use of far-eastern modes rhythms and instrumentation,
Secret Luminescence moves away from the more traditional sound of Ms. Hwong's
first album House of Sleeping Beauties toward a more open avant-garde musical
conception. "The spaces between the notes are more important than the notes
themselves," said Ms. Hwong in the April 1986 issue of Andy Warhol's
interview. This principle was originally taught to her by Japanese koto
master Kai Wakita but it can also be found in the writings of John Cage.
Music of the ancient past and the high tech future both incorporate a sense
of elasticity of aural space and share the circular rhythms which subvert
conventional perceptions of time. Secret Luminescence bases its explorations
on this common ground.
With both Secret Luminescence and House of Sleeping Beauties in release and
receiving international airplay and distribution Lucia Hwong is creating new
compositions for her third Private Music album. She is also working with John
Dexter on the music for David Henry Hwang's new broadway show M. Butterfly,
and composing music for director Oliver Stone.
Ms. Hwong sees her musical creations as the sum of her experiences in music,
theater, dance and world travel coming together in a unified vision.
July ' 87
Subject: Press Release-------------------------------------------
PATRICK O'HEARN
A self-defined "music chameleon," Patrick O'Hearn defies artistic
categorization. Nominated for a 1987 Grammy (Best New Age Performance) for
Between Two Worlds, his second Private Music album which demonstrates an
innovative intertwining of unexpected ethnic shadings and ceramic percussion,
O'Hearn fully utilizes his diverse musical background to explore uncharted
musical terrain. Not satisfied to merely re-work familiar themes, O'Hearn's
sense of adventure has yielded another breakthrough effort on his dynamic
third solo album, Rivers Gonna Rise.
Patrick inherited his extraordinary range of tastes (along with an internal
catalog of Serbo-Croation melodic motifs) from musical parents. "My family,
from the time I was a small child, always stressed complete impartiality to
music," he recalls. "The criteria for what was good or bad were never
established by any particular category. My folks would put on pounding jungle
drums, then throw on Brahms' Fourth Symphony."
The senior O'Hearns also gave nine-year-old Patrick his first gig on bass,
backing their nightclub act in Portland, Oregon. Later Patrick received
classical training with members of the Oregon Symphony and eventually took to
the road, honing his improvisational skills in the rhythm sections of jazz
luminaries such as Joe Henderson, Dexter Gordon, Charles Lloyd, Joe Pass and
Tony Williams. Next followed a three year stint in Frank Zappa's "no holds
barred rock 'n roll band," after which O'Hearn helped form Group 87, a
seminal fusion outfit that was far ahead of its time. This was in the late
seventies. "Jazz radio rejected it because it wasn't fundamental jazz. Rock
radio threw it out because there were no vocals. And it sure wasn't Top 40."
In 1981 O'Hearn joined the pop group Missing Persons where he stayed until
the band's demise in 1986. Even while grounding Missing Persons' New Wave
sound with bass lines and keyboard backdrops, Patrick was also in his home
studio charting frontier musical territory. In 1985 Private Music released
O'Hearn's first solo album, the boldly atmospheric Ancient Dreams.
O'Hearn's private musical journeys charmed the critics while confounding
their powers of description: phrases like "deliciously cool astral
jazz,"'ambitiously atmospheric neo-impressionism," or "personal, evocative
aural paintings" abounded. Even the shopworn "head music" was called into
play to characterize the sound of Ancient Dreams and his next release,
Between Two Worlds. "When I composed the music for Ancient Dreams, there was
practically no music like it around," says O'Hearn. "Now there's this glut of
music that's trying to be meditative or personal, so I wanted to attempt
something else for the new album; move in another direction, work more with
melody, add a little more rhythm with live drums - all without alienating my
audience."
Rivers Gonna Rise is Patrick's next move in his freestyle approach to
instrumental music. "This album is more upbeat and song-oriented," O'Hearn
says, "and that makes it more exciting for me and the listener." One reason
for this is the presence of trumpeter Mark Isham and guitarist Peter Maunu,
O'Hearn's former partners in Group 87, on "Glory For Tomorrow" and "A Brief
Repose" and drummer Terry Bozzio, his Missing Persons and Zappa bandmate, on
"Reunion" and "April Fool". The latter track is "about as far from typical
meditative New Age music as you can get," he points out. "If I was driving
down the road and this came on my rock radio station, I'd have to throw out
the anchor and just sit back and listen."
Ranging from the powerfully triumphant to the subtly whimsical, Rivers Gonna
Rise displays once again O'Hearn's refusal to resort to pop's sensory-
overload attack. Instead the music gently coaxes the ear into hearing
differently. "My goal with this album was to keep breaking down barriers, to
create interesting new music and sounds that people can open-mindedly enjoy.
This record has more depth, using more harmony, melody and simple key
modulations rather than creating space-like music."
After touring with so many other musicians (most recently with Andy Taylor's
post-Duran Duran band), O'Hearn eagerly anticipates performing his own music
live. "I've been wanting to play concert dates for a long time," O'Hearn
says. "It's time for people to get a look at the sailor behind the wheel.
Adding the new songs, especially those with active bass parts, to my older
material will help me create a powerful show, allowing me to move people
through lots of interesting peaks and valleys."
