Acting as the group's mobility sponsor, The Song Project will hit the road in a SCBT Volkswagon Beetle. This is the second time the two entities have collaborated. The week prior to the 2010 Euphoria Festival in Greenville, SC the Song Project hit the road sending Twitter and Facebook updates about life on the road in a bug while gaining attention for the festival's Sunday Jazz Brunch that is sponsored by SCBT. They plan to do the same during this tour.
The last show for The Song Project offers support to Shelter Health Services who provides free healthcare and health education to homeless women and children through its walk-in clinic located within Mecklenburg County's largest women's shelter. Mark says, “What is living the music, living your art, if not making it a tangible experience for all by having a way for us to reach out and effect lives. The pleasure in helping a struggling family, the rewarding smiles... all of this makes the music and night more meaningful and way more fun."
What is an applum? The Song Project released their debut CD in an untraditional manner and one that takes advantage of iPad's technology. “It is a complete modern album where you experience the music, award-winning photography, artist notes and more," explains Derek Lee Bronston. The Applum is coined and created by theConspiracy, a Brooklyn based tech+design company, in partnership with the digital music company Paved Earth Music. It is a free download on the iTunes App Store.
With SCBT as mobility sponsor, a unique model of distributing their music, supporting the communities in which they play, not to mention their jazz interpretations of AC/DC, Radiohead and Tears for Fears, The Song Project is not your everyday jazz group.
Show dates include:
- Wednesday, March 30—Davidson College Jazz Workshop (Davidson, NC)
- Thursday, March 31—The Lazy Goat (Greenville, SC)
- Friday, April 1—The Speakeasy (Columbia, SC)
- Saturday, April 2—Brown Street Jazz Club (Greenville, SC)
- Sunday, April 3—Petra's Piano Bar (Charlotte, NC)
About Mark Rapp
They extend jazz into its own genre with interpretations ranging from AC/DC to Rodgers&Hart. With captivating interchanges between guitar and trumpet, lined with raw vocals, The Song Project explores the art of the song both written and improvised. Celebrated by jazz and non-jazz fans alike, Mark Rapp (trumpet, didgeridoo) & Derek Lee Bronston (guitar, vocals) are without a doubt on to something new and very exciting. Be sure to experience their industry first “applum"—a free download on the iTunes App store.
Mark Rapp holds a Masters in Jazz Studies from the University of New Orleans—earning it under the tutelage of Ellis Marsalis and continued to live and play in New Orleans for 5 years. Mark then moved to New York where he played for 9 years. He has 3 diverse records as a leader and Disney's CD (Feb 2011) “Everybody Wants to be a Cat" features Mark on it's closing track. This CD also features Roy Hargrove, Dave Brubeck, Esperanza Spalding, The Bad Plus, Joshua Redman and more. Currently, Mark is finishing his 4th record as a leader, a tribute to Lou Donaldson, and is due to release early 2011.
Derek Lee Bronston has 20 years experience as a New York based musician, has 7 records as a leader and co-leader, as well as, appearances as a sideman on many others. He originally came to NYC from Detroit in 1990 and has played with Cecil Taylor, Tom Harrel, Billy Bang, Branford Marsalis, The Hush, Mostley, Jerry Gonzalez and Dave Binney to name a few.
