#325 Michael Sgouros- Percussionist for Ethos Percussion Group, The Players Theater & More!
Today’s guest is Michael Sgouros. Michael has served as music director and composer for the Off-Broadway shows Percussion People, The Selfish Giant, Treasure Island, Stone Soup, A Christmas Carol, Cinderella, Phantom of the Opera (Sgouros and Bell), The Little Mermaid, Alice In Wonderland, Tico Tales, Sleepy Hollow, and Beauty and the Beast.
A native New Yorker, Michael has enjoyed performing as drummer/percussionist in a variety of musical settings which have included the American Symphony, Philharmonia Virtuosi, Ethos Percussion Group, Ringling Bros and Barnum and Bailey Circus and the Broadway productions of The Secret Garden, Falsettos, The Goodbye Girl, Sunset Boulevard, Miss Saigon and Phantom of the Opera.
He has toured nationally with A Chorus Line and has traveled to Singapore and Costa Rica with the touring productions of Anything Goes and Tico Tales.
Mr. Sgouros has worked professionally with Eartha Kitt, Mandy Patinkin, Michael Rupert, Bernadette Peters, Martin Short, Danny Aiello, Michael Kamen, Alison Janney, Laura Linney and Richard Thomas.
He has also collaborated with notable percussionists Glen Velez, Stefan Harris, Michael Markus, Danny Druckman and Samir Chatterjee.
Happy Birthday!
Happy Birthday to Steve Fidyk! Steve has earned national and international acclaim as an artist, author, composer and columnist. His third recording as a leader features an all-star band of New York’s finest — the impressive front-line of trumpet legend Joe Magnarelli and tenor titan Xavier Perez, alongside the rhythm team of pianist Peter Zak, and bassist Michael Karn. Each member is an active, contributing participant that pushes Fidyk’s hard hitting rhythmic and melodic message direct to the theatre of operations.
Steve’s father John Fidyk, who played tenor saxophone with groups throughout North Eastern Pennsylvania, began taking him on gigs as a substitute drummer at the age of eight. Encouraged by his parents, Fidyk pursued music throughout high school, and majored in music education at Wilkes University. He played drums in the big band under the direction of Bob Wilbur and eventually Tom Heinze. It was at this time that he began to immerse himself in jazz, listening to the great big bands of Count Basie, Duke Ellington, Woody Herman, Stan Kenton, and Buddy Rich. Rich was the first jazz drummer Fidyk saw perform live when he was eight years old, and that experience left a lasting impression.
In 1987, after hearing Fidyk play with the Mansfield State College big band, legendary jazz drummer Joe Morello accepted him as a student. Morello was instrumental in helping Steve with his technique, sound production, coordination, and overall approach to playing the instrument. Morello was also helpful with developing his articulate teaching skills, and Fidyk has been dedicated and committed to education ever since.
For over 21 years, Steve Fidyk was the drummer and featured soloist with the Army Blues Big Band, a premier 17- piece jazz ensemble stationed in Washington DC. During his tenure, he performed for seven US Presidents, numerous dignitaries and in 2008, traveled throughout the Middle East supporting the troops during a USO Holiday Tour. Fidyk currently leads a quartet featuring his original compositions and arrangements. He also performs throughout the US with small groups led by tenor saxophonist Walt Weiskopf and guitarist Jack Wilkins. He is a member of the Jazz Orchestra of Philadelphia, a big band led by trumpeter Terell Stafford.
As an educator, Fidyk is a member of the jazz studies faculty at Temple University, The University of the Arts in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania and serves an educational consultant for Jazz at Lincoln Center's Essentially Ellington Program. He has authored several drum methods for Mel Bay and Alfred Publications, and contributes columns on a regular basis to Modern Drummer Magazine.
Fidyk has appeared on over 100 recordings and his discography as a co-leader includes Big Kids with John DeSalme (U.S. Roots), and two recordings with The Taylor/Fidyk Big Band: A Perfect Match (Write Groove, 2003) and Live at Blues Alley (OA2, 2006). His debut as a bandleader was Heads Up! (Posi-Tone, 2014) featuring Terell Stafford and Tim Warfield. His follow-up recording, Allied Forces (Posi-Tone, 2016) featured Brian Charette, Doug Webb and Joseph Henson. Both solo recordings feature Steve's original compositions and arrangements.