A favorite among New Adult Contemporary radio programmers, Patrick O'Hearn
does not technically consider what he does to be "New Age", although he
agrees that "some of my gentler pieces can carry you off into your
imagination. That's great, but that's not all that interests me. As a record
buyer over the years, I've always wanted to hear something different - some
kind of development -from my favorite artists, no matter if it was the Who or
Weather Report. Part of developing as a musician and a composer is to
constantly evolve and change. Once you remain static, even though the music
may appeal to a group of people, before long, you're history. The key to
longevity is to keep progressing."
Progression is the key to Patrick O'Hearn. A musical individualist who crafts
organic rhythmic texture, harmonic mood, and evocative sound, he provides
essential creative benchmarks for those intrigued by new directions in music.
Patrick O'Hearn's dedication to change and innovation makes him right at home
on Private Music.
May '88
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
Eclectic Music is a production of
Datta Production and Development
905 97th Street
Kenosha, WI 53140
This newsletter was brought to you via computer resources courtesy of
University of Wisconsin-Parkside and Datta Production and Development.
All of the opinions in this newsletter belong to the respective authors and
do not necessarily agree with those of Datta Production and Development.
Datta Production And Development is not affiliated with University Of
Wisconsin - Parkside or the University of Wisconsin System.
--
-Dave da...@vacs.uwp.wisc.edu
....uwm!uwpvacs!datta
uwpvacs.UUCP!da...@cs.wisc.edu
David Datta
Eclectic Music
Press Releases Posted April 1990
Eclectic Music is not affiliated with any of the record companies in the
accompanying posts, these press releases are being reprinted here with full
permission from the record labels and are being reprinted in full with the
sole intent of disseminating information.
Although some of these releases are rather dated, I feel that many people
would like to see where the major magazine "reviewers" are plagiarizing
their articles from, sometimes almost word for word....
In this post, you will find the following press releases:
From American Gramaphone
Classical Gas Mason Williams & Mannheim Steamroller
Fresh Aire VI Mannheim Steamroller
A Fresh Aire, Christmas Mannheim Steamroller
Architects of Change Spencer Nilsen
Through the Lens Checkfield
Yellowstone, The Music of Nature Mannheim Steamroller
The Ancient and The Infant Ron Cooley
Mozart Collection John Rutter\London Sinfonia
brother sun, sister moon John Rutter\The Cambridge Singers
Distant Thunder Checkfield
The American Gramaphone Story
There's "Fresh Aire" Among Christmas Releases
Fresh Aire VI Release Nationwide
Composer Chip Davis Readies Steamroller For Holidays
Subject: Press Release-------------------------------------------
The remaking of Classical Gas
MASON WILLIAMS & MANNHEIM STEAMROLLER
1968. One of the most troubling and yet dynamic years in our history. And
woven throughout the unfolding events was an unforgettable song that became
an anthem of sorts with the timeless qualities of a unique and beautiful
melody and urgent rhythm. These qualities make the new Classical Gas as fresh
and innovative today as when it was first recorded in the late sixties. In a
brilliant collaboration, Mason Williams, Chip Davis and Mannheim Steamroller
focus their collective genius on a totally new arrangement and recording of
this classic as well as eleven other Williams' tunes.
"I can't think of a better situation for me to be in," says Williams.
"Finally I've got the right producer and arranger, the right label and
promotion, the right studio and engineer and the right material." The result
is a beautifully balanced set of songs with a blend of writing and playing
that transcends musical categories. The wit and intelligence of the
compositions and arrangements will be familiar to longtime Williams and
Mannheim Steamroller fans, but the wide range of musical styles included on
this release will be a pleasant surprise to everyone.
Classical Gas, the forerunner of American Gramaphone's eclectic Fresh Aire
style, brings back memories in this unforgettable, technically superior
recording, and gives this version the energy that it deserves. Sunflower, the
delicate waltz that closed the original Mason Williams' Phonograph Album
takes you back to the nostalgic feeling of its first recording. Samba Beach
is a rhythmic, breezy, tropical tune conceived by Williams while "dreaming of
a white sand beach during a blizzard in Denver." How many fantasies have you
heard for broadcast signal and truck horn? That's Doot-Doot, the ultimate
drive time anthem and rock 'n roll play-along. (You can doot your own doot!)
Country Idyll takes you right down home and showcases Mannheim Steamroller's
country "licks" and an uptempo baroque-rock version of Greensleeves gives new
life to this old English favorite. The angularly rhythmic Vancouver Island
was inspired by the mountains, ocean, and Indian folklore of the Pacific
Northwest.
To insure that the musicians' every note was captured faithfully, the album
was recorded at Sound Recorders in Omaha and CTS Studios in London. In the
tradition of past American Gramaphone recordings, Classical Gas was recorded
using state-of-the-art equipment and techniques and will delight the
discriminating listener. By coincidence, John Boyd the recordist on the
original Classical Gas session, was the man responsible for recording this
album as well.
Much has changed since 168. New recording techniques, more sophisticated
instruments, and better studios, but one thing remains the same; the vision
and dedication of the musicians and American Gramaphone to produce a unique
listening experience for you, the listener. We believe that Classical Gas has
accomplished just that.
Available on LP(AG800), Cassette (AGC800) and Compact Disc (AGCD800).
