#303 Karli Viña- Percussionist, Educator, Podcaster and More!
Praised by the South Florida Classical Review for her "dazzling" and "incisive" performance, Dr. Karlyn Viña is a dynamic and creative percussionist based in Virginia. Dr. Viña is proud to serve as Assistant Professor of Percussion at Shenandoah Conservatory in Winchester, VA, and as a member of the percussion faculty at Interlochen Arts Camp in Interlochen, MI, during the summers.
Karlyn maintains a busy schedule as an orchestral, chamber, and solo percussionist, and has a particular interest in works that incorporate theatrical elements. Performance highlights include several seasons with Palm Beach Symphony and Florida Grand Opera, as well as performances with Madera Viva, a bassoon and percussion duo with Dr. Carlos Felipe Viña.
In addition to her teaching and performing, Karlyn can be heard as a co-host on the @Percussion Podcast and is proud to serve on the Percussive Arts Society's New Music/Research Committee. Karlyn earned her Doctorate of Musical Arts in Percussion Performance from the University of Miami as a fellow of the Henry Mancini Institute. Her dissertation focuses on the performance of works for theatrical percussion by Globokar, Kagel, and Smith. She also holds degrees in Percussion Performance and Music Education from The Boston Conservatory and the University of Maryland. Karlyn is proud to endorse Grover Pro Percussion, Marimba One, and Zildjian cymbals.
Happy Birthday!
Happy Birthday to Josh Dion! Josh is 50% of the band Paris Monster, where he plays drums, keyboards and also sings. Josh Dion was born at the tail end of the disco funk era, when popular radio bore the sounds of Quincy Jones, Michael Jackson, and 'four on the floor' drum beats! Raised in Storrs, CT, Josh started playing his father's drums before he even started kindergarten. He grew up playing drums to the simple and beat driven sounds of Nick Mason and Ringo Starr. He also lived across the hall from his older brother, who not only followed the Grateful Dead, but introduced him to Cream at the tender age of seven. Rightfully so, Cream, Zeppelin and the Stones led Dion to Willie Dixon, Robert Johnson and beyond.
A prodigious talent, Josh started playing professionally at age eight and was invited to shed with the UConn Jazz Studies program by the time he was twelve. While he was impressing people with his percussion skills, he was playing piano and singing in his local church, developing talents which would eventually help him stand out even among the world class drummers in whose company he has now found himself.
After a stint in the music program at New Jersey's William Paterson University, he has made New York City his home. Josh's college days were greeted by an immersion in the Jam band scene with NYC funk band Ulu, who toured the Eastern half of the US. Josh was soon noticed by jazz guitarist Chuck Loeb, who offered Josh an opportunity to be seen and heard by a whole new level of the music audience. From that platform, he has gone on to work with some of the major brand names of the music world: Candy Dulfer, Spyro Gyra, Will Lee, Pat Martino, Jeff Kashiwa, Jason Miles, Anthony Jackson, Edgar Winter, Randy Brecker, Bob James, Eric Marienthal, Til Bronner, Jim Beard, Ivan Lins and on and on.
Gig Alerts
The University of Delaware School of Music, is now accepting applications for a Marching Band Assistant (Percussion) for fall 2023 with friend of the show, Jim Ancona. The student selected for this role will be awarded a full tuition scholarship and a $22,000 stipend. Submit APPLICATIONS ONLINE by January 15, 2023. Applicants must also AUDITION.
QUESTIONS? Email: musicadmissions@udel.edu
The Southern Percussion Ensemble is holding auditions for the first time at the end of November for the 2023 indoor season. Shout-out to friend of the show, Tim Greene!
The AES Audio Engineering Convention is happening now in NYC. The Audio Engineering Society welcomes everyone to a new era of experiences, with leading manufacturers and engineers demonstrating the latest solutions and products, with a comprehensive selection of workshops, panels, demonstrations, training, papers and more.
It begins with the in-person event at the Javits Center, New York, followed by our online event with plenty of engagement and entertainment.
Damon has some gigs coming up soon, and a new video released by Vic Firth.
Educational Spotlight
The PASIC schedule is now up. You can CLICK HERE to see it and download the app to your device.
There are also Volunteer Opportunities for this upcoming PASIC.
From distribution to metadata and crafting websites to promotion, the music industry is more complex than ever. In that thick soup, MyMusic.biz has developed an all-encompassing platform designed to help artists thrive on the often-overlooked business side — and build lucrative careers in the process. -Article
Damon spoke at the DIY Musician Conference and you can download the notes from his seminar, “Get The Gig, Keep The Gig!” for FREE, on his WEBSITE HERE.
Iconic Recording
The iconic recording was chosen by Karli. It is Phillip Parker’s “Five Pieces for Clarinet and Percussion” performed by the Miami University of Ohio Percussion Ensemble and Michele Gingras, clarinet.
Music News
Join DW as they celebrate 50 years of inspiration with exclusive concerts, clinics, and discussions with the people who have made DW what it is today. Check THIS LINK for a list of events. All events listed below are free and open to the public. In-person space is limited so reserve your ticket today.
The First Round of Grammy voting is going on now. For more information on the guidelines, please CLICK HERE!
Also, Silk Sonic has bowed out, so maybe that will increase your chances?
Friend of the show, Stephen Bidwell, has released a new loop and one-shot percussion library with Ryan Gruss of Yurt Rock.
Karli Viña Interview
The song leading into the interview is, “Fuga from Sonata no. 1 in G Minor” by J. S. Bach.
Karli will be attending and giving a clinic at PASIC this year.
Here’s the schedule for PASIC, and you can download the app to your device (Apple and Android).
This is the evening concert performance Damon referred to from PASIC 2017 with Steven Schick.
Karli talks about the FUNdamentals clinic she will be giving, selected by the Education committee.
Damon and Karli talk about other ways to create music and other terms to describe the music created.
Karli teaches at Shenandoah Conservatory.
Damon and Karli talk about musical competitions.
Karli grew up near Nashua, NH.
Karli started on piano, tried flute, and ended up on percussion as the path of least resistance.
Damon and Karli talk about the range of percussion instruments. She mentions the piece “Temazcal” for maracas and tape.
This is the Masterclass by Manuel Rangel that Damon talks about with the maraca basics and techniques.
Karli explains what is theatrical percussion.
She also goes through some other pieces that fall into the theatrical percussion category.
Damon brings up the “Music for Six Drummers and One Apartment” and “The Sound of Noise” videos.
If you are interested in being on a committee for PAS, you can CLICK HERE for more information.
Shout-out to Dr. Carlos Felipe Viña, who is not only a great bassoonist, but also Karli’s husband. They have a bassoon and percussion duo called Madera Viva.
She talks about scheduling as well as getting through the pandemic.
Karli also talks about her first year as the Assistant Professor of Percussion.
Karli got her undergrad degree from the University of Maryland, her masters from Boston Conservatory and then her doctorate at the University of Miami.
Karli and Damon talk about getting gigs.
Karli is a co-host on the @percussion podcast.
Karli picks the iconic recording (see above).
Shout-out to (friend of the show) Keith Aleo, John Tafoya, Svet Stoyanov, (friend of the show) Rebecca Kite, Nancy Zeltsman, Sam Solomon, John Ramsay and Tony Ames.
Karli has taught at Interlochen’s summer program as well as Indiana University’s summer program.
Karli also mentions her high school percussion teacher Gary Spellissey.
Karli uses Marimba One instruments, Grover Pro Percussion and Zildjian Cymbals.
You can follow Karli on her Website, Facebook, and Instagram.
The song leading out of the interview is “The Conquering Legions of Rome” by John S. Pratt.
