Zubbato Syndicate and More!

Cool video featuring yours truly as a member of Zubbato Syndicate... although it is a small feature, and you only see my hands! Hahaha!
Support live music, this is a great band to be a part of.


Cheers,


M

Hiromi!

Went and saw Hiromi this weekend with Stanley Clark at Jazz Alley.

Outstanding show, totally not what I was expecting though.  This show was "The Stanley Clark Band" featuring Hiromi on piano -- I was secretly hoping it was the other way around.  I love Hiromi and wanted to really see her blow up that piano, but she was very modest in her playing -- interesting to see Hiromi acting as a sideman.

The band was great though, Keyboard player was from Israel, and when Stanley was playing electric bass, this guy would kick bass on a Yamaha Motif.  He was also playing a Nord Stage for all the rhodes sounds and stuff they are made for.  My favorite thing about his playing was some of the "light" pads he was playing under everything to fill it out, man it really made a big difference.  It made it sound full, kind of like it would on a CD, and less like an acoustic band (where often times you can hear gaps in the music).

Hiromi is a legit chops player though, man... burning.  I need to go see her play solo.  I know she is a harmonic player as well, although I was not seeing any of that at jazz alley.  Then again, we went on there last night, on Sunday, to see their last set, so they might have just been messing around, ready to get out of seattle.

I just wish she was featured a little more... like, allowed to play solo piano intro's, melodies, etc.

ANYWAYS - LUCID GIG this Saturday!  If you are not doing anything feel free to come on down and hang out!  One of the few chances you get to see the band with out a cover charge.

Cheers,

Mack

First piano recital!

So, I have been a piano instructor for over six years now, and have had hundreds of students.  I do not teach full time, but I do teach an amount that fluctuates between 12 and 20 hours a week.

Anyways, we had our first piano recital on March 28th.  It was outstanding.  The goal was to make every student incredibly nervous, and light a fire under their butts so I picked much harder music than everybody was used to playing.  It worked.  Everybody was really nervous, and everybody played.  I explained to them that dealing with stage fright is a part of performing, no matter what you do.  It is usually the HARDEST part of performing.  Anyways, it was really fun and I am really proud that everyone went up and did their thing.  Being the first recital a lot of my long time students have ever played in, they did not quite know how to prepare, but now they know.
So I am going to post a link here to my YOUTUBE.COM channel, where you can go and watch clips of them all!  Yay!  They should be up soon, as soon as they are all uploaded.

http://www.youtube.com/user/mackgrout




Cheers,

Mack

Last weekend of shows...

Had some really intense, awesome shows last weekend.

Karin Stevens Dance Company had their annual performance this last weekend with a show on Friday and Saturday.  Me and Devin Lowe, and Brad Gibson had a blast playin musical interludes, and performing our work with the company.  Very exciting!

Then, after the dance performance on Friday I went down to Nectar and played the Dudley Manlove Quartet 15th anniversary show.  Very exciting, we premiered the Plan 9 Horn Section, which was a definite hit.

Sunday, played at Church.

Monday evening played the CD release concert of the Clark Gibson Sextet at the Triple Door.  Very good times, exciting music.  We only played for an hour and a half, wish that it was longer.  I think Clark sold a bunch of CD's, congratulations.  On the gig was,

Mike West - Sax
Nathan Vetter - Bone
Chris Stover - Bone
Clark Gibson - Sax
Dave Anderson - Sax
Adam Kessler - Drums
Phil Sparks - Bass

Awesome.


Mack

Karin Stevens Dance - 19th and 20th! This Weekend!

I am very excited to tell you all about two upcoming performances that are very important.  The first is the Dudley Manlove Quartet Anniversary show, featuring the Plan 9 Horn Section!  It is going to be awesome, it is at Nectar this Friday (the 19th of March, 2010) and my good friends are opening up for us in "The Hemmingway Reference".  It will be a good party for sure.

THEN, the 19th and 20th at 7:00 at the Fremont Abbey I will be performing with my trio and the Karin Stevens Dance Company.  We will be playing on and off throughout the show, but will be ending the performance with some original music written by yours truly, with some original dancing choreographed by Karin Stevens.  Very exciting, read about it HERE! 

Hope to see you this weekend.

Cheers,

Mack

Is it just me...

or does everyone feel incredibly lazy this time of year?

M