Subject: Press Release-------------------------------------------
Fresh Aire VI
MANNHEIM STEAMROLLER
A FANTASTIC VOYAGE The Newest Legend From American Gramaphone
The most dramatic and inspired musical work to date by Mannheim Steamroller,
Fresh Aire Vl takes listeners across legendary seas to the enchanted,
timeless world of ancient Greece. Subtitled Impressions of Greek Mythology,
this long-awaited addition to the acclaimed Fresh Aire series combines age-
old lore and the contemporary musical sensibilities of composer Chip Davis.
"Come Home to the Sea" evokes the power of the ocean as the source of all
life. The piece depicts two dolphins holding a conversation in Poseidon's
watery depths. "Rhodes" tells the story of Helios, who mounts a chariot
pulled by four winged horses to take up the sun each morning, after which he
retires to his home on the island of Rhodes. Davis has cleverly interjected
the music of a Fender Rhodes piano into the composition. "Orpheus" follows
the musical god as he descends to hell, hoping to entreat the devil to
release his beloved wife. Orpheus is represented by the gentle sound of a
flute, while the devil speaks through a fuzz guitar. Three more compositions
conjure the spirits, gods and heroes of a magnificent era.
Davis and his musical cohorts have enlisted the talents of the 80 musicians
in the London Symphony and the 30-voice choir of the Cambridge Singers to
make Fresh Aire Vl truly an epic work. Recorded in Europe and America, the
album involved the best sound engineers on both continents. Twelve support
musicians joined core Mannheim Steamroller members to achieve the lush,
orchestral sound associated with the group.
Accompanying the album is a commissioned book by Jim Shey, head of the
classics department at the University of Wisconsin, explaining the legends.
A commissioned painting by renowned surrealist Gilbert Williams portraying an
ancient temple overlooking the Greek coast graces the inside jacket of Fresh
Aire VI.
Since the last album in the Fresh Aire series, Mannheim Steamroller has
recorded a grammy-nominated Christmas album and the soundtrack to a PBS
special about endangered wildlife. Fresh Aire VI has been eagerly awaited by
legions of Mannheim Steamroller fans.
AG386/AGC386
Subject: Press Release-------------------------------------------
A FRESH AIRE, Christmas
MANNHEIM STEAMROLLER
In September of 1984, "Mannheim Steamroller Christmas" was released with
little fanfare and only to the anticipation of Mannheim Steamroller's loyal
fans. Four years, numerous awards including a Grammy nomination, and over
1,000,000 copies later, "Mannheim Steamroller Christmas" has established
itself as a musical tradition for Christmas. In September of 1988, American
Gramaphone Records is proud to announce "A Fresh Aire Christmas" by Chip
Davis and performed by the members of Mannheim Steamroller. Not merely a
sequel, "A Fresh Aire Christmas" is a musical renewal of the joy, wonder and
kinship of the holiday season that "Mannheim Steamroller Christmas" has
evoked in everyone that has had the pleasure of hearing it since Its release.
Weaving the traditional instruments of the holiday season; bells, horns and
strings with the latest of electronic instruments, arranger Chip Davis has
created a dazzling musical tapestry. This album was recorded in 5 places on
Earth, including and highlighting some of Earth's finest performers. These
performers consist of concert masters, principles and assistant principles
representing the following groups and Universities among others:
Chicago Symphony Orchestra
Atlanta Symphony Orchestra
The Chicago Percussion Quintet
Nashville Symphony
Detroit Symphony
LA. Philharmonic Symphony
Houston Symphony Orchestra
The Cambridge Singers of London, England
The St. Louis Symphony
Eastman School of Music
The result is a recording breathtaking in detail and rich in musical
diversity for music lovers young and old.
In choosing songs for this release, Davis consulted thousands of Mannheim
Steamroller fans across the country for their holiday favorites. Their
suggestions fill the album and include the classics, "Little Drummer Boy",
"Carol of the Bells", "O Holy Night" and "Hark! The Herald Angels Sing" as
well as seven others. In addition, Davis has composed an original carol,
"Traditions of Christmas" that is the centerpiece of this wonderfully diverse
and captivating album.
Whether enjoyed while sitting cozily in front of a raging fire, or on the way
home for the holidays, "A Fresh Aire Christmas" is the new Christmas
tradition.
"A Fresh Aire Christmas". AG1988
Also available: "Mannheim Steamroller Christmas". AG 1984 Both available on
LP, Chrome cassette and Compact Disc.
Subject: Press Release-------------------------------------------
SPENCER NILSEN'S "ARCHITECTS OF CHANGE"...
Produced and engineered by Grammy-nominated John Archer, of Checkfield, the
collection is a very solid foundation for American Gramaphone's newest
artist.
Nilsen has meticulously written and arranged each cut, captivating the
listener with a mixture of exotic rhythms and creative instrumentation. Using
influences from classical to R & B, he makes smooth transitions, defining
many different perspectives, throughout the project.
A master of many keyboards, he is backed by a very talented group of
musicians from the San Diego area. Among them is Archer himself on acoustic
guitar. Ron Satterfield, of Checkfield, lends his voice on the title track.
Also making appearances are violinist Darol Anger, courtesy of Windham Hill
Records; Mark Hunter on bass guitar, courtesy of Intima Records; Bret Helm
also on bass guitar, courtesy of Rubber Brother Records, and Pat Kelley on
electric guitar, courtesy of Nova Records. They, along with the other fine
artists on the album, show great energy and interpretation throughout.
They gathered at the Network Music Studio in San Diego to record the project.
It was then digitally mastered at Sound Recorders in Omaha, NE, with the
expertise and quality you've come to expect from American Gramaphone.
Formats available:
Compact Disc, AGCD889 (running time 43 min.)
Cassette, AGC889 (running time 39 min.)
Spencer Nilsen . . . 27, is from San Diego and has been composing for many
years. One piece, written for a PBS special, earned him a local Emmy
nomination. Another piece written for Eastman-Kodak, caught the ear of John
Archer (of Checkfield) which in turn, captured the attention of American
Gramaphone President, Chip Davis.
The name might also ring a bell with some other famous musicians. They
watched as he demonstrated the latest keyboard techniques at a top retail
outlet where he worked during high school in San Francisco. Among them were
members of Journey, Huey Lewis, Santana and Starship. Though he was inspired
by their work, he has taken a different route.
With inspiration from his father, an architect, Nilsen has designed a
"soundscape" for his listeners, using instruments instead of words to build
a story.
Subject: Press Release-------------------------------------------
THROUGH THE LENS by CHECKFIELD
CHECKFIELD'S newest release on American Gramaphone Records is a series of
beautifully crafted musical images of the surroundings, reflections and
emotions that have molded the unique Checkfield sound. Checkfield's skill at
creating these images has won them critical praise, ("incredible textures
from this incredibly talented band"-- Portraits in Sound; "a duo that is
bound to make a remarkable impression on the music world"--X Radio Monthly)
and a widespread and enthusiastic following.
"We often feel like photographers taking pictures of the age we live in",
says pianist/ composer Ron Satterfield. John Archer, guitarist/composer and
the other half of the duo agrees, "these songs filtered through our
collective memories are a kind of musical photo album."
The selections are a wonderfully balanced collection including Live At Five
(a driving, powerful anthem for the Electronic Age), Echoes of Ancient
Battles (bagpipes, thunder drum and Turkish crescent conjure up a timeless
Scottish meadow) and Song For Schroeder (he's traded his toy piano for a
computer and a bunch of synthesizers). Not forgetting the delicate and lovely
ballads that have become a Checkfield tradition, Flowers (a black and white
image of a woman alone in a room with a vase of roses) is a musical vision of
great depth and beauty.
From beginning to end, Checkfield's Through The Lens will create a personal
musical photo album for every listener.
AG788. Available on LP, Cassette and Compact Disc.
The diverse talents of Checkfield can also be heard on their two previous
American Gramaphone releases
Water, Wind and Stone
Distant Thunder
Subject: Press Release-------------------------------------------
Yellowstone, The Music of Nature
MANNHEIM STEAMROLLER
Last November I had the opportunity of seeing Yellowstone National Park
during our fall tour. I had been under the impression that the entire park
had burned to the ground. Much to my surprise, the park was standing and was
beautiful. I thought, If everyone thinks the park is burned to the ground who
will go? Who will support the needed rehabilitation? Who will see this cycle
of change? It seems that nature and the ideas that I have gotten from nature
have given me a great deal of success in my music and composing business so
I thought that through the concert medium, I might be able to draw some
positive awareness to the parks natural cycle and it's standing beauty while
raising some funds for rehabilitation.
The Music of Nature:
A Concert for Yellowstone
At 8 p.m. on June 10th, 1989, the opening notes of The Music of Nature a
Concert for Yellowstone rang out in Omaha's Civic Auditorium. This event was
the first of twenty concerts scheduled by Chip Davis to play across the
country over the next two years. The goal for the concerts is to raise one
million dollars for the rehabilitation of Yellowstone Park and to create
awareness that America's First National Park offers a once in a lifetime
opportunity for visitors to see nature in spectacular evolution.
The concert featured Chip Davis and Jackson Berkey of Mannheim Steamroller.
guitarist Ron Cooley concert master Arnie Roth and the 80 piece Yellowstone
Symphony Orchestra, featuring some of America's finest classical musicians.
The program consists of performances of music composed about nature by
Respighi, Debussy, Sibelius, Vivaldi Grofe and Davis. Also included in the
concert are pieces from the Fresh Aire Series, many never before performed
live. The concerts first half is a musical montage of important nature
pieces. The second half leads the audience through a day at Yellowstone,
featuring spectacular photographs and film projected onto three huge screens
suspended above the performers. Concert goers will see the park before,
during and after the fires of 1988 to show the rebirth which can be witnessed
today.
Locations and dates are now being scheduled for the future concerts. The
music performed during The Music of Nature a Concert for Yellowstone is now
available on compact disc and cassette. This recording features members of
Mannheim Steamroller, the Yellowstone Orchestra; comprised of members of the
Chicago and other fine American orchestras, the London Symphony Orchestra and
the Cambridge Singers.
Recording history was made in July 1989 when a number of the selected
movements were recorded in the studio for the first time. Represented in the
studio were 80 of America's top musicians who brought in the studio with them
over five million dollars in instruments. Obviously, all of the movements
have been recorded at one time or another by other record labels but
typically these recordings would take place in a concert hall. While very
expensive to do such recordings in a studio environment it did allow for more
separation in the instrument sounds thereby allowing new instrument
relationships to be discovered. These newly recorded studio versions
conducted by Chip Davis include movements from The Pines of Rome by Respighi
Cloud Burst from Grofe, Grand Canyon Suite . Vivaldi s The Four Seasons and
Ballade by Debussy. Also included in this recording are studio versions of
Fresh Aire selections performed by Mannheim Steamroller, the London Symphony
Orchestra and the Cambridge Singers.
A Concert for Yellowstone is the first time that the National Park Service
has endorsed a fund raising event and we feel privileged to be a part of the
effort to restore Yellowstone. We hope that you will join us in this worthy
cause.
Available on compact disc and cassette in early November 1989.
Subject: Press Release-------------------------------------------
THE ANCIENT
a n d t h e i n f a n t
The latest release from Ron Cooley on American Gramaphone Records is a
wonderfully balanced set of music reflecting Cooley's rich and varied musical
background. The listener will hear Jazz, Rock, New Age, Classical and even a
bit of Country influence in Cooley's music and the strength of his
compositions are in his ability to combine many different, sometimes opposite
elements into simply amazing music. Cooley combines his acoustic guitar
beautifully with oboe, violin and strings on the haunting "Wind Across The
Plains", and displays his wonderful electric guitar technique on the Latin
flavored title cut, "The Ancient and The Infant". "Circles", Grandfather's
Clock", "Lullaby" and four other cuts show the versatility and range of
Cooley as an instrumentalist and composer.
All of the compositions were recorded at Sound Recorders in Omaha, Ne. where
Cooley's individual talents were captured in the same studio used by Mannheim
Steamroller and other American Gramaphone artists. The result is a recording
rich in detail and sonic impact.
The Ancient and The Infant AG388 Available on Cassette and Compact Disc only
In addition to the Ancient and The Infant, American Gramaphone is also
releasing Cooley's first two albums Daydreams and Rainbows on Compact Disc
for the first time. These three Cooley projects are being released in
conjunction with the announcement of new lower pricing on all LPs, Cassettes
and Compact Discs from American Gramaphone Records.
Also available from Ron Cooley on American Gramaphone:
Daydreams
Rainbows
Subject: Press Release-------------------------------------------
The Mozart Collection
John Rutter\London Sinfonia
In the spirit of the great composer, whose enthusiasm for billiards was
second only to his love for music, American Gramaphone Records proudly offers
The Mozart Collection. More than a single work, The Mozart Collection is a
delightful series of selections carefully chosen from the compositions of
Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart.
Continuing to search for musical and sonic excellence, American Gramaphone
travelled to Great Britain to bring the expertise of the City of London
Sinfonia, and their conductor John Rutter, to record. Especially suited to
the delicate music of Mozart, the Sinfonia has been recognized as one of the
world's finest and most respected ensembles. The combined efforts of Rutter
and the CLS have already garnered them a coveted Gramaphone award (the
European equivalent to Record of the Year) for their recording of the Faure
Requiem. The Mozart Collection represents no less of an achievement.
Among the selections performed are the Overture from the Marriage of Figaro,
the finale from the Concerto in C Major for Flute and Harp, and the Overture
from The Magic Flute. Also featured is a guest appearance by Jackson Berkey,
the multi-faceted pianist of the Mannheim Steamroller in movements from two
of Mozart's most famous piano concerti: Numbers 12 and 21.
Carefully recorded and respectfully performed at the acoustically superb
Henry Wood Hall in London, producer Chip Davis has endeavored to insure that
the passion of Mozart's music has been preserved. We think you'll agree that
this completely digital recording, representing so many colors from the
Master's musical palette, achieves thai end.
The conducting talents of John Rutter can also be heard on American
Gramaphone release number AG-500, Olde English Madrigals and Folk Songs. As
the name implies, this is a collection of madrigals and English folk songs
from the 16th Century, recorded in the authentic, stony environs of Ely
Cathedral, constructed in 1000 A.D.
Music or billiards, Mozart displayed a unique devotion to his craft. American
Gramaphone continues this tradition with The Mozart Collection.
Available on LP (A586), Cassette (AGC586), and Compact Disc (AGCD586)
Subject: Press Release-------------------------------------------
Brother Sun, Sister Moon
JOHN RUTTER/THE CAMBRIDGE SINGERS
AMERICAN GRAMAPHONE RECORDS
"This recording is a freely devised sequence of a capella choral music, firs
for the morning, then for the evening. It exists to restore missing harmony.
Let the morning music uplift you; let the evening music weave its restful
spell over you. Then centuries and languages melt away and a profound harmony
remains."
Recorded on location in the historic Great Hall of University College School
in London, Brother Sun, Sister Moon is the second release by The Cambridge
Singers under The direction of John Rutter on American Gramaphone. The
historic- ambience of The Great Hall lovingly surrounds the majesty of the
Cambridge Singers and gives this recording an audible sense of lime and place
that will mesmerize the listener. Included are 13 selections that all exhibit
the brilliance of Rutter and the internationally acclaimed Cambridge Singers.
AG588.
In addition to Brother Sun, Sister Moon John Rutter's talents are featured on
these two previous American Gramaphone releases.
Olde English Madrigals and Folk Songs
John Rutter/The Cambridge Singers
Recorded on location at Ely Cathedral in England. AG500.
The Mozart Collection
John Rutter/The City of London Sinfonia
A delightful series of selections from the masters compositions. AG586.
Subject: Press Release-------------------------------------------
DISTANT THUNDER
Checkfield
Distant Thunder by the multi-faceted duo Checkfield is the culmination of
eight months of studio work and twelve years of recording and performance
experience. This experience has given Checkfield's music a unique vision and
character of its own that can't easily be labeled or categorized.
Checkfield's efforts can best be described as musical craftsmanship; a term
used sparingly in the world of music, but one that conveys the commitment
that John 'Archer and Ron Satterfield bring to their music.
"Our goal from the very beginning of this project was technical excellence
combined with the spontaneity and excitement that would normally only take
place in a live performance," states composer-producer John Archer. We at
American Gramaphone Records believe that you the listener will agree that
this goal has been met and surpassed.
Using state-of-the-art recording equipment and painstakingly meticulous
studio techniques, Checkfield has produced a delightful blend of sonic and
musical excellence. "We wanted to create music that would involve and excite
every listener," partner Ron Satterfield adds. "We took our time to make sure
that we had a finished product that we were certain communicated the essence
of what Checkfield is all about."
The selections reflect a wide range of emotions and ideas, but have a common
theme woven throughout the entire album, the joy and beauty of nature and its
seasons . Checkfield treats the listener to an impressionistic day in the
park on "Carousel" and offers a majestic view of an approaching summer storm
on the title cut, "Distant Thunder." The moods and musical styles vary from
the contemporary English folk feeling of "Woodland" to "Spring Dance," a
bright, uptempo jazz piece that will delight every music lover.
Checkfield's talents can also bc heard on their first American Gramaphone
release, Water, Wind and Stone (AG700) . As a follow-up release, Distant
Thunder is sure to please Checkfield's many loyal fans and attract new
listeners to their unique and individualistic music.
Continuing in our quest for the finest in recorded music, we at American
Gramaphone Records believe that Distant Thunder by Checkfield is a brilliant
addition to our family of recordings.
Subject: Press Release-------------------------------------------
THE AMERICAN GRAMAPHONE STORY
American Gramaphone Records has become a major force behind the creative and
technological revolution sweeping the international recording and music
industry.
Under the direction of composer-producer Chip Davis, who formed American
Gramaphone in 1974, the company has developed an original style. American
Gramaphone's demanding standards have produced some of the highest quality
sound products on the consumer market.
The American Gramaphone story started with the music to -- of all things --
a bread commercial. Working together with a national advertising agency, Chip
composed the music for a series of award-winning and incredibly popular
television commercials for Old Home Bread. The commercials were all about the
continuing saga of an Old Home Bread delivery truck driver named C. W.
McCall. Chip figured that if the TV commercials about C. W. were so popular,
some songs about this colorful truck driver might be, too. And they were.
C. W. McCall hit the national music scene in a big way about the same time we
all got C.B. radios. Many of us related to his song "Convoy," and radio
stations across the country were abuzz with this new music out of Omaha!
One hit led to another and then a series of coast-to-coast concert tours, a
string of gold records and international recognition.
During the McCall music craze, Chip scored the soundtrack for the major
motion picture "Convoy" which starred Kris Kristofferson, Ali McGraw and
Ernest Borgnine. And, he formed American Gramaphone Records to produce and
market his original compositions, the celebrated series of Fresh Aire albums.
The hallmark of Chip's work at American Gramaphone is his ability to bring
authentic period instruments forward in time by using the latest in state-of-
the-art technology. "The key elements to American Gramaphone are original
music with a classical base and a pure view of production," Chip said in a
recent magazine interview.
The Fresh Aire series has captured the imagination of millions of people to
lead them on a musical journey through time and space. Fresh Aire I is more
baroque; Fresh Aire II reflects medieval influences; Fresh Aire III is
characterized by renaissance that flows into contemporary sounds; Fresh Aire
IV provides 20th century avant garde in its repertoire.
"The Fresh Aire series is like a guided musical history tour of different
periods," Chip has
While the first four Fresh Aire albums each represented a season, Fresh Aire
V took a turn to capture more intellectual themes, according to Chip. Fresh
Aire V explored outer space with French Impressionist overtones, and the most
recent in the series, Fresh Aire VI, delves into the sea with the artistic
interpretation of the music and myth of ancient Greece.
Fresh Aire V and VI were recorded in the United States and England by
Mannheim Steamroller with the world famous London Symphony and the Cambridge
Singers.
The distinctive Fresh Aire sound has been carefully crafted by Chip into two
enormously successful albums of Christmas music, Mannheim Steamroller
Christmas (released in 1984) and A Fresh Aire Christmas (1988). Both
recordings have achieved platinum status in the record industry, each with
sales of over 1,000,000 albums. Grammy-nominated Mannheim Steamroller
Christmas and A Fresh Aire Christmas clearly have become popular classics for
the holidays.
From the very beginning of the Fresh Aire project, stereo dealers and
audiophiles across the country loved the recordings. The technical
achievements in the Fresh Aire albums brought a new dimension of sound -
never before experienced - into our living rooms.
Under the careful supervision of John Boyd, the skilled engineers at Sound
Recorders have recorded and mastered most of the American Gramaphone catalog,
adding the exceptional standard of recording quality and attention to detail
that distinguishes American Gramaphone.
Each instrument is precisely recorded using distinctive microphones to best
reproduce the sound. With the studio's enormous dimensions and a combination
of tight and ambient mixing techniques, it is possible to capture an
exceptionally dynamic sound which has become the signature for all Fresh Aire
albums.
American Gramaphone, as an entertainment company, is in an aggressive
expansion mode, now marketing and distributing the recordings of
internationally-acclaimed and Grammy Award nominated composer Paul Winter and
other artists on the Living Music label. Additionally, many highly-talented
and celebrated artists are featured on the American Gramaphone label,
including Checkfield, consisting of West Coast musicians John Archer and Ron
Satterfield; classical pianist Jackson Berkey of Mannheim Steamroller;
composer and guitarist Ron Cooley; eclectic jazz composer and keyboard
musician Spencer Nilsen; New York-based keyboard artist and composer Jeff
Jenkins; and Mannheim Steamroller bassist Eric Hansen who spotlights special
talent with the classical lute. From England, there is John Rutter with the
Cambridge Singers. NBC News called John "the best living composer and
conductor of choral music." John's talents have spread to conducting the City
of London Sinfonia in the popular Mozart collection, soon to become a
composers series of classical music at its very best.
Today, American Gramaphone is recognized as one of the largest independent
record companies in North America .... and, to think it all started with a TV
commercial for bread.
It's a funny sort of story, the way American Gramaphone Records has developed
but a good story. In fact, it's almost a fairy tale how a small company from
America's heartland has taken wing and risen to become world renowned for its
exceptionally superior sounding product.
If you want to know more or are interested in how to obtain any of our
products, write!
We'll even write back. Because that's just the way we do things back here in
Omaha ... the wild kingdom.
Subject: Press Release-------------------------------------------
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: October 12, 1988
THERE'S "FRESH AIRE" AMONG CHRISTMAS RELEASES
OMAHA, NE -- Composer and conductor Chip Davis, whose group Mannheim
Steamroller released a highly successful holiday recordings four years ago,
has a new Christmas album already generating big word-of-mouth.
Mannheim Steamroller's new "A Fresh Aire Christmas," released by the American
Gramaphone label, has racked up advance orders totalling more than 738,000
copies. The album is unique among the crowded crop of holiday releases this
year; it was recorded in five locations, utilizing what may be the most
innovative recording techniques existing, and the carols recorded were chosen
by Mannheim Steamroller fans.
The 12 carols on "A Fresh Aire Christmas" are mostly familiar standards with
one new entry by Davis, a warmly personal original composition entitled
"Traditions of Christmas." All are treated to the distinctive Mannheim
Steamroller sound of Davis' arrangements.
Besides Davis' usual complement of Mannheim Steamroller musicians, "A Fresh
Aire Christmas" is performed by some of the world's most accomplished and
acclaimed artists. Musicians from more than nine major orchestras
participated, representing the Symphonies of Chicago, Nashville, Detroit,
Atlanta, Houston, Louisville, St. Louis and Omaha, along with the Los Angeles
Philharmonic. Six educational institutions are also represented by musicians
from the North Carolina School of the Arts, the University of Washington,
DePaul, Northwestern, the University of Nebraska at Omaha, and the Eastman
School of Music. England's Cambridge Singers, under the direction of John
Rutter, also appear on the album.
The recording approach of the album may never have been tried before. It
involved computerized time-coding with a process called SMPTE, used to allow
not only multi-location recording but also the ability to conduct recording
procedures impossible under normal circumstances. The result is a recording
of spectacular quality.
The carols on "A Fresh Aire Christmas" were chosen by a vote among thousands
of fans on the American Gramaphone mailing list for the songs they most
wanted to see on a new Mannheim Steamroller Christmas album.
The first album, "Mannheim Steamroller CHRISTMAS," was released in 1984 and
remains one of the most popular titles the American Gramaphone catalog with
sales of 1.3 million.
Subject: Press Release-------------------------------------------
MANNHEIM STEAMROLLER'S
FRESH AIRE VI RELEASE NATIONWIDE
OMAHA, NEBRASKA -- Mannheim Steamroller's newest album, Fresh Aire VI, has
been released on American Gramaphone Records in record stores nationwide.
The powerfully visual new album is the latest in the celebrated series of
Fresh Aire recordings scored, conducted and produced by Chip Davis.
Fresh Aire VI -- the most dramatic musical work to date by the Mannheim
Steamroller -- features the 80-member London Symphony and 30 voices of the
Cambridge Singers with the Mannheim Steamroller.
Recorded with impeccable quality on American Gramaphone Records involving the
best sound engineers in the United States and England, Fresh Aire VI is a
fantastic musical voyage on impressions of Greek mythology and across
legendary seas.
o "Come Home To The Sea" evokes the power of the ocean as the
source of all life.
o "Rhodes" tells the story of Helios, who mounts a chariot
pulled by four winged horses to take up the sun each morning.
Davis has cleverly interjected the music of a Fender Rhodes
piano into the composition.
o "Orpheus" follows the musical god as he descends to hell,
hoping to entreat the devil to release his beloved wife.
Orpheus is represented by the gentle sound of a flute
while the devil speaks through a fuzz guitar .
o Three more compositions -- "Sirens, " "Nepenthe" and
"Olympics" -- conjure the spirits, gods and heroes of a
magnificent era.
Fresh Aire VI combines age-old lore and the contemporary musical
sensibilities of composer Chip Davis. The result is a recording filled with
rich, colorful, film-score style compositions ... and not-to-be-missed .
Fresh Aire VI has been released on stereo LP and cassette. The new album will
also be available on compact digital disc in the future.
Subject: Press Release-------------------------------------------
COMPOSER CHIP DAVIS READIES STEAMROLLER FOR HOLIDAYS
(CHICAGO) -- There is a curious and telling mix of people crowded into the
control room, as incongruous as the music roaring from the giant Urie
speakers at this time of year. It is early June, 1988, and Christmas music is
engaging the full attention of a small throng surrounding composer Chip
Davis.
Recording on this project has just been completed at Universal Studios, one
of the foremost sound facilities in Chicago, and among those listening to
playbacks of the new Mannheim Steamroller Christmas album are a University of
Washington music professor, an official from the mayor's office, a technical
editor from Mix magazine, and Joey DeMaio, bassist and songwriter with the
heavy metal band MANOWAR recording in another section of the studio.
"Wow," DeMaio says when it is finished. "And I thought we were going to blow
people away." In another corner of the room, the music professor is
discussing the orchestral integrity of Davis' arrangements. The Mix editor is
excited over the technical details of his recording approach. The mayor's
official is waiting to offer formal regards from the city.
Davis is definitely drawing attention these day, a condition likely to
increase as "A Fresh Aire Christmas," recently released, picks up more trade
and consumer word-of- mouth. (Advance orders totalled over 738,000.) His
independent record label, American Gramaphone, is enjoying a huge growth in
sales.
His group Mannheim Steamroller has toured the country and placed on
Billboard's top-grossing live acts chart; this year's Christmas tour looks to
be even bigger. The Mannheim Steamroller "Fresh Aire" series of recordings
now numbers six, with a seventh in planning stages. The first "Mannheim
Steamroller Christmas" album is one of the most popular seasonal albums of
all time, with sales estimated to total 1.3 million copies. And he continues
to draw acclaim for the technical quality and innovation of his recordings,
which won him early following among countless audiophiles.
Davis' approach in his albums indicates one of the key differences between
him and other artists in the same market field. As much as Mannheim
Steamroller is solidly identified as one of the vanguard ensembles in the New
Age music genre, the 41- year-old Davis has a musical perspective firmly
rooted in classical music theory.
"The craftsmanship of the classics is very important to me," he says. "We've
been thrown into this New Age category, and quite honestly a lot of New Age
music is incoherent or tends to wander quite a bit. Mannheim Steamroller
comes more out of 8 classical tradition, though definitely blended with pop."
Davis' utilization of many established classical compositional techniques in
the creation of his music means that the completion of an album usually takes
many months, sometimes years, beginning at Davis' state-of-the-art home
studio where a fleet of synthesizers and recording gear serves as his initial
springboard. Ideas often begin and develop on manuscript paper before an
instrument is even touched. Few artists working in the field of popular music
compose so closely to the classical process. The Mannheim Steamroller sound
is quite distinctive. Where much of the New Age music market relies heavily
on the use of synthesizers for fundamental musical identity, their use with
finished Mannheim Steamroller albums is generally relegated to a supporting
role. More often the listener will hear authentic period instruments such as
harpsichords, some of which were hand- made by Da-is' father, an accomplished
musician himself. This is in keeping with another key Davis goal, that of
manifesting the fusion of classical with pop through the integrated use of
both very old and very modern instrumentation. Davis' own musical education
includes woodwind training, and he is heard on recorders on many tracks. His
principal instrument these days remains drums, and his albums reflect strong
percussive rooting, though rhythmically more sophisticated than most other
recordings in the genre.
The new Christmas album is a perfect example of the Davis approach. It opens
with a spectacular antiphonal brass showcase of virtuosity by performers from
the Chicago Symphony Orchestra. There are the hauntingly precise voices of
the renowned Cambridge Singers creating with such classics as "O Come
Emmanuel" a tone of other-worldly beauty. And other Christmas gems such as
"Little Drummer Boy" shimmer with the distinctively contemporary Davis
backbeat and rhythmic complexity.
"What is really amazing about this album is that it went without a hitch, and
that just never happens," Davis says. "Usually, after you get it all done,
there's something that you want to change. When we finished this, there was
almost nothing to change. And this album took half the time of a normal
album, maybe a quarter, because it was so well prepared.
"In preparing an album like this, it was really a scary and difficult task to
try to follow the first Christmas album. There was a point at which it became
obvious and inevitable that I was going to have to do it. The first one was
just too popular, and I had to follow it up." (more) A Fresh Aire Christmas"
may be the first fan-planned album. Though Davis had decided to do the
project, he turned to his sizable fan mailing list to determine the album's
contents. "I decided to ask our fans about their choices for album
selections," he explains. "So we sent this card out in last ;ear's Christmas
mailing. It was the tremendous response of the fans that really lit the fuse
for the whole project." Davis selected the songs with the most votes to
record for the album.
In the process he experienced what he calls one of his most fulfilling
creative times. "I hadn't worked on anything this intense for quite a while,
and it was terrifying knowing that everyone was going to compare this album
to the first one," he says. "It's just natural. I had a real sigh of relief
when I heard the first cut of the new- album. I knew it was going to have its
own quality and character. It was a real creative reawakening."
Dais suggests his most ambitious music is still to come. "'Fresh Aire VII' is
going to be something really new," he promises, only hinting at its theme by
saying it will deal with the number seven itself in some way. Given his track
record, something new should be the least anyone expect from Mannheim
Steamroller.