2009 Penn State Jazz Festival →
From left: pianist Cyrus Chestnut, bassist Tom Baldwin, saxophonist Tim Warfield, and the Centre Dimensions Big Band. Photo from PSU News gallery
UPDATE: check out the exclusive recording below!
Taken from the article in the Daily Collegian:
This weekend, the 2009 Penn State Jazz Festival will host masterclasses and professional jazz musicians in hopes of inspiring and motivating young musicians.
The entire student-run event is expecting high school jazz bands from around the region to participate in this weekend's activities.
High school attendees aren't the only ones hoping to gain some insight from these musicians.
Charlie Heim (graduate-music education) said he was excited for the weekend for more selfish reasons.
"These are legit-pro guys," Heim said. "Everyone is going to get the chance to check out a lot of good music."
Heim said he is most looking forward to working with the professionals first-hand.
Click the title above to read the whole article.
Mister Nimbus is a CD Baby Editor's Pick! →
Not long after we uploaded Mister Nimbus for sale on CD Baby, The March Hare was informed that our album was selected as an Editor's Pick on the site. Not too bad for our first full-length release. With a rating of five stars, our reviewer seems like he really got what we were going for:
"Precise in arrangement, random in rhythm, and stacked with endless layers of sound that become even more prevalent when you strap the headphones on, this album is both a tremendous collection of songs and a genuine musical accomplishment. ...they've thrown every single drop of themselves into it."
Read all the rest Brad had to say, and listen to the album and decide for yourself if he got it right.
Outstanding School of Music groups perform at Kimmel Center →
Four of Penn State's outstanding musical groups will perform Feb. 17 in the Penn State School of Music's third annual President's Concert
The March Hare - Mister Nimbus
The debut album from Philadelphia's own progressive-agressive spazz-rock group. Yeah, oh yeah. Our first - and only - full length album. Recorded over the course of a couple years, this album was a labor of many things for The March Hare. Featuring:
Zack Guy-Frank - guitar, vocals
Jon Hafer - keyboards, guitar, vocals
Alicia Ritter - violin, vocals
Ryan Hyde - bass, vocals
Charlie Heim - drums, percussion
The March Hare wants to make you laugh, cry, dance, clap your hands, and occasionally sit back and say 'woah.' We're silly when we're sad, and crazy when we're on stage. We make our music with our hearts and our minds. We make music because we can't imagine not making music, because without it we'd burst at the seams with sorrow, rage, love, and limitless joy and awe at the living world. We are explorers, experimenters, gatherers of new influences, and we do not sit still. The March Hare of yesterday is not The March Hare of today, is not The March Hare of tomorrow. We will have failed only if we have ceased to grow. You have found The March Hare. If you like it, tell your friends. If you hate it, tell your enemies.
The band lived from 2004 till 2009, and culminated in the release of this album and its accompanying video:
ust cos you're a diehard fan, here's an EXCLUSIVE live recording from our CD release show on February 6, 2009. This is raw, unedited audio that captures the frenetic energy of a March Hare show.
Rumor has it there might even be a newer recording in the ether...
Juno Day - Blue Milk [EP]
The debut recording from the Penn State/Philadelphia band. Listen
Josh Sager Quintet - Introducing...
A lively jazz recording from the South Jersey guitarist and his band.
Penn State Jazz Bands to perform →
Check out the article from Penn State's Daily Collegian about our Fall concert. A great program is in store, and was happy to have the concert covered by the University newspaper. I will be playing drums in the top big band, Centre Dimensions, and the night will be rounded out by two others : Inner and Outer Dimensions. As Graduate Assistant in the Jazz department, I'll be directing the latter. From the Collegian:
Outer Dimensions will play some Duke Ellington and Count Basie charts, such as Basie's "Shiny Stockings," said Charlie Heim (graduate-music education), Outer Dimensions' band director.
