Steve Grandinetti and his students!

On Saturday April 17, 2004 local musician and educator Steve Grandinetti and his students with the Jefferson County YMCA will stage a youth rock concert from 7 till 10 PM in the Recreation Center Gym at the corner of Lawrence and Tyler Streets Uptown Port Townsend. Admission is $3 for this all ages show.

Opening the show is the acoustic guitar improvisations of Sam Smith and Zeke Wakefield’s Jack Rabbit Goat, followed by the catchy originals of Mega Quick Crew’s singer-songwriter-guitarist Nico Janssen with Mike Thielk on drums and Joel Thomas on bass. Punk rockers The Antagonists are led by guitarist-vocalist-songwriter Vinnie Johnson with Kyle Hove and Christian Powers handling bass and drum chores. After the punk comes the funk with local favorites Gypsy Joy Ride featuring the jamming of Conor Sisk on drums, Lora White on bass, Zeke Wakefield on guitar and Steve Grandinetti on keyboards and vocals. Headlining the show is Port Hadlock’s very own hard rocking band Libido, with Pete Smith on guitar, Dan DeMay on vocals and guitar, Adam Burns formerly of Circle Of Fear on the bass and Bobby Pierce hitting the skins.

Saturday April 17, 7 till 10 PM in the Recreation Center Gym
at the corner of Lawrence and Tyler Streets
Uptown Port Townsend.

Admission is $3 for this all ages show.
Doors open at 6:30 and music starts at 7PM,
no outside food or beverages allowed, and no re-entry.

Stevie G's 'School of Rock' has it goin'
PT Leader 12/10/2003

Grandinetti, students in concert Sunday
By Martha Worthley    Leader Staff Writer

Playing in the drum and bugle corps as a kid in New York City, Steve Grandinetti learned early how great it felt to be part of a group and making music.

"It's really about camaraderie," says Grandinetti. He also started sharing his knowledge early - teaching drums to other kids in his neighborhood. As a high school student, he taught both drums and piano.

What he's got going in Port Townsend is his own version of teaching and playing in groups - some call it Grandinetti's School of Rock.

When the popular Hollywood motion picture "School of Rock," starring Jack Black, came to Port Townsend in November, Grandinetti said his students recognized the scene. "Hey man, it's just like you!" some told him.

Grandinetti gives private music lessons, but he also has two combos that practice every week so that the different players can join forces and experience being part of a band. Grandinetti plays with them, providing a strong musical anchor for the younger players.

Stevie G & the Wild Ones grew out of an after-school jazz band from Port Townsend's Blue Heron Middle School. It consists of mostly seventh-graders, with Elan Solvik and Walker Wilson playing horns, Kyle Hove on bass, Vinnie Johnson on guitar, and drummers Christian Powers and Mike Thielk. His more rock-oriented group, Gypsy Joyride Jr., includes Conor Sisk on drums, Lora White on bass and Zeke Wakefield on guitar. Grandinetti joins them with keyboards, guitar and vocals. Guitarist Jessica Gartman also plays as a special guest.

"My style of teaching is about getting kids together, because they weren't doing it on their own," Grandinetti says.

Show is Sunday

Grandinetti also likes to give his students the opportunity to perform. This Sunday, Dec. 14, they put on a show from 2 to 6 p.m. at The Upstage, 923 Washington St.

"Steve Grandinetti and Students in Concert" starts with his youngest drummer accompanying the Queen anthem "We Will Rock You." From there, the program continues with everything from New Orleans funk to Bob Dylan and classic rock songs from the '60s and '70s, to Parliament Funk, original songs and jazz.

"The shows give them something to work toward," says Grandinetti. "And each show is different."

School of rock

Grandinetti arrived in Port Townsend on Valentine's Day 2000. A professional musician, he was playing a weekly gig at The Upstage when he ran into a friend from back East, Sylvia Heins. Heins introduced him to the local music scene. He also met school band teacher Ethan Freudenburg, who asked if he could volunteer with the high school jazz band. Even though it meant early mornings for him, Grandinetti started working with the jazz students. He also began taking on private students, worked with Kip Hubbard and A Beat in Time, and taught an after-school jazz band at the middle school.

Grandinetti says he started playing along with his students while teaching because he had so many drummers.

"As soon as they get a beat or groove going, I start playing guitar with them," he says. "It's a lot more fun than playing drums by yourself."

He sees his role as one of getting his students to the point where they form their own bands and invite their friends to play. At Sunday's performance at The Upstage, two all-youth bands are part of the show.

Sitting in on a practice session at Grandinetti's house, it's obvious that one of the basic things he communicates to his students is the joy of sharing music. "It's almost like a religious experience, and that's what you're going for - that ecstasy," he says.

His house is a music studio. The walls are covered with posters such as one announcing Led Zeppelin playing in Central Park on Aug. 15, 1974. Frank Zappa is awarded two spots on the wall; Cream, Jerry Garcia and Bob Marley also are highlighted. There is sound equipment everywhere, as well as two drum sets and various other instruments.

Getting a groove

On one Tuesday night, Daniel Berg is sitting in with the jazz band singing "King Tut." The horn section is blasting, and the rhythm section is in the groove. Mike Thielk kicks off their next number with a signature beat on his cow bell. Grandinetti hops from keyboards to guitar according to whatever sound is needed. When the energy sinks, they decide to try out a new song. Grandinetti fires up the stereo to refresh their memories, and the guys are all singing along. These kids love the music and can't wait to play it themselves.

Also striking is his rapport with them. Grandinetti has a master's degree in counseling and says, "You're doing counseling all the time when you're working with kids." But more than that, he brings his musical knowledge, street smarts and intuition to the mix, and he's also clearly having fun. For Grandinetti, it's about empowerment.

"I'm also very tolerant," he adds. He tells them: "I'm not really your teacher, I'm your guide. I'm gonna teach you how to teach yourself."

Sittin' In (from The Port Townsend Leader)

Catch up with some of our local musicians
By Michael Townsend

Port Townsend is home to a surprising number of talented and interesting musicians, considering the city's small size. Some perform regularly, while others study, write or record music at home. This column will be a place to talk to the players - public and private, young and old, homegrown and windblown - who belong to our local music tribe. I hope to meet new folks, learn some licks, and introduce these artists to the community.

Since he leads the after-school jazz band in which my son plays, I dropped in on Steve Grandinetti's class at Blue Heron Middle School. The students catch his enthusiasm and work hard on the tunes. When we talk later, over red beans and rice, he says, "Music is a way for kids to learn self-esteem and express themselves."

Growing up in New York City, Steve knew early on that music would be his path, and his family encouraged him with piano lessons and blues and jazz records on the stereo.

"As a youngster, I was particularly inspired by a Lena Horne and Tony Bennett concert," he remembers. "When I talked to drummer Kenny Clarke after the show, he was humble and genuine."

Drum and bugle corps was a fun place where he learned reading and fundamentals, and summer camp provided a place to learn - and later teach - steel drums.

While still in high school, he attended the Manhattan School of Music, where he studied percussion, ear training and theory. Already playing professionally and directing bands for off-Broadway shows, Steve earned a music scholarship to Fordham University in the Bronx. From there he took the downtown train for night classes at Julliard.

New York was a rich environment where a young player could mingle with and learn from jazz giants. Steve found that same kind of energy and excitement in New Orleans, where he studied music, music therapy and psychology at Loyola University. The music of the Crescent City is a major influence on Steve's playing to this day, and he has returned there often.

He received a master's degree in counseling psychology at the University of Pennsylvania, doing volunteer work at homeless shelters and with big brother programs while moonlighting as a cocktail pianist. For more than a decade, using Vermont and New York City as home base, Steve toured the eastern seaboard and plied his craft full time. Life on the road for a traveling musician can be exhilarating, exasperating and unhealthy, and eventually he decided to stay closer to home, doing social work, playing local gigs, and working on a movie soundtrack - "Johnny Suede."
When an opportunity to relocate to the West Coast came his way, Steve took a chance and moved to Port Hadlock in 2000. Unfortunately, most of his musical gear - and much else - was lost in a fire only two months after arrival. It's good to see him back on his feet, with a busy lesson schedule, working in the school system, and pursuing his first love, performing. He looks forward to being a Centrum workshop faculty member this summer, teaching piano blues at the blues festival.

"Port Townsend has been good to me. People have open ears; even when the crowds aren't big, they pay attention," says Grandinetti.

Steve and I had fun getting together and jamming on some tunes by the Meters. You can catch Grandinetti lending his vocal, drum and keyboard skills to the Blue Heron Jazz Ensemble, the Beat In Time gang, and especially his "Nawlins Fonk" band, Gypsy Joyride.

The Leader OnLine ©2002 Jefferson County Leader.

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Too New To Be Known™
Relix Review

Another singer-songwriter that skits across musical boundaries with ease is the Vermont-based Stephen Grandinetti. Jonjanó Baró (Gypsy Gumbo Music) is his first solo album. Grandinetti, who is backed by some excellent musicians throughout, shows himself to be a more than competent multi-instrumentalist and polished singer-songwriter. There's nothing pretentious or overblown about his R&B and jazzy blues songs. The soulful "Send Me An Angel," the Dr. John- influenced "Down In New Orleans" and the superb slide-driven "Dog House Blues" offer plenty of evidence of his skills. For the perceptive big-name musician, there's probably a hit or two on this disc.

Relix Magazine On Line