And on into the new year. I'll be part of a four-person music ensemble (I suppose you could call it a "band" though we four have never played together before).
I'm a regular musician/DJ at a local (SLC) Greek restaurant (Grecian Gardens). The owner is bringing in a Greek singer/guitarist (Giannis Navakis) who's coming in from Washington with an American bouzouki player (Hank). My friend Tommy, who is Greek (and used to play at Grecian Gardens far more often than he does now), will be on the drum set, and I'll be playing a doumbek (middle-eastern goblet drum).
Giannis and Hank have played music together before, as have Tommy and myself, but the four of us have never had even a rehearsal as a group. Fortunately for me, the percussion for most Greek music can be reduced to a collection of well defined rhythms (xasapiko, tsiftetelia, kalamatiano, zebekiko, etc.) in a variety of time signatures (2/4, 4/4, 7/8, 9/8, etc.) which I've been playing for about 5 years, and Tommy has been a musician for more than 30 years. So I'm thinking tonight's jam session is gonna be a blast. :> |