An arrangement of "Birdland" by Weather Report and Thad Jones' "Us," will also be performed by Outer Dimensions, Heim said.
"We'll mostly be playing old standard stuff," Heim said.
Heim is new to Penn State this semester. Upon graduating from the University of the Arts in Philadelphia, he chose to enter Penn State's graduate program in music education.
"Working with Dan [Yoder] is great," Heim said. "It's a rare experience to work with a collegiate director who has given us great arrangements and original pieces."
Click the link above for the full article.
"Sax Virtuoso" plays his last gig in State College →
We performed a great set of music as Outgroove, one of the iterations of Central PA jazz groups that myself and Greg Johnson were involved with. The Daily Collegian covered this performance with some great reporting, and it so happens that I recorded the set.
They caught me talking about our music, jazz, and keeping it (funky) fresh:
The band's music is based around improvisation, Heim said. He added the band members try to take the music they listen to and incorporate that into the jazz they play.
"We want to make good music, but also challenge ourselves and stay sounding fresh," Heim said.
As far as influences for the band go, each member has his own which include everything from hip-hop and rock to classical and funk, Heim said.
"Jazz, as a 'living music,' is looking at what came before us as an influence and working off of that, but adding our own spin to it," he added.
Read the article, or listen here!
Outgroove - Last Night in Pennsylvania
Mountain Man - Mountain Man
The self-recorded album from before they were William Gruff. Listen
AbsolutePunk reviews The March Hare's EP →
Our teenage idols over at AbsolutePunk.net handed down a 74% rating for our first offering, and that's alright by me.
"The best description of The March Hare’s record is that it is like being at a mad tea party. Things are happening around you that don’t make sense and it all freaks you out. There are moments of softness, but they are superseded by the factions of chaos and disorganization in the atmosphere."
I think the chaos is exactly what we aimed for.
"The March Hare act like five friends who fiddle around with their chord dimensions, reaching well beyond the limits of what other artists produce. Not only is the music esoteric and radical but it goes way past the barriers of standard chord notations."
Thanks for the words, Susan. Check out the full review here, and if you wanna take a post core time machine to 2004, listen to the EP here.
At Hand Productions - Prophecies of War
From Wikipedia:
UArts Jazz Singers: "My Romance"
Back in 2005, I was presented with a unique opportunity to sing Bass II for the UArts 10-peice vocal jazz ensemble. It was an education in harmony to say the least, and a fun challenge throughout. Here's a great studio recording of the group at its best.
Mountain Man voted Philly's Best by Emergenza
Sweet, sweet victory! Facing the toughest of competion from Philadelphia, Delaware and New Jersey, Philly’s own Mountain Man triumphed at the Emergenza regional finals on Saturday, June 30th. Held at the Trocadero main stage, the Men went up against 12 other fantastic bands and came out on top. This win secured Mountain Man as Philly’s best both by audience mandate as well as the approval of a panel of judges: those in attendance at the Troc voted the band into the top 6, while the judges made the final call to place them at number one. It was an electrifying evening.
Last Friday, July 6th, Mountain Man moved on to the Emergenza Eastern National Finals, where they subsequently rocked the pants off of New York City’s Webster Hall. There, they faced 27 other bands from all over the east coast, and were placed seventh by a panel of judges.
Mountain Man would like to sincerely thank all of the fans, family, and friends that came out with their support every step of the way. This excitement and adventure would not have happened without you! For more information on the band, be sure to visit Mountain Man’s MySpace page.
Summer Jazz in State College: 2007 edition
As many of you devoted readers already know, I spent the last 10 days in the old hometown of State College, PA. My main reason for the stay was to take my position on the staff of the Penn State Summer Jazz camp, as mentioned in my last post. While there, I taught drum set masterclasses, performed with some amazingly talented faculty, directed big bands, and my own jazz combo. The latter, I might add, rocked the roof off of Penn State’s Esber Recital Hall with their own swingin arrangement of Led Zepplin’s Rock n’ Roll, and the 4 big bands swung with authority thanks to some very skilled drummers. Kudos to all of the students!
