02/02

Hello and welcome to the latest update from your friends at J. D'Addario & Company. Inside this month's newsletter read about the latest from our endorsees, including Pat Metheny, Daniel Lanois, Aldo Mazza, Andrew Reamer, Norbert Stachel and many more. Please read on!

To submit artist news, please e-mail John Ferrante at
john.ferrante@daddario.com

---

D'Addario News:

Hear a new Pat Metheny tune! One cut from the new Pat Metheny Group recording, Speaking Of Now, is up on the PMGLN website. The release date for Speaking Of Now is February 12. Pat also won the Jazz Times Readers' Poll; Bela Fleck also won the Jazz Times Readers' Poll, and John Scofield made it onto the selection list of the Reader's Poll as well!

Storied producer Daniel Lanois, who has steered the likes of U2, Peter Gabriel, Bob Dylan, and Emmylou Harris through the recording process, will be inducted into the Canadian Music Hall of Fame. The honor will be bestowed upon the French-Canadian - who was born in 1951 in Hull, Quebec - during the 2002 Juno Awards ceremony, set for April 14 at Mile One Stadium in St. John's, Newfoundland.

Guitarist Johnny A. & his CD "Sometime Tuesday Morning" have been nominated for "Artist/Album of the Year" - The 2002 Gavin "AAA" Radio Awards. The CD is on Steve Vai's "Favored Nations" label and is available everywhere! Johnny is currently on tour.

The Benjamin Gate has just finished recording their new album. It is due for release in June and is to be titled: "Contact." The band has been nominated for 3 Dove Awards including Best Alternative Rock Song ("How Long"), Best Alternative Rock Album, and best Video ("All Over Me").

Guitarist Andy Timmons is the latest artist to be signed to Steve Vai's new label, Favored Nations. Andy's new CD, "That Was Then, This Is Now", will be released April 23 and features 11 newly re-mastered tracks from his first two solo CDs, "Ear X-tacy" and "Ear X-tacy 2," plus 5 new tracks. More info at www.andytimmons.com

Megadeth re-release their groundbreaking debut "Killing Is My Business. And Business Is Good" on Loud Records On February 5. Loud Records has gone back into the vaults and recovered the original tracking tapes used in the album's recording and had the tapes restored, which allowed Megadeth and producer/engineer Bill Kennedy to remix the entire album, as it was originally intended. Technological advancements permitted the album to be digitally remastered, giving it the highest sonic level possible. www.megadeth.com

Guitarist Pat Lachman is on tour with his band Diesel Machine. The band is on the road with Static-x, featuring Evans endorsee Ken Jay. www.dieselmachine.net

Freddie Bryant embarks on a tour of Switzerland and Germany with his trio The Kaleidoscope Trio. www.freddiebryant.com

At long last Rob Balducci's sophomore album "Mantra" will be released on the Favored Nations Label. Mantra was produced by well-known producer/engineer Ben Fowler (Eric Clapton, Path Metheney, Meatloaf, Bad Company) and was recorded at the world-famous Avatar Studios (formerly The Power Station) in New York City.

P J Harvey has just been nominated for 2 Grammy® awards. This follows Harvey's recent win of the prestigious UK Mercury Music Award (the first-ever female artist to scoop the award) and her being a finalist for the US Artistic Achievement Shortlist Award. Harvey has been nominated for Best Rock Album ("Stories From The City, Stories From The Sea") and Best Female Rock Vocal Performance ("This Is Love")

Metal Mike Chlasciak performed a solo spot on Primal Fear's new CD ("Nuclear Blast"). VH-1 recently aired a feature on Mike and his band Halford. The band is confirmed to headline the Swedish Metal Festival in June.

To coincide with the release of his long awaited new CD "Who Am I" on Dunkeld Records, guitarist Dougie MacLean recently featured a unique concert at the Glasgow Royal Concert Hall as part of this year's Celtic Connections Festival. Unique because the concert was divided into 4 parts, with Dougie MacLean performing his internationally acclaimed songs solo and with 3 different musical groups: a 12-piece classical strings ensemble, a 5-piece traditional Celtic band, and a 7-piece rock band.

For classical performances you don't want to miss, Eden-Stell Guitar Duo concert dates are here ...

Slayer, featuring Kerry King, has been nomited in 2 categories for this year's Grammy® Awards: Best Metal Performance and Best Metal Album.

---

Bluegrass News:

The late John Hartford, along with his producer and band member Bob Carlin, have been nominated for a Grammy in the Best Traditional Folk category. The album is "Hamilton Ironworks" on Rounder Records and is a collection of traditional tunes from and stories about Hartford's Missouri youth. It was a very personal record for John, and his last studio album.