Steve Fidyk attended the University of North Texas, and holds degrees from Wilkes University and The University of Maryland, College Park. He was a student of Joe Morello, Ed Soph, John Riley, Ralph Peterson, Robert Nowak and Angelo Stella.
Happy Birthday to Scott Pellegrom! Scott is known throughout the drumming community as the “mad scientist.” His playing as a soloist and band leader exudes creativity, from surprising ideas to blinding hand speed, using found objects to pulling unconventional sounds from conventional instruments. Videos of his hyper-creative playing can be seen on Drumeo, the Dream Cymbals and PDP/DW Drums social media channels, Scott’s Instagram (@scottpellegrom), and numerous other places around the web. Incorporating elements of drum and bass, jungle, and fearless improvisation into his playing, this “drummer’s drummer” defies expectation and genre, whether it’s playing jazz standards or today’s most experimental music.
Performing since the age of 5, Scott currently leads his own band, SP3, works as a chameleon-like head of percussionist and session drummer at Third Coast Recording Studios, and is an in-demand sideman for renowned artists spanning genres and styles. His reputation as an exciting, dynamic player has helped him cultivate a globetrotting career as a clinician and educator, teaching private students, masterclasses, and performing at drum festivals around the world.
With a recent Drumeo video passing 5 Million views, 32 thousand Instagram followers, a final four finish in the Guitar Center Drum-Off, and a nomination for Modern Drummer’s “Best Up-and-Coming Player,” Scott’s ability on the kit speaks for itself. As a proud endorser of Dream Cymbals (maker of the signature Scott Pellegrom RE-FX Crop Circle), Remo Drum Heads, PDP Percussion, and Prologix pads, he also travels as a brand ambassador, demonstrating products at Musikmesse, PASIC, and NAMM every year, and working closely with these companies to develop and market unique products for today’s drummers and percussionists.
A self-described “rhythmist,” Scott’s passion for honing his craft seems to spill from his personality, whether performing at a festival for thousands of spectators, leading a school assembly of young non-musicians, or delivering a presentation at a TedX event. As a professional educator, Pellegrom offers both in-person and Skype/Facetime lessons, has twice been featured as a Drumeo presenter, leads workshops, and provides vital technical and philosophical information to drummers of all ages and skill levels.
While his extensive career appearances and performances are too numerous to list, some noteworthy highlights include events like the Victoria Drum Fest, Montreal Drum Festival, PASIC, SXSW, Cape Breton International Drum Festival, Music China, Shanghai Music Mesa, and Australia’s Ultimate Drummers Weekend. He shared the stage with acts such as Karl Denson, Digital Tape Machine, Joel Cummins, Billy Strings, Federico Malaman, Seth Bernard, Theo Katzman, Bernhard Lackner, The Drifters, and many, many others - not to mention appearing at drum festivals alongside many of the greatest players in the world.
Happy Birthday to Javier Raez! Javier is the producer of content for Congahead. Congahead: A Journey through Six Decades of Latin Percussion consists of photographs and videos of Latin, jazz, and pop musicians taken over 60 years by Martin Cohen. The photographs appear in the book Congahead: The Autobiography of Martin Cohen (2019). Javier has been on the Podcast a few of times. Here is the second time, third time and fourth time.
Happy Birthday to Brian Potts! Brian is a versatile performer and dedicated educator with a passion for Brazilian percussion. Under the tutelage of Dr. Ney Rosauro at the University of Miami, he became enamored with the sound and capabilities of modern pandeiro techniques. His degrees culminated with a doctoral essay based on an interview with the great Marcos Suzano, which has become an invaluable reference for pandeiristas the world over. Also, Brian works closely with the Pandeiro Repique Duo, comprised of Bernardo Aguiar and Gabriel Policarpo, with whom he founded the Brazilian percussion supergroup PRD Mais in 2016. In addition to his love of Brazilian music, Brian has sought to help make the pandeiro an international and limitless phenomenon by adapting the instrument to a wide variety of styles, including jazz, funk, soul, Latin, and classical music. In his clinics, Brian strives to relate the versatility of the pandeiro by utilizing modern techniques that allow students to approach the instrument in a creative and interactive fashion. He also teaches at Barry University in addition to online (i.e. Skype, Zoom, etc).
