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I just spent two extremely fulfilling days in the studio recording with Christian Tamburr for his upcoming release. Eric Reed played piano and he was a joy to work with. His musical contributions were a perfect fit for the ensemble, and we had a ball joking around together! John Shifflett, our regular bass player, completed the group with his usual combination of passion and sureness.
The new recording, called Places, will be out in a matter of weeks. Please check back for updates on the exact release date and for sound samples of course!
I’m really looking forward to a number of dates I have in the coming months. The weekend of June 17, I have three concerts with Bay Area mainstay Anton Schwartz: 17th at Birdland Social Club in Berkeley, 19th at Anton’s celebrated Loft Concert series, and the 20th at Redwood City’s Jazz on Main Festival.
The highlight of the summer looks to be a series of dates in August with Christian Tamburr and the famed trumpeter Dominic Farinacci from NY. We’ll be presenting a clinic in Stockton on the 10th, a concert in San Luis Obispo on the 12th, and headlining a show at the San Jose Jazz Festival on the 13th.
I hope to see you out for some of these great gigs – please check my calendar for all detailed information.
I’m very excited to be back at Yoshi’s this spring with one of my favorite projects. The Dan Zemelman Quintet, featuring special guest, Christian Tamburr, will be performing at Yoshi’s Oakland on March 15th at 8PM. One set only, and with how the music has been shaping up, I know it will be a great show!
I spent many weeks this past fall touring Europe with blues guitarist Dave Specter. Many of the shows were truly career highlights for me. In September, we performed in Denmark, Germany, Belgium, France, and Switzerland. Sharon Lewis was our special guest vocalist for this tour. Our first night in Silkeborg, DK, Bernard Purdie was in attendance. What a treat it was to meet him, hear some great stories, and of course hear him sit it! In November, we went back to Europe and also brought along Harmonica Hinds as a special guest. This time we played in France, Poland, Switzerland, and Spain. The anchor of the tour was the Lucerne Blues Festival. I’ve never been treated so well as we were by the Swiss, and the mix of setting, camaraderie, and music was something I’ll never forget.
My latest recording with Chicago Blues guitarist Dave Specter, “Spectified” is out. There will be a big release party Wednesday, August 25th at SPACE in Evanston, IL at 8PM. The record sounds great, with some extra percussion work (some from me and more from Victor Garcia) and a backing horn section. I’m very happy to be part of this project and look forward the CD release party and our upcoming tours!
Wow! This was a lot of fun! The Tamburr/Vitchev Project made its debut at the San Jose Jazz Festival and all of us involved thought it was the start of something good. Here’s a video clip of Pat Metheny’s “Minuano”:
I’ll be going on a two-week European Tour with blues guitarist Dave Specter in September. We will be performing in Denmark, Belgium, Switzerland, and Germany. This new tour is addition to the one already announced for November, when we will perform at the legendary Lucerne Blues Festival. I am truly excited for these important upcoming musical experiences!
I’ve got some upcoming dates which I am very pleased to announce!
• I’ll be be playing with the fabulous vibraphonist Christian Tamburr at the San Jose Jazz Festival on August 14th and August 16th. We also have two additional dates at D’Vine in Morgan Hill – May 21st and 22nd. Our last shows there were full, so I suggest making reservations in advance.
• Lucerne Blue Festival! I’ll be with blues guitarist Dave Specter at this world-renowned blues festival in Switzerland on November 11th and 12th. Dave has a great band, including the great Chicago blues singers Jimmy Johnson and Sharon Lewis.
I just went through YouTube and collected all of the videos I could find from my various performances over the years. They are now all in one place at www.youtube.com/gwpdrums.
Here’s a new video from one of my recent gigs at Buddy Guy’s Legends with blues guitarist Dave Specter and our special guest Jimmy Johnson. The song is “That’s Alright” and Jimmy calls this a “tough-luck story.” That’s the best kind of blues there is!
My wife and I decided to pick up stakes and head West! Specifically, we now live in San Francisco, California. I’m really excited about this change and am looking forward to meeting and working with a whole new group of great players. I’m actively seeking students in the area, so please contact me if you know of anyone interested in drum lessons in the Bay Area. I have a studio location that is great for those downtown and in the city in particular.
About a year and a half ago Dan Cray got a call from a producer who said, “can you come downtown right now to meet Michael Keaton?” Evidently, he liked our music Read the rest of this entry »
I just returned from an exciting weekend with The Dan Cray Trio. We played a fun gig at Trio’s in South Bend, IN and followed that up the next night with a great show at the legendary Baker’s Keyboard Lounge in Detroit, MI. Baker’s is the “world’s oldest jazz club” and we were the main act for the Saturday night of their 75th anniversary. The club is going through a difficult time and struggling to stay open. Strong turnout over the weekend proves that the Baker’s is still viable. Read the rest of this entry »
I have played several truly exciting gigs lately including a gig with guitarist Tony do Rosario at Smalls in New York City. We had a great time playing his original music along with vibraphonist Behn Gillece and bassist Jesse Breheney. I uploaded a couple pics of the gig.
Also, the Dan Cray Trio’s ongoing Wednesday gig at the Morse Theater is not to be missed! This venue is the Jewel of Chicago. It is such a thrill to be in this concert setting in a beautiful venue with fantastic sound and a nine-foot Steinway Grand Piano! Please come hear us with talented signer Jesse Palter on February 4th, 8PM.
I have been doing a lot of recording lately, and I am pleased to announce that a few of the new CDs are now available! ‘Tis the Season, and for starters I am on two Christmas records that have just been released: The Derrick Stout Quartet’s “Melodies Under the Mistletoe” and Typhanie Monique/Neal Alger’s “Yuletide Groove.” I’ll be playing on the CD release party at the Morse Theater on Dec 20th at 8 & 10PM. Read the rest of this entry »
I am convinced that the CD is all but dead. Sad, but true! In an effort to be ahead of the curve, we are offering our latest record, Over Here/Over Heard on slick 21st-century media: a 2 gigabyte USB flash drive. The swivel drives are very cool, and quite functional – even when loaded with music, they have additional storage capacity (and if you are so inclined they can be erased entirely once you import the files).
A big thank you to all of those who made it out to the Jazz Showcase last night for the Dan Cray Trio’s CD release. It was great to see you all there! I will have some pics uploaded soon.
The Dan Cray Trio’s Release Party for our latest CD, Over Here Over Heard, will be at Chicago’s famed Jazz Showcase!
Monday, September 22
Sets at 8:00 & 10:00PM
Please Join Us!
Just got back from a few great gigs with the Dan Cray Trio and I posted some of those photos. Please take a look!
Our new live recording is mixed and mastered. We are currently working on the art and photos and it is looking great! The final product will be available mid-summer. It will be offered in an exciting new format as well as traditional CD.
