| 4.9.08 | |
| April News | |
Welcome to my new and updated website. A huge thank you to Iggy Makarevich for making this happen!!! Since my last newsletter (January 2007) a lot has happened. I played with a bunch of people in a bunch of places, wrote some music, recorded some music, taught a lot of people and paid a ton of bills. That was the reader's digest version. Now looking forward, I have some time off in the next month or so to continue writing for my new record (which I hope to record when everyone in my group is in the same place at the same time). I am also in the planning and preparation phases of this year's Norwalk Jazz Festival (www.norwalkjazzfestival.com). Finally, I am still playing with the funk/rock group called the Bomb Squad (www.bombsquadonline.com) and we have some New York/New England shows coming up soon. There are also many more surprises for the rest of this year so keep checking back. Hope to see you at a show in the near future. Take care! |
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| 1.5.07 | |
| January Info | |
| Happy New Year!!!! I have not sent out a newsletter in a while, but that is only because I have been busy. I have been writing for a new record which will hopefully be out later this year. One of the groups I play with, the Bomb Squad, just recorded a demo with the new front person, Brenna Gethers for future touring. I have also been able to play with some amazing musicians and look forward to the new year, as I help host the first annual Norwalk Jazz Festival. Keep checking back for more updates and (eventually) a newsletter. Also, feel free to visit me on myspace here: www.myspace.com/damongrantproject. Take care and I will be in touch soon!!! | |
| 9.17.06 | |
| New Video!!! | |
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You can see a video my group recorded for LP (the Latin Percussion company) here at this website: www.congahead.com. Look for the 'Damon Grant Project' in the 'New Movies' section. You can also see photos from the recording session by searching 'Damon' in the toolbar (marked, congahead search) at the top of the page. Hope you enjoy it! |
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| 9.8.06 | |
| Summer Newsletter | |
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Hello, I hope that you all had a great summer. I was very fortunate to have been able to travel all over most of the country. After Memorial Day in Long Island with the Bomb Squad, it was up to Norwalk Connecticut with my Latin band. I played an outdoor festival in Bridgeport Connecticut with the Bomb Squad then it was over to New York State with the Crossmen. I was there for a couple of weeks and they even recorded some of my arrangements. I left New York to play with the Bomb Squad in Boston, and then met up with the Crossmen in Pennsylvania and traveled with them down to Virginia. All of that was just the month of June. As for July, I started with the Crossmen coming up form Virginia all the way to Rhode Island and Massachusetts for the fourth of July with parades and performances. I left The Crossmen in Massachusetts and headed down to Connecticut to play with the Bomb Squad and also Singer/Songwriter, Ryan O'Neil. After the gig with Ryan I ended up talking with him and none other than Michael Bolton for most of the night. He just happened to stop by the club. After that weekend, I flew out of New York to Chicago to meet up with the Crossmen. I stayed with them over to Denver, down into Texas, and across to Atlanta (as well as the states in between). Now for the home stretch, August started off with another trip to Virginia, then up to Pennsylvania and into New Jersey were I was visited by not only my family, but two great vibraphonists (and fellow Vic Firth endorsees), Lalo Friedman and Stefon Harris. We left New Jersey and headed across to Ohio and then up to Wisconsin. I flew home from Chicago and had three days off. I played a few gigs in Connecticut with my Latin Band and went into Manhattan to audition new singers for the Bomb Squad. After that it was off to Umass to teach for a week. I celebrated my Birthday in Massachusetts and returned home in September to go into NYC with my drummer Glenn Robertson and met up with my sax player Mark Small and a great pianist from down under, Emma Hanley. We ended up at this hip hop battle (with a live band backing them up) and on the way there saw Lance Bass from N'Sync on the street outside Sushi Samba. Now, I will get a chance to catch my breath as I just returned home from Umass last night. I will teach a few lessons and then it is up to Hartford for a gig with the Bomb Squad, featuring Capitol Records artist, Javier Colon and also a festival in Holyoke Massachusetts with the Damian Curtis Latin/Jazz group. I hope to 'see you in September'. Take care for now, ~Damon |
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| 6.2.06 | |
| May/June Newsletter | |
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Hello, These monthly emails are turning bi-monthly with the constant traveling I have been doing. I hope everyone has been doing well and with the touring I will be doing this summer, I hope to see some more of you soon. In the past month or so, I did the clinic and performance at Umass Dartmouth and Dartmouth High School as well as visiting the NY Auto Show in Manhattan, both with my drummer Glenn Robertson. I headed home for three days and then it was back to Manhattan for a couple of days, to see some friends play. I caught up with Horacio 'El Negro' Hernandez playing with pianist Fahir Atakoglu from Turkey and bassist Anthony Jackson. I also stopped by S.O.B.'s to see drummer Eric Bolivar and the group he tours with, Radio Mundial. Also playing that night was Yerba Buena featuring percussionist Pedrito Martinez and drummer Scoota Warner. While I was in NY, I got a call from fellow BLAST! percussionist Kit Chatham. We had missed each other in Montreal so I made sure I got to see him while I was there. He is now playing in the touring cast of Cirque Du Soleil. He invited me to his opening night cast party at the club, Pasha. I showed up to security guards with 'secret service like' earpieces velvet ropes and red carpets. I later found out the owner of Cirque loves parties and had spent a few million dollars to put this one on. Inside was an open bar till 4am. I don't drink, but that would have been a great time to start. I saw acrobats, a giant, midgets, and a whole host of things that would have made me think I was in Vegas or at Studio 54! Later that weekend, I played an art show in Greenwich, CT and was happy that Gerald Myles could take some time off from his Army band to play. Later that night we stopped by the Mexican restaurant, Viva Zapata's, to sit in with the Ryan O'Neill Project. Also playing that night (and rotating through the bandstand) was Darian Cunning on bass, Drew McKeon on drums, Ryan Parrino on guitar, and Trever Sommerville on drums and vocals. We were having so much fun that we didn't want to stop at last call. The next week it was back to Manhattan for the Janek Gwizdala Group, featuring Randy Brecker on Trumpet, before they left for Venezuela. I got to catch up with brass players, Brad and Elliot Mason as well as bassist Janek Gwizdala. A few of England's finest musicians. A few days later it was up to Fairfield, CT to play with the Bomb Squad, as we celebrate the release of our new DVD. You can go here to pick one up: www.bombsquadonline.com. The following week, I played an Afro-Cuban masterclass with Columbian Harpist, Edmar Castaneda and then traveled to New Jersey to teach the Crossmen. I finished up the semester at Umass Amherst and then played a Benefit with the Bomb Squad at the Hammerstein Ballroom in Manhattan. In between sets we saw none other than the Gotti Brothers in attendance (from the reality show 'Growing Up Gotti'). I completed the month with an Afro-Cuban Masterclass and a wedding with my group, as well as a festival in Long Island with the Bomb Squad. I am getting ready for a few shows this weekend and then it is back to join the Crossmen for a week as they get ready for their summer tour. I look forward to seeing a lot of you soon and I hope your summer is off to a great start. ~Damon |
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| 4.18.06 | |
| March/April Newsletter | |
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Hello and Happy Spring, I have been away more than I have been home and I am just now catching up on the newsletter thing. I hope everyone had a happy Easter/Passover and are enjoying the great weather! I am going to try to keep this short. Trying to remember where I have been, My group did do that recording for the Latin Percussion company's holiday CD. You can see photos from that at www.congahead.com. After that I did a few more clinics at schools, then an almost sold out performance at the Silvermine Tavern with my group. From there I went north to Umass and spent St. Irish Day in Massachusetts and the parade in Boston. I came home for a day then it was over to Rhode Island for couple of days playing a convention gig with 3 other drummers! I then went down to Philly to adjudicate for some high school jazz ensembles and then perform with the host band, Unionville High School (who played great). I came up to New Jersey to teach the Crossmen Drum Corps and finally came home for a few days of rest and laundry. I just finished a week of playing, first in Connecticut for the George Washington Carver Community Center's Banquet, then a performance with the Umass (Amherst)Marimba Band (also a group I teach), and then a clinic and performance at Umass Dartmouth and Dartmouth High School respectively. A big thank you to Jamie Eckert, Tom Aungst, Vic Firth, Smith Drums and LP for their help and support. From there it was over to Norwich, CT for a CD release party (the Folk Industry, check them out) and then home for Easter. While I was on the road, I got to catch up with some friends. Keith Karlson is still traveling with Stephen Kellogg and the Sixers, Mark Small is on his way home from the Michael Buble tour (you can see him playing sax on the new DVD), 'Ace' Livingston has just returned from playing bass on a cruise ship gig with Earth, Wind, and Fire, Jameel Gibson has just completed some dates with L.L. Cool J, Gerald and Jean Myles will be expecting a new baby in November, Damian Curtis has started working on some hip hop beats with Immortal Technique, Elliot Mason is getting ready to leave to Venezuela with the Janek Gwizdala Project, and Brad Mason has recorded on the 16 Blocks (featuring Bruce Willis and Mos Def) soundtrack. Congratulations to all of you! Now I am getting ready for some more traveling and the NYC Auto Show! I hope to see you all very soon, Take care.......... ~Damon |
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| 2.19.06 | |
| February Newsletter | |