Happy Birthday to Joshua Simonds! Previous to the Percussive Arts Society, Joshua Simonds was the Executive Director of Chicago Youth Symphony Orchestras. He holds a Master of Arts in Arts Management from American University in Washington, DC, and a Bachelor of Arts in Percussion from California State University, Long Beach.
During his tenure, CYSO has more than doubled its programs, built strong relationships with world-class composers resulting in numerous world and local premieres, and initiated groundbreaking artistic collaborations, including performances with Ben Folds, My Morning Jacket, The Second City, My Brightest Diamond, the Chicago Bulls, and multiple performances at the legendary rock festival Lollapalooza.
His passion for percussion has always been at the forefront of his work at CYSO. During his tenure at CYSO, the organization built one of the largest youth steel pan programs in the midwest, performed multiple times with Chicago’s Blue Man Group in Chicago’s Millennium Park, engaged Third Coast Percussion on multiple occasions including a 2014 year-in-residence resulting in a New Music USA grant for a video recording of David T Little’s Radiant Child for Percussion Quartet and Orchestra, and most recently secured Glenn Kotche as CYSO’s 2016-2017 Composer in Residence. These are just a few examples of Joshua’s life-long commitment to percussion performance and education.
While at California State University, Long Beach, Joshua studied percussion with Raynor Carroll, Principal Percussionist of the LA Philharmonic, Dr. Dave Gerhart, and the late Dr. Michael Carney. Joshua is also a proud alumnus of the Velvet Knights Drum and Bugle Corps.
Happy Birthday to Alan Evans! Drummer Alan Evans began playing as soon as he could hold drumsticks, helped by his father, an amateur drummer who made his living as a high school gym teacher. Evans’s father loved music of all types, and it was through his music collection that Alan and his brother Neal were exposed to jazz greats John Coltrane and Miles Davis, as well as classical music and opera. Growing up in Buffalo, New York, Alan first played drums in a marching band. As adults the Evans brothers settled near Woodstock, New York, which had a thriving music scene. After playing in different groups, Alan came up with the idea for Soulive as a “live soul groove” group. Alan is a multi-instrumentalist, recording engineer and owner of Iron Wax Studios as well as an owner of a record label in, Vintage League Music.
Happy Birthday to Jordan Rose! Native of Houston, Texas, drummer Jordan Rose has performed at festivals and venues throughout the US, Canada, Europe, Mexico, Asia, and the Middle East. From 2012-2014 Jordan toured extensively with multi-Grammy award winner, Joe Louis Walker. He now resides in Brooklyn, New York where his talents as a session drummer have given him the opportunity to collaborate with musicians Charlie Puth, Jeff Coffin, Nona Hendryx, Bakithi Kumalo, Louis Cato, and many others. This year Jordan is touring with Theo Katzman of Vulfpeck, The Blues Brothers, and Caleb Hawley, and is scheduled to perform across the US, Europe, and Russia.
From 2007-2010 Jordan fought a battle with a growth in his right ear which caused him to lose almost all hearing. Due to modern medicine and miraculous healing, his hearing was restored. From this three year period of trial and uncertainty, Jordan gained an even deeper love, appreciation, and excitement for music and a greater understanding of the intense power it has to impact lives. As he shares his talents in drumming, he hopes that he can bring the same life-changing positivity to the world that music has brought to him.
Gig Alerts
After wrapping up her 34-night run at the Colosseum at Caesar’s Palace, Adele extends her Las Vegas residency with 34 additional dates. -Article
Shout-out to Friend of the show, Aaron Draper, who is Adele’s percussionist. He was on Episode 10 and Episode 77.
Summerfest in Milwaukee, WI is happening June 22nd-24th and they announced their headliners for the 55th anniversary.
Newport Folk Fest is happening July 28th-30th.
The Newport Jazz Festival is happening August 4th-6th.
The NYU Broadway Percussion Seminar is happening June 11th-14th in NYC.
The Jazz Foundation of America is having their Night at the Apollo Gala.
Damon is playing at the Brooklyn Bowl on Saturday with the Atomic Funk Project.
Damon is also playing Cinco de Mayo at the FTC Warehouse with Fuzz and his supergroup. Friend of the show, Eric Kalb is playing drums.
Educational Spotlight
Several day of percussion events hosted by the Percussive Arts Society are taking place in the next few months.
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Iconic Recording
The iconic recording was chosen by Michael. The Overture to “Merrily We Roll Along” by Stephen Sondheim.
Music News
Nearly two years after Apple revealed plans to roll out a classical music service, the standalone streaming platform, Apple Music Classical, has officially become available for download. -Article
You might think you need a storehouse of audio plugins and effects to mix music well. But that couldn’t be more wrong. One of the most common mistakes mixing engineers make is doing too much, using too much processing. A botched mix can ruin a good song. So during the mixing phase, it’s best to keep things as simple as possible while still enhancing the song. Here’s an Article to help you get better at mixing!
Two U.S. Senators are introducing the ‘Junk Fee Prevention Act’ to tackle unnecessary fees introduced behind a complicated checkout process.
U.S. Senators Richard Blumenthal (D-CT) and Sheldon Whitehouse (D-RI) have introduced the legislation to eliminate “excessive fees and bring transparency to the marketplace as hidden fees cost Americans billions of dollars annually.” -Article
Michael Sgouros Interview
The song leading into the interview is, “Keep the Urchins Out!” from ‘Treasure Island & the Selfish Giant’ written by Michael Sgouros and Brenda Bell.
Michael and Damon met up at Pepe’s Apizza in New Haven. If you are interested in more about New Haven Apizza from Pepe’s to Sallys, to Modern and Bar, check out this DOCUMENTARY.
Shout-out to Jack Mansager for the original connection.
Michael helped found the Ethos Percussion Group, which Jack helped out with.
Michael grew up in Queens and attended the High School for Performing Arts, which later merged with Music and Art high school to be the LaGuardia High School.
Shout-out to Justin DiCioccio.
Michael was in the front ensemble for the Garfield Cadets drum corps in 1982, 1983, 1984 and 1986.
In 1985, Michael didn’t march drum corps because he studied with (friend of the show), Leigh Howard Stevens and also wrapped a bunch of mallets!
Michael talks about some of his classmates in school.
Michael talks about how he joined drum corps and some of the staff that taught him at the Cadets.
Michael attended Juilliard Conservatory.
Michael talks about wrapping vibraphone and marimba mallets.
Michael talks about some of the world percussion instructors he studied with, including friend of the show, Glen Velez.
Michael talks about how he started the Ethos Percussion Group. He also talks about some of the considerations they made as a group for their audience.
The Chamber Music of America conference was a big step for the percussion group as well as The Jerome Foundation.
Michael talks about the Player’s Theater and the different parts of the building he owns.
Michael talks about how he bought the building in the west village and his family’s hobby of real estate.
If you are interested in renting any of the spaces at The Player’s Theater or in the music residency, please contact Michael.
Michael talks about the percussion group, “Percussion People” featuring Michael, Jack Mansager, Andy Beal and friend of the show, Andy Akiho.
Michael talks about how he started composing more for the theater shows.
Michael chooses the iconic recording for the week. Shout-out to Paul Presutti on drums.
Damon touches on a brief history of the drumset.
Shout-out to Innovative Mallets, Grover Pro Percussion, Yamaha Drums and Percussion Instruments,
Damon mentions the triangle trick. Michael talks about using it on “Rhythm Song” by Paul Smadbeck performed by Ethos. He starts doing it around 1:35 into the song.
You can follow Michael on the Player’s Theater Website, his Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram pages.
Michael shouts-out his teachers. Shout-out to the Drummers Collective.
The song leading out of the interview is, “Is He Me?” By Michael Sgouros and Brenda Bell.