Rounder/Philo recording artist, Tanya Savory, releases her new CD "Where We Live" on February 5th. Building on the groundwork of her previous recordings which both reached the top 15 on the Gavin Americana Chart,"Where We Live" is a culmination of Savory's ability to blend genres. Combining country, folk, and bluegrass instrumentation, this new collection of original songs features the talents of two-time Grammy nominee Claire Lynch, Kate Campbell, Missy Raines and Jim Hurst, and Pam Gadd. Visit Tanya's website: www.TanyaSavory.com

---

Bowed News:

Jeremy Cohen's new CD "4tet San Francisco" has been released on Violinjazz Records. The disc features a string quartet and quintet jazz-tangos project and can be found by webheads at www.violinjazz.com

Congratulations to Christian McBride and Charlie Haden for making the selection list in this year's Jazz Times Readers' Poll.

---

Evans News:

In addition to touring with rocker Vince Neil, Brent Fitz can be heard on Gilby Clarke's (Guns 'N Roses) new album "Swag." This month, Brent is in Taiwan performing with the theater production of "Caution: Men At Work - Tap." Theatrical Arts Int. - Caution: Men At Work - TAP. From Vince Neil to Tap Dancing, you go, Brent!

Aldo Mazza and Répercussion recently completed a Canadian symphony orchestra tour. Following appearances with the Montreal Symphony Orchestra, Répercussion were the featured guest soloists with the Edmonton Symphony Orchestra and three Quebec symphony orchestras. Répercussion, the globe-trotting percussion quartet, consisting of Luc Langlois, Robert Lépine, Aldo Mazza, and Chantal Simard is most reknowned for their successful and rare combination of virtuoso interpretations and theatrical performances. Since its beginning in 1974, the group has completed three world tours and performed over 2,200 concerts in some of the most prestigious venues and festivals around the world including the Hong Kong Arts Festival, Expo'86 (Vancouver), Expo '92 (Seville), Toronto's Roy Thompson Hall, Teatro Nacional (Costa Rica), and the Montreal Jazz Festival.

---

Marching News:

Meredith Music Publications is proud to announce the publication of "Rudiments in Rhythm" by James Campbell. Inspired by Charley Wilcoxon's "Modern Rudimental Swing Solos," these twenty-two original solos were written for developing students as well as advanced drummers. The solos make use of the 40 PAS International Drum Rudiments as well as contemporary hybrid rudiments. Campbell is Professor of Music at the University of Kentucky and serves as president of the Percussive Arts Society. For further information contact Meredith Music Publications or Hal Leonard Corporation.

Evans is proud to announce that the prestigious Cadets Drum and Bugle Corps will now use Evans drumheads exclusively. In fact, the Cadets proudly displayed Evans logos when they guested recently on "The Late Show with David Letterman." The Cadets have brought us some of the most intricate and sophisticated music ever presented on the field and introduced the concept of "flex drill," featuring kaleidoscopic, fast-evolving abstract formations.

Evans Drumheads announces the signing of the prestigious Crossmen Drum and Bugle Corps. The Corps is an example of a rare merger of two drum corps in 1974: the 507 Hornets and the Keystone Regiment. Re-emerging seamlessly as a stronger entity, the Crossmen made DCI World Championship Finals for the first of eighteen occasions! Director for the Crossmen, Jim Coates, applauds the new partnership: "Evans has injected new energy, new interest, and new sounds into one of America's heritage cultural forms."

Evans Drumheads and Vandoren Reeds, Mouthpieces, and Accessories have entered into a partnership with Youth Education in the Arts (YEA). The relationship will see Evans and Vandoren products in the capable hands of young musicians. "We're excited about the new relationship with Evans and Vandoren," said YEA Executive Director George Hopkins. "Together we will achieve great things for youth and music in the twenty-first century." The YEA is an association that promotes education and citizenship skills through significant musical activities with national scope.

Evans Drumheads is proud to announce that Andrew Reamer, the celebrated classical percussionist with the Pittsburgh Symphony Orchestra, has joined the swelling roster of discriminating musicians who choose Evans heads exclusively for their diverse activities. A concert hall orchestral percussionist of the first order, Andrew Reamer is equally capable in small ensembles and jazz groups.

---

Vandoren News:

Bill Evans' "Soul Insider" CD was nominated for a Grammy in the contemporary jazz category. Congrats, Bill!

Baron Raymonde is on the front cover of "The Saxophone's" Jan/Feb 2002 issue. www.saxbaron.com

After four year of being the saxophone soloist with the band "Tower Of Power", Norbert Stachel has accepted the position as saxophone soloist with the Roger Waters' band (Pink Floyd) for his 2002 "In The Flesh" World tour, which begins this month.

Clarinetist Harry Skoler's artistry will be included in an anticipated ten-volume method book on the art of the clarinet. The series, a collaboration between respected Italian music professor Gianluca Campagnolo and Rose Sperrazza of the International Clarinet Association, will feature chapters on great clarinetists past, as well as sections written by today's best players. An article Skoler penned will be featured in Volume 10, which presents the artistry and methods of today's most significant players.

Congratulations to Vandoren artists Joshua Redman, Eddie Daniels, Phil Woods, and Greg Osby for being in the top selections on this year's Jazz Times Readers' Poll.

---

Get the latest D'Addario, Evans, Planet Waves, and Vandoren news at http://www.daddario.com