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Well what can I say? February is the month for Valentine's Day, or Singles Awareness Day as I like to call it. Before I tell you how I spent that day, I am going to fill you in on the end of last month. I was fortunate to record with the Curtis Brothers, before they left for India, Bangladesh and Sri Lanka (which I might be able to release as an EP) in Worcester, MA (also with Glenn Roberston on Drums, who has a new website www.glenndrums.com ). Then, it was down to CT, to sit in with the Ryan O'Neill Project. Later that week, it was of to Boston. I ended up playing with the house band at Wally's Cafe for Latin Night, and both Glenn and I were invited back anytime we wanted to play. The next night, it was down to NYC for the rock band Uncle Pumpkin at CBGB's. This band features Glenn and Dan Grennes, the drummer and bassist from the Bomb Squad. Speaking of the Bomb Squad, we will be touring again starting in March. However, you don't have to wait that long to get your fix. The new DVD is now available, so get yours today, www.bombsquadonline.com or www.myspace.com/bombsquad. There were a few bands on the roster that night and the most vivid image was of a drummer who played deafeningly loud, was wearing leather gloves and when he sat down his bass drum was so big it came up to his chin! The following night Glenn and I made the trek up to Hartford for a birthday party for an audiologist who was integral in Glenn and me, getting customized ear plugs (Happy Birthday Julie!). Two days later I was in New Haven to see the R&B group that featured my friends Trever Sommerville on drums and 'Ace' Livingston on Bass. The band was great, and to our surprise, none other than Bobby Brown stopped in and then proceeded to sit in with the band and sing 'My Prerogative'! (new pictures will be up soon) The next morning started my 3-week string of clinics and masterclasses at elementary schools, high schools and ending at Umass Amherst for their annual day of percussion (where I was snowed in for a couple of days). A big thank you to Eduardo Leandro, Thom Hannum, Smith Drums, Vic Firth sticks and mallets and the Latin Percussion company for making that possible! Also, a huge thank you to Hilary Noble of Switzerland/Cuba (my first conga teacher) and Jeff Holmes (head of the Umass Jazz Department) for making the trip out and supporting. On a side note, I would also like to congratulate Jeff for winning a GRAMMY this month! Finally, I spent Singles Awareness Day with some of the fellas at Umass. I finished teaching and went over to Charlie's Tavern for some 10 cent wings and pool. While all of the restaurants with white table cloths, and the ice cream and candy shops were jammed packed with couples, I was working on my jump shot and one handed break. This past week, I returned back to NYC to see bassist Janek Gwizdala and his group, featuring the Mason Brothers (Brad and Elliot), with my good friend Mark Small. Mark turned me on to something that will keep you busy for hours. Google Earth! Check it out, then download it for free. Now you have something to do at work other than hook up your myspace page. As I type this newsletter, I am getting ready to do another recording with my group for the Latin Percussion Company ad their holiday CD, which should be out sometime around Christmas '06. I hope everyone is doing well and I look forward to seeing you soon! ~Damon |
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| 1.25.06 | |
| January Newsletter | |
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Happy New Year! I hope everyone's new year is off to a great start! I am sure a bunch of you are already breaking the resolutions you swore this year you would keep. My resolution was to try to record a new album for you. So far so good, the musicians are being contacted and the music is being written. Also, I have a new myspace page and I am hooked. Feel free to check it out, (it is a work in progress) and say hello: www.myspace.com/damongrantproject Before 2006 started I finished the year off with sitting in with the Johnny Durkin all-stars at the acoustic cafe. Then it was off to Canada with some friends from college. We even brought in the new year in Montreal! I returned just in time for my Grandmother's birthday (on the 1st). I rehearsed with and performed an Afro-Cuban masterclass with drummer, Drew McKeon in Greenwich and then it was down to New Jersey to teach the Crossmen. When I returned home for a few days, my students at Greenwich Music had their recital and then I went to see singer/songwriter Kat Mulvaney at a great Caribbean restaurant ShacoJazz. From there I went to see another great singer/songwriter, Ryan O'Neill featuring Drew on drums, Ryan Parrino on Guitar, and Dan Asher on bass. There were plenty of special guests. I was fortunate enough to get invited to play. Also, sitting in was guitarist Jeremy Goldsmith and singer Alisan Porter. You may recognize Alisan's name, she was little Curly Sue in the movie, Curly Sue. Well, let me tell you Alisan is not so little anymore and she sounds amazing. For my friends out in L.A., definitely check her out! The following weekend was my Mom's birthday, no gigs on that day! We went to dinner and then the next morning it was off to the recording studio with the Curtis Brothers, Zaccai and Luques (and Glenn Robertson on drums), for a quartet competition that we entered in. I will keep you posted on how we do. Tomorrow, I am off to Boston with Glenn and then into Manhattan. Keep checking the website, I will be doing a bunch of clinics soon and hopefully I will see some of you there. Take care ~Damon |
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