riceonthebass

top 5

Posted in biographical info, musings on July 3, 2009 by Andy Rice

once upon a time, i attended a master class with jazz bassist Ben Street. When asked by an attendee how one comes to have their own style Ben replied by saying that you could pick 5 musicians that you like and study their playing. through that you might arrive at a unique place. i think this is an interesting idea, so i thought i’d share my list here.

in no particular order:

Ray Brown: I’m doing my master’s thesis on this bassist’s bassist, so i’m bound to pick up a thing or two from that. His rhythmic sense is tenacious and his sound is unmistakable. He also brings a very joyful feeling to the music, which i find very uplifting.

Charlie Haden: he plays with such freedom, passion, and beauty that i can never bear to turn off a song until it’s finished.

Chris Wood: A doubler with a truly unique style who approaches the instrument with a percussive style and a very tasteful, interactive musical sensibility.

Edgar Meyer: Truly one of the great players of any generation. I love his control with the bow and his ability to jump between musical styles effortlessly.

Charles Mingus: Raw passion mixed with authoritative command of his instrument and seemingly endless musical invention. One of the greatest creative forces of the 20th century.

thanks for reading!

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new videos

Posted in video with tags bob muller, doug dino, kevin roughton, kevin wilder, wilder brothers on June 16, 2009 by Andy Rice

well, here i am back in NC after two challenging but very rewarding semesters at the University of the Arts in Philadelphia, where i’ve been working on my master’s degree.

the plan for the summer is to swim in the ocean, exercise, grill out as much as possible, transcribe Ray Brown for my thesis(and then write it of course,) practice Bach, and play gigs with the Wilder Brothers.

i’ve also got some new music in the works, so i’ll keep you posted.

this week, the gigs really pick up because school is out and the tourists will start pouring into the Outer Banks. We’ve already been playing a few per week and we’ve added a percussionist/vocalist in Doug Dino for many of them.

Here are some videos:

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toast for breakfast

Posted in Uncategorized on May 22, 2009 by Andy Rice

hi everyone!

I haven’t posted for a while, but i’m delighted to inform you that i’ve finished the course work for my master’s degree in music with flying colors. I think this is the highest GPA of my academic career. All i have left to do is to write my thesis and perform my recital. So, i’m almost finished!

In recent news, as is typical with my itinerant, gypsy ways, Kirsten and I are back in the Outer Banks. She’s already hit the ground running with many shoots on the beach and i’m back with Kevin playing all over the peninsula with the Wilder Brothers.

I’ve got some new music to share with you also. This is a piece written for all of my classmates and myself. We performed it on WRTI in Philadelphia back in April and this is the recording of that performance.

Personnel:

Tim Andrulonis: Alto Saxophone

Ange Davis: Alto Saxophone

Michael Pracher: Tenor Saxophone

Ken Robinson: Tenor Saxophone

Gregory Martin: Tenor Saxophone

Kevin Coltri: Tenor Saxophone

Steve Tjernagel: Guitar

David Cifelli: Drums

Andy Rice: Bass/Composer

toast for breakfast This is the lot of us with J. Michael Harrison from WRTI

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Official Bio

Posted in biographical info on April 25, 2009 by Andy Rice

Born: July 31, 1976

Andy Rice grew up in rural Northern Maine. While growing up, although he didn’t have any formal bass or jazz training, he absorbed music from wherever he could. He played at church, in the tiny school concert band, and with various local rock musicians in barns, basements, gymnasiums, bedrooms, and potato fields. He spent all of his spare time copping the style of Red Hot Chilli Peppers bassist Flea and practicing scales and various things he would pick up from bass player magazine. He also participated in the Aroostook Regional Gifted and Talented program where he studied music theory and practice at a local University.

After high school, his journey led to southern Illinois where he studied Contemporary Christian Music and gigged in the St. Louis scene a bit with an original band called Mary and singer/songwriter Sarah Jahn. After a year, he moved to Nashville, TN. While there he played with Byron Keith and Project.Simon. Although gigs were few and far between during the four years he was there, he discovered what it was going to take to get serious about music and he returned to Maine to attend the University of Southern Maine.

While there he studied Bass with Bronek Suchanek and George Calvert. This was a time of immense growth and when he discovered his true calling as an improviser. He quickly latched on to jazz rhythms, as well as the melodic and harmonic language of the idiom under the tutelage of all of the professors at USM.

After graduating, Rice gigged with numerous bands in the Southern Maine area and was known for being comfortable in many styles of music and for being a quick study of new music. He adapted his playing to whatever gig came his way from jazz to funk to folk, and relished each new experience as an opportunity to learn something new and test his skills as an improviser.

After a brief stint of living in Puerto Vallarta, Mexico playing in the jazz scene there, Andy made his way to the Outer Banks of North Carolina and into the popular local duo, The Wilder Brothers.

Currently, he is finishing up his Master’s Degree at the University of the Arts in Philaelphia, PA.

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CDs!

Posted in tunes on March 20, 2009 by Andy Rice

In case you haven’t noticed, i’ve got a bunch of music in the can…meaning recorded, and i’ve posted alot of it here on my blog.

well, If you’d like a mixtape of some of my music, including any of the stuff i’ve got posted , please hit me up and i’ll send you one.

just click on contact over on the right and send me an email with your address and i’ll drop one in the mail as soon as i remember.

you’ll get a homegrown, custom collection of some of my tunes.

YOU could be the first one on your block to own one!

so, drop me a line.

I did a photo shoot with Kirsten this summer.

Just me and my bass on the sand dunes in Jockey’s Ridge State Park in Nag’s Head, NC

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jazz trio tunes

Posted in tunes with tags greg matthews, jazz trio, tim andrulonis, uarts on March 20, 2009 by Andy Rice

back in November, my friends Tim Andrulonis(alto sax) and Greg Matthews(guitar) joined me in the studio at Uarts for a little trio recording session.
we recorded these jazz standards live and in living color.

there will never be another you

The Seuss project – Christmas 2008

Posted in current events, tunes on December 26, 2008 by Andy Rice

This year, Kirsten and I gave little Benjamin Lewis a very special Christmas gift.

First, Kirsten purchased three Dr. Seuss books for him at Target: The Cat in the Hat, One Fish Two Fish Red Fish Blue Fish and Green Eggs and Ham.

Next, one of us had the idea that we could record the books and add sound effects and music so we could be there to read with him whenever he wanted.

So, that’s just what we did. The next three posts are the final results of that endeavor.

Green Eggs and Ham is my personal favorite.

Benjamin is Kirsten nephew and he came down to visit us in North Carolina with his Papa Bear and Mormor. We had lots of fun, going to the beach, riding bikes and playing music.