Aside from the whirlwind of PSU Jazz, I also had the pleasure of performing with State College jazz mainstay Rick Hirsch on multiple occasions. To see details from the most recent hit at the Bellefonte Courthouse, check out the Centre Daily Times article. I’ll be playing with Hirsch’s group, which consists of Hirsch on saxophones, Jim Robinson on bass, and Mac Himes on guitar, again on August 17th. Check the Performances page for more details!
Below are some more photos from the Bellefonte performance. All photos by Arthur Heim.
The March Hare in Philadelphia Weekly →
Last week’s issue of Philadelphia Weekly featured a very nice review of The March Hare’s People Dressed as People EP, and I thought that I should share it with all of you. Click here to read the review on PW’s archive page, or simply scroll on down and read it here. Good times, and thanks to Doug Wallen for the kind words.
"The March Hare lurch and spazz through their action-packed People Dressed as People EP with such agility it's hard to believe they're not better known around town. Any description of their madcap racket is bound to fall short, but imagine the Blood Brothers hijacking Icy Demons. (“Overture” even turns all twinkling and Stereolab-ish when the girl sings.) The EP can be downloaded for free at www.themarchharemusic.com; an act of kindness more Philly bands should try. Once you've learned their songs, hit one (or both) of the March Hare's shows in the coming week and experience the blitz firsthand."
34th Street Magazine meets The March Hare →
34th Street's Alex Jacobs came by our rehearsal one afternoon to see our madness firsthand in preparation for their Streetapalooza event.
Every Sunday, the March Hare practices in the basement of Zack Guy-Frank’s parents’ home in Mt. Airy. Set apart from file-boxes and suburban house detritus, the corner practice studio is filled with what look like expensive gadgets. The big table nearby is littered with parts and audio odds and ends. Guy-Frank, lead vocalist and a Penn sophomore, brings together a group whose backgrounds are as diverse as their tastes in music: two have been students at the University of the Arts, one is a classically-trained violinist, another builds custom bass guitars. Last week, the band’s five members settled in comfortably for another six-hour practice session. The whole scene has something of That ’70s Show to it – for their goofy, self-effacing dynamic as much as their basement hideaway. “Alicia and I were in a band in a past life,” jokes Zack. “In the ’70s,” violinist Alicia Ritter replies.
The band first formed in 2004 after Zack, then a high school junior, posted flyers at University of the Arts. The original lineup – including Jon Hafer (keys/vocals) and drummer Charlie Heim – went on to play, by Jon’s account, “almost all the clubs in town,” including the Troc Balcony. Performing weekly for almost a year, they earned a reputation for an exciting live show and a reliable fan base. They knew “we [wouldn't] set the club on fire,” Zach says by way of explanation. After briefly disbanding in September, they reformed with Alicia Ritter and bassist Ryan Hyde.
The March Hare’s sound can be a bit hard to pin down – Alicia eventually stops to ask: “When you heard us, what bands did it remind you of?” Charlie, for one, readily compares Zack’s vocals to the hardcore act, The Blood Brothers. But the music can veer to the other extreme, in the more gentle harmonies of tracks like “In the Attic.” At other moments, metal basslines come face-to-face with pedal-distorted guitar solos. When writing songs, says Jon, “it’s whatever genre of music fits best for the idea we have. Our sound is constantly evolving.” They hope to record their latest material – about an album’s worth – some time this summer.
Friday’s show will be their first with the new lineup. Charlie warns: their live act can be uncompromising. “Either people would be really into us, or we’d play ‘Mr. Clean.’ People would say, ‘That’s too crazy,’ and they’d leave. There’s too much stuff going on, and they can’t dig it.” Challenging or not, the March Hare are seasoned enough artists to guarantee that every show will be unique. As Zack puts it: “We’re big on making it a performance.”