DePue Brothers Band to Bring 'A Magical Grassical Christmas' to Sellersville Theater, 12/11
By: Tyler Peterson Nov. 30, 2015
This highly acclaimed brothers band, who perform throughout the country, includes the DePues -- violinists Wallace (formerly with The Philly POPS and Philadelphia Orchestra,) Alex (Steve Vai Band) and Jason (present First Violinist with The Philadelphia Orchestra) -- and Philadelphia Orchestra Timpanist Don Liuzzi on drums and percussion, University of the Arts Faculty member Kevin MacConnell (bass), Jordan Tice (acclaimed young flat picking guitarist), and Mike Munford (International Bluegrass Association's 2013-14 Banjo Musician of the Year). The concert is a celebration of the band's rich diversity of styles with a selection of holiday repertoire, including original pieces and popular traditional songs.
Recently, the DePue Brothers have enjoyed inviting young guests to join them on stage. The Sellersville concert will feature the PYO and YOBC high school aged musicians on the second half of their program. They will perform on three tunes -- Leroy Anderson's Sleigh Ride, the classic O Holy Night and an original entitled Plow Train.
The title of their 2014 album, "When It's Christmas Time," is a reference to a carol originally written by the brothers' father, Wallace DePue, Sr., which was later enriched with an arrangement by Alex DePue and included on the album. The brothers, who have been playing Christmas programs together since they could hold violins, recorded the CD as a loving tribute to their father. The album, which has been played on over 120 radio stations nationally including Sirius Radio, features such popular songs as Sleigh Ride, O Holy Night, Good King Wenceslas, The Christmas Song, a special arrangement of Have Yourself A Merry Little Christmas bringing a jazzed up bluegrass shuffle to this classic holiday tune and a banjo-led medley of renaissance era Carols. In addition there is a mix of standard classical arrangements of Jesu, Joy of Man's Desiring and Ave Maria, as well as a more recent composition entitled The Fat Man. (Jonathan Takiff in the Philadelphia Daily News and Philly.com called this original "a favorite: a rockin' song about a supercharged Claus reminiscent of Bruce Hornsby, Steve Miller, and the TV theme from Batman -- what a hoot!")
About the DePue Brothers Band -- the naming of their "grassical" style:
The DePue Brothers Band encompasses a vivid blend of bluegrass, classical, and rock genres. They coined the term "grassical" as the best description of their style. Each of the four DePue brothers is a classical virtuoso in his own right, and brings rich and diverse talents to their sound. Performing with the band is a family affair that they fit in amongst their individual musical endeavors and duties -- Jason with The Philadelphia Orchestra; Alex with his duo work with DePue/DeHoyos, former band work with famed guitarist Steve Vai, and a fiddling champion in several states (California, Alabama, Ohio, Michigan); Wallace with his company, Concert Instruments.com, his former associate concert master work of The Philly POPS, and now Florida based orchestras; and Zachary, Concertmaster of the Indianapolis Symphony Orchestra and a founding member of the classically trained garage band/trio Time For Three. Each band member brings impressive credentials to the band, with manager and drummer Don Liuzzi being the principal timpanist of The Philadelphia Orchestra.
As a family they have been making music together for over 30 years. They were named "Musical Family of America" in 1989 by presidential decree, were the subject of a nationally televised PBS documentary in 1993, Jason and younger brother Zach were featured in the film documentary Music From the Inside Out highlighting musicians in The Philadelphia Orchestra in 2005. Alex has appeared on Grammy-nominated Steve Vai albums and the critically acclaimed concert DVD with Steve Vai from 2009. Their first album as brothers, Classical Grass, sold out of its first printing. In 2004 they formed the present band configuration coming together with legendary banjoist Tony Trischka, Bucks County native flat picking Mark Cosgrove, Don Liuzzi, and Kevin MacConnell, recording their first album in 2009 entitled Weapons of Grass Construction.
The CD album "When It's Christmas Time" is available on CD Baby, iTunes, and all the online stores affiliated with Tune Core. To order the CD directly and for more information about the DePue Brothers Band, visit their website at http://www.depuebrothersband.com/ .
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