pianogonzology: musician

Showing posts with label musician. Show all posts

Tuesday, April 25, 2017

From . . .

. . . Adrick . . .

I have had the pleasure, on numerous occasions, to play for residents at our local Ronald McDonald house and I must say, the note (photo above) that one of them presented to me, is one of the most gratifying things I have received, as a musician. The little guy left the dining area with his Mom to create this, returned shortly afterward and presented it to me. Pretty cool huh?

(from http://www.rmhc.org/about-us)
Since 1974, RMHC has created programs that strengthen families during difficult times. RMHC provides vital resources and compassionate care to children and their families being served by leading hospitals worldwide. Core RMHC programs — Ronald McDonald Houses, Ronald McDonald Family Rooms, and Ronald McDonald Care Mobiles — provide access to health care and enable family-centered care. RMHC has helped lessen the burden for more than 7 million families in 2015. . . Our network of local Chapters has been making children happier and healthier by keeping families close – giving them a place to rest and refresh. A place that feels like home. These programs, tailored to meet the urgent needs of each community, can now be found in more than 63 countries and regions across the globe.

What do you think?
Tell me at
http://www.rayjozwiak.com/guestbook.html or at
http://www.ohomusic.com

My latest solo offering, No Frills, is now available at - No Frills

(To Access all Ray Jozwiak - Gonzo Piano music you can copy-and-paste this URL directly to
your browser: http://www.cdbaby.com/Artist/RayJozwiak)

Get your copy of OHO's Where Words Do Not Reach now!
The Ocean City Ditty Video is now on YouTube
Also, be sure to visit: www.rayjozwiak.com and www.ohomusic.com

Follow me on Blogarama

Monday, March 6, 2017

Mysterious? . . .

. . . ordinary. . .

On very special occasions
When celebrating felt right
This place we'd go
With ambience and wine
On a Saturday night
Caricatures hung on the walls
Eavesdropping on our most intimate moments
"I love you"

It was essential to go there
To mark the passage of time
Between the dates
We used to signify
The bond we shared and to dine
Always served Angus A-one prime
To patrons of each and every persuasion
"I loved you"

But now that place is all gone
Where did our love go
Where is the ambience and
McCafferty's piano

While you eat
You're serenaded
By some local musician
Playing bad renditions of the popular songs
You sing along

And so it ended
Our passion
Somehow just faded away
And likewise too
That place we held divine
Became a dance club today
The memories come charging in
Sweet dreams and all the romancing related
It's gone now

But now that place is all gone
Where did our love go
Where is the ambience and
McCafferty's piano

McCafferty's Piano
©2010 Raymond M. Jozwiak
from Ambience & Wine

What do you think?
Tell me at
http://www.rayjozwiak.com/guestbook.html or at
http://www.ohomusic.com

My latest solo offering, No Frills, is now available at - No Frills

Follow me on Blogarama

Tuesday, February 28, 2017

Meet . . .

. . . Ellis Woodward

. . . one of four Baltimore artists performing at "The Thought Behind the Songs" Tuesday, March 28 at Germano's Piatini in Baltimore. . .

Ellis Woodward has enjoyed a meandering and eclectic creative path, having written, recorded, and released four independent album/CD projects, written a theme song for a PBS children's TV show pilot, been awarded a grant to write and record public service announcements about water conservation and recycling, and been commissioned to write a song detailing the dangers of food allergies in children. In January 2015, Ellis was a judge in the children's category of the MASC (Mid-Atlantic Song Contest), sponsored by SAW, (Songwriters Association of Washington). Three times, Ellis has been a showcase-featured writer/member of the Baltimore Songwriters' Association (BSA), and is currently a Coordinator for the Baltimore chapter of NSAI (the Nashville Songwriters Association International)... In the early 2000s, Ellis co-wrote a musical celebrating the centennial of the Wright Bros first self-powered flight (Right Place, Right Time, Wright Brothers), a show that has since been performed in theaters, schools, and museums around the country... In December of 2016, Ellis was inducted into the Maryland Entertainment Hall of Fame, a cherished acknowledgment of decades of writing and performing. http://www.yoellis.com/

What do you think?
Tell me at
http://www.rayjozwiak.com/guestbook.html or at
http://www.ohomusic.com

My latest solo offering, No Frills, is now available at - No Frills

Follow me on Blogarama

Wednesday, April 15, 2015

Art . . .

(from http://www.newyorker.com/culture/cultural-comment/the-art-of-billie-holidays-life)
" . . . Some biographies of artists take in the whole life—preferably with equal attention to the work, and integrating the two elements to the extent that the work invites it. Others offer a bio-slice or synecdoche, centered on one particular period, relationship, or field of activity to provide an exemplary angle on the life and work. John Szwed’s brief but revelatory new book, “Billie Holiday: The Musician and the Myth” (Viking), which comes out this week—just under the wire for her centenary (Holiday was born April 7, 1915)—is in another category. It’s a meta-biography, about the creation of Holiday’s public image in media of all sorts: print, television, movies, and, of course, her recordings, but with special attention to the composition of her autobiography, “Lady Sings the Blues,” which was published in 1956. . ."

What do you think?

Tell me at
http://www.rayjozwiak.com/guestbook.html or at
http://www.ohomusic.com

OHO's "Ocean City Ditty," the CD single is now available at http://www.cdbaby.com/cd/oho4
(and, if you're in town, at Trax On Wax on Frederick Rd. in Catonsville, MD) OHO is Jay Graboski, David Reeve & Ray Jozwiak. Please Visit http://www.ohomusic.com

My latest solo offering, Just More Music by Ray Jozwiak, featuring original, instrumental piano music is now available at - Just More Music by Ray Jozwiak

(To Access all Ray Jozwiak - Gonzo Piano music you can copy-and-paste this URL directly to
your browser: http://http://www.cdbaby.com/Artist/RayJozwiak)

Also, be sure to visit:
http://www.rayjozwiak.com

Sunday, April 5, 2015

Two . . .

. . . more days . . .

Creative musician, Baltimore-based Ray Jozwiak offers recordings and performances of eclectic, instrumental solo piano (and piano-based) compositions that have been referred to as 'Fractured Jazz' laced with generous amounts of 'Improvisational Terror Tactics.'

Ray has been nominated for a WAMMIE Award in the Jazz Instrumentalist category, named Baltimore Magazine's BEST LOUNGE PIANIST and was a finalist in the Mid-Atlantic Song Contest for the composition ALWAYS YOU.

Performances in and around Baltimore include the 13th Floor Lounge-The Belvedere, The Kiss Cafe, Gardel's Supper Club, The Full Moon Saloon, The Baltimore Songwriters Association, Border's Books and Music, GBMC, Tyson's Tavern, Elk Run Vineyards and appears regularly at The Brewer's Alley Songwriters' Showcase.

For the last couple of years, I have been working with founders of the Baltimore icon prog-band OHO (and former members of Ful Treatment) for a present-day OHO power trio crankin' out OHO classics, new material and selected 'covers' when live for your aural stimulation. Check it out at http://www.ohomusic.com

Ray's music (CDs CHROMATOSE, CRITIC'S CHOICE and PUT A FINGER ON IT and FOR THE RIDE and digital downloads-only ANOTHER SHOT, AMBIENCE & WINE, BLACK & WHITE THEN BACK and his latest "2014") are available for purchase at http://www.cdbaby.com/all/rjozwiak as well as a host of cyber-outlets for download.

The music incorporates, conjures, channels, borrows, steels, and respectfully pays homage to cartoon theme songs, childrens novelty tunes, pop, country, Polish folk songs and dances, hymns, the Beatles and the British invasion, prog and art rock from Gentle Giant to Egg, Myron Floren and Lawrence Welk, Buck Owens and the Buckaroos, Merle Haggard, Cannonball Adderly, Vince Guraldi, Wynton Kelly, Fats Waller, McCoy Tyner, John Coltrane, Dave Brubeck, Paul Desmond, Eric Dolphy, Frank Zappa, Keith Jarrett, Thelonious Monk, Elvis Costello, Ani DiFranco, Bob Zacharcko, Jay Graboski and David Reeve and more.

Available
from Just More Music by Ray Jozwiak
©2007 & 2014 Raymond M. Jozwiak
Available April 7, 2015

What do you think?

Tell me at
http://www.rayjozwiak.com/guestbook.html or at
http://www.ohomusic.com

OHO's "Ocean City Ditty," the CD single is now available at http://www.cdbaby.com/cd/oho4
(and, if you're in town, at Trax On Wax on Frederick Rd. in Catonsville, MD) OHO is Jay Graboski, David Reeve & Ray Jozwiak. Please Visit http://www.ohomusic.com

My latest solo offering, Just More Music by Ray Jozwiak, featuring original, instrumental piano music will be released April 7, 2014 Just More Music by Ray Jozwiak

Tuesday, March 31, 2015

Music . . .

"The memory of things gone is important to a jazz musician."
Louis Armstrong

“Music is my religion.”
Jimi Hendrix

“But sometimes, talent isn't worth shit. There are tons of talentless people out there making zillions of dollars. And unfortunately, an equal number of brilliant artists whose name and voices you'll never hear. . .”
Tiffanie DeBartolo

"... when you're making money, people don't think you're playing jazz. Now when you're not making money, people think that you're a good jazz musician."
Pete Fountain

"When you hear music, after it’s over, it’s gone, in the air, you can never capture it again."
Eric Dolphy

Tribis Hippocriticus
from Just More Music by Ray Jozwiak
©2007 & 2014 Raymond M. Jozwiak
Available April 7, 2015

What do you think?

Tell me at
http://www.rayjozwiak.com/guestbook.html or at
http://www.ohomusic.com

OHO's "Ocean City Ditty," the CD single is now available at http://www.cdbaby.com/cd/oho4
(and, if you're in town, at Trax On Wax on Frederick Rd. in Catonsville, MD) OHO is Jay Graboski, David Reeve & Ray Jozwiak. Please Visit http://www.ohomusic.com

My latest solo offering, Just More Music by Ray Jozwiak, featuring original, instrumental piano music will be released April 7, 2014 Just More Music by Ray Jozwiak

Wednesday, August 27, 2014

A Different Perspective . . .

. . . than when I was eighteen. . .

After lunch downtown, I noticed a relatively crisp five-dollar bill on the ground, gently rocking in the wind just outside the door of the food court. Surprising myself, I quickly stooped down and scooped it up. I then, correcting myself for being so selfishly hasty, glanced left, right and behind me to ensure someone wasn’t searching for the note they just dropped or at least upon the verge of realizing that they just dropped it. But alas, the few people within range were going about their business and none appeared to have dropped or missed anything.

So I thought to myself, should I really have picked it up in the first place? If I leave this bill on the ground in hopes that its owner returns to claim it, surely someone not far behind and in no greater need of it will pick it up instead. And does someone else truly deserve such good fortune any more than I do? Certainly not!

Then I thought to myself, it’s only five dollars surely someone will chance upon who needs it more than I do, or let’s say needs it more than I WANT it. But then I neatly dispensed with that notion for much the same reasons used to rationalize the previous dilemma.

Finally, I thought, what I’ll do is give it to the next homeless or otherwise unfortunate person, or possibly street entertainer or musician that I encounter en route to my destination. But my walk was probably no more than 500 feet or so and, although I have from time to time encountered a needy person on the very same short route before, there was not a soul in my path that was loitering, begging or otherwise in apparent need of my new found currency. So I placed it in my pocket and entered the building.

What do you think?
Tell me at
http://www.rayjozwiak.com/guestbook.html

OHO's "Ocean City Ditty," the CD single is now available at http://www.cdbaby.com/cd/oho4
(and, if you're in town, at Trax On Wax on Frederick Rd. in Catonsville, MD) OHO is Jay Graboski, David Reeve & Ray Jozwiak

My latest solo release, '2014' of original, instrumental piano music, can be downloaded digitally at:

(or you can copy-and-paste this URL directly to
your browser: http://www.cdbaby.com/cd/rayjozwiak4)

Also, be sure to visit:
http://www.rayjozwiak.com

Thursday, August 14, 2014

Two Points . . .

1. Major newspapers are enjoying the business of publishing non-sense in the name of sparking sales
2. Justin Moyer is not a musician (not a 'true' musician by my estimation)

If you read Justin Moyer's August 8(http://www.washingtonpost.com/news/opinions/wp/2014/08/08/all-that-jazz-isnt-all-that-great/) piece you will understand. I will briefly touch upon some of his statements below.

"Jazz is boring." - baseless conjecture

"Jazz is overrated." - baseless conjecture

"Jazz is washed up." - baseless conjecture

"Unlike a poorly received New Yorker piece purportedly written by jazz great Sonny Rollins, this is not satire." - could've fooled me.

"Jazz has run out of ideas, and yet it’s still getting applause." - baseless conjecture

"Like cirrus clouds or cotton candy, I found jazz generically pleasing, but insubstantial and hard to grasp. " - no shit Sherlock!

"Some of my problems:" - you said it man. You got problems!

"1. Jazz takes great songs — and abandons the lyrics that help make them great" - sweeping generalization
"2. Improvisation isn’t all it’s cracked up to be." - baseless, sweeping, generalization, conjecture
"3. Jazz stopped evolving." - false
"4. Jazz is mushy." - ?????
"5. Jazz let itself be co-opted." - huh??

Fortunately, Justin admits he doesn't get it. Unfortunately, someone thought what he had to say was worth publishing in a major newspaper for others to read.

What do you think?
Tell me at
http://www.rayjozwiak.com/guestbook.html

OHO's "Ocean City Ditty," the CD single is now available at http://www.cdbaby.com/cd/oho4
(and, if you're in town, at Trax On Wax on Frederick Rd. in Catonsville, MD)

My latest solo release, '2014' of original, instrumental piano music, can be downloaded digitally at:

(or you can copy-and-paste this URL directly to
your browser: http://www.cdbaby.com/cd/rayjozwiak4)

Also, be sure to visit:
http://www.rayjozwiak.com

Thursday, June 19, 2014

Striving . . .

. . . for something . . . but not always being able to explain exactly what . . .

(from http://www.furious.com/perfect/ericdolphy2.html)
. . . "Eric was a very, very gifted musician and a very nice guy on top of it," McCoy Tyner told me in a recent interview. "He had a very personal approach to playing and enjoyed expanding the limits of imagination. Eric played so many instruments, his pockets were bulging with all these mouthpieces," McCoy said chuckling at the memory. "He was the first guy to come on as a guest with the band. At the time he came along he was doing his own thing and made a tremendous impression. We felt that the quartet was self-contained. Jimmy, Elvin and I felt that we had built something and were still on that journey. We didn't exactly understand where John was going in terms of adding Eric. We were like little kids in a sense like this is our band and we want to keep it that way. But then again it wasn't like we didn't want to share our experience. John was the leader and he was the one that made the final decisions. He decided that maybe if I do this, this will cause something else to happen. And it did! They played so differently. Eric added another dimension to the sound. John never rested on his laurels. He was like a scientist in the laboratory always searching for something new or different. By adding Eric he was expanding the music. John and Eric had a very different type of life experience. Eric had a very academic approach. He studied a lot. John coming from the South had that real gutsy approach. His father was a minister and his grandfather was a minister. He spent a lot of time in church and you could hear that in the music. At the same time there were points where the two met and could make something very interesting happen."

"Eric added a very interesting component to the music," McCoy continued. "John believed in what Eric was doing. He wanted to help him. At the same time he wanted to open the music up. It was a very good experience for Eric as well, being surrounded by the quartet. Ole was one of the highlights of Eric's presence. He had his own approach to the bass clarinet. He had personal things he would do on the instrument and got sounds out of it that you normally didn't hear on a bass clarinet. He was very animated and very enthusiastic.". . . (Note: Be patient. Eric's solo starts at about 4:07)

What do you think?
Tell me at
http://www.rayjozwiak.com/guestbook.html

OHO's "Ocean City Ditty," the CD single is now available at http://www.cdbaby.com/cd/oho4
(and, if you're in town, at Trax On Wax on Frederick Rd. in Catonsville, MD)

My latest solo release, '2014', can be downloaded digitally at:

(or you can copy-and-paste this URL directly to
your browser: http://www.cdbaby.com/cd/rayjozwiak4)

Also, be sure to visit:
http://www.rayjozwiak.com

Monday, June 16, 2014

Sing . . .

. . . Vladdie . . .

With my newfound interest in and empathy for Vladimir Putin, at least for his desire to serve his countrymen and for his lack of duplicity in things political, drove me to learn that he is a musician. Well, not a professional musician nor maybe even not a terribly exceptional one. But he is, with little doubt, a sincere music lover. Now how can you dislike a music lover no matter how many countries he invades?

What do you think?
Tell me at
http://www.rayjozwiak.com/guestbook.html

OHO's "Ocean City Ditty," the CD single is now available at http://www.cdbaby.com/cd/oho4
(and, if you're in town, at Trax On Wax on Frederick Rd. in Catonsville, MD)

My latest solo release, '2014', can be downloaded digitally at:

(or you can copy-and-paste this URL directly to
your browser: http://www.cdbaby.com/cd/rayjozwiak4)

Also, be sure to visit:
http://www.rayjozwiak.com