(* note on Elijah B. The "B" is my infinite 'middle' name. If you'd like to address me as Elijah you can always give me a new B name, whatever you like. Its a name with a built-in creative outlet.... hence my many projects under the Elijah B name down below in my Top Friends.)
Frankpipe- Founding "Fathers" Tom Monaghan (drums) and David Ripley (bass). Many others from various incarnations.
CBYD- Eric Rey- congas, Matt Lolli- electric guitar, Dave Ripley- bass, Drew Brathwaite- vocals/trombone
Influences
Recent inspirations: Michael Hedges, Michael Manring, Foo Fighters, Durufle, Part, Bobby McFerrin, James Brown, elephants that paint, Georgian Polyphonic chant, Iron and Wine, dancers, dancing, Steve Reich...
The Eternally Grateful: Perotin, Bach, Beethoven, Brahms, Tchaikovsky, Debussey, Ravel, Holst, Mahler, Stravinsky, Messiaen, Leo Brouwer, Frank Zappa, Joe Maneri...
Beatles, Zeppelin, The Who, Tool, Traffic, Soundgarden, Alice in Chains, Beastie Boys...
Fellow Heartstring pullers/pickers: Jimi Hendrix, Bola Sete, Ravi Shankar, Jacqueline Dupre, John Dowland, Ed Smith, Jaco Pastorious, Edgar Meyer, Bela Fleck...
Heartfirestarters who sing: Bjork, Billy Holiday, Jeff and Tim Buckley, Regina Spektor, Joanna Newsom, The Silver Leaf Gospel Singers, Nick Drake...
Limbs of the Great Music Tree: Afrobeat, Gregorian chant, old Nintendo, Turkish, Bluegrass, Barbershop, Renaissance, Hindustani...
Divine in nature: any sound that's really really really REALLY tiny, the ocean, fields of cicadas, thunder storms, wind, circumstances of supposed 'limitation', Orion, pomegranites, spoons, that comet (Comet Holmes) that just decided to get brighter, fractally vegetables, flowers, and trees, anachoic chambers, the eternity of sounds, the mystery of Silence, and breath. The incredible beauty of ordinary things. Curiosity...
My wonderful teachers: Eliot Fisk, Mark Davis, Warren Senders, Rakalam Bob Moses, Peter Bagley, Bob Labaree, David Venvetti, and all of you, really...
"Let me remind you that reality is an intertemporal, interdimensional, and intergalactic dance party. Remember? Yes, it's true! All of existence is a fantastic Kosmic fiesta to which everyone, everything, and everywhen is invited! Each of our lives is Divine Art, Divine Dance, Divine MUSIC. We are each a passing melody in the grand symphony entitled "Theme and Variations on the Big Bang". So enjoy and love yourself. Love your life. Love those around you. Cherish everyone and everything you meet in this life like one melody smiling at another as they weave along through the Great Contrapuntal Tapestry."
I am a New England-born composer, guitarist, singer, pianist...(ok, perhaps let's just say, 'artist' and be done with it!). Musically, I grew up on rock music, American 'oldies', church music, and Weird Al. I was trained in classical guitar by Mark Davis and Eliot Fisk and spent many years in music school learning the beautiful language of music. I try to integrate my musical inspirations (ie. Bach, Hendrix, Stravinsky, Tool, Renaissance music, Gregorian chant, flamenco, Afrobeat, classical Indian music, free jazz, great singer-songwriters...) with all the other experiences that inspire me in this life. Dance and movement have been a large inspiration recently, and I'm always inspired by any art form.
I primarily play fingerstyle guitar on both classical and acoustic guitars, on the rare 28-fret stereo-phonic electric-classical guitar that I helped design with luthier Carla Kelly, and on my own 'invention'- the 3 string guitar. My singing is inspired by rock, jazz, and folk singers and has been trained by many years of choral experience, 4 years of Hindustani singing, and, more recently, Turkish singing.
I'm grateful that I've had the opportunity to do a lot of performing in my life. I've played in Carnegie Hall with bluegrass pioneers Edgar Meyer and Mike Marshall, on the streets of Nashville, TN with the old blues gurus, at MIT with improvising movement artists Liz Roncka and Olivier Besson, in New England Conservatory's concert halls at Guitarfest as a soloist and with sitarist Peter Row, in the Northwest's vineyards with singer Jessyka Luzzi, and in clubs, colleges, and festivals up and down