An unofficial contender for my "bucket list" of things to accomplish in my lifetime has been to perform a show at the House of Blues, and now, I can proudly say, "been there, done that!"
My band, Elviss Simmons and the Memphis Strutters, performed at the Anaheim (Downtown Disney) House of Blues last Wednesday, March 16th. It was exciting because it was our first "real" venue (our 2 regular haunts, the BriXton in Redondo Beach and the Galaxy in Santa Ana, are closer aligned to the local act / bar scene, though that's not to say they aren't legitimate concert venues with good shows that come through) - this was the next tier up.
It was primarily a show to get publicity (we weren't paid), and it worked - we've already been asked back (though we're unfortunately unavailable on that particular date), and got a huge outpouring of people contacting us for shirts and wanting to see future shows.
So, I can say, at this time in my young life, that I have performed at the House of Blues!
Here are some photos and other media (since I know pictures are way more fun than anything I can type):
In case you didn't gather, it's a KISS/Elvis comedy/tribute act. To fully understand us, you'll have to see us in person. We are currently working on an EPK (Electronic Press Kit) and music video, which I will be sure to post here when it's done. For now, you can Visit The Web Site and look us up on YouTube :)
I thought it would be a good idea to have a blog to keep my friends and family updated on my musical endeavors. So, here it is!
To sum up in a nutshell how I got to where I am now, here is a timeline:
1995: I started playing the piano with Linda Mazich (now Dr. Mazich-Govel) and loved it. Throughout my elementary and middle school (and early high school) life I performed in recitals, competitions, etc. My dream was to be a concert pianist. 1999: I started playing the saxophone and quickly excelled. 2003-2007: Throughout high school I had much success with saxophone, performing in honor groups at the local, regional, state, and even national level. At the same time, piano faded away as I got burned out and found I enjoyed playing an instrument that naturally lead to social interaction rather than isolation. 2007-2008: I attended NYU for gender studies, had a blast in NYC, discovered I was empty without music and wasn't that serious about college, and came home. 2008-2010: I tried out being a saxophone major at Long Beach City College, since I'd had so much success with it in high school, and studied with Roger Przytulski. I'm graduating in May with an A.A. in music, and just put on a saxophone recital in January to culminate my experience here. I've also assisted with the theory classes, lead sectionals at different schools, etc.
However, I discovered through my intense work as a saxophone major that though I progressed rapidly at first with the saxophone, it never became a passion - it's always been a chore to work with. Early last summer I began taking piano lessons again, and suddenly all of that passion was re-awakened and I realized that this is what has been missing from my life all this time. I love to play, I love to practice, I love everything about it. And so, I decided to audition on the piano to transfer and pursue my Bachelor's degree in performance.
I just finished all of my auditions a week ago, and am waiting to hear back this month or sometime in April.
So, I will be updating this from time to time, be sure to check in and see what I'm up to musically! I have a few things coming up, so this blog will never be latent for too long!
I will end this post with some saxophone stuff.
This is a duet I did last May with Andy Kreysa, a fabulous percussionist who is also transferring to a university from LBCC this semester. It's in two parts.
And, lastly, here is the link to my sophomore saxophone recital (my last hurrah as a classical saxophone major). I couldn't embed it because the HTML was being wonky, but here is the link to the recorded live stream:
Tableaux de Provence - Paule Maurice (1910-1967) I. Farandoulo di chatouno (Farandole of young women) II. Cansoun per ma mio (Song for my love/mother) III. La boumiano (The Bohemian woman) IV. Dis alyscamps l’amo souspire (A Sigh of the soul for the Alyscamps) V. Lou cabridan (The Bumblebee)
Sonata, Op. 19 for Eb Alto Saxophone - Paul Creston (1906-1985) I. With Vigor II. With Tranquility III. With Gaiety
Sonata for Soprano Saxophone and Piano, Op. 37 (Alpine) - Lawson Lunde (1935- ) I. Allegro moderato II. Presto
Then the encore piece was Aria by Eugene Bozza, with Jewel, who did the first half of the concert (her link should be in the bottom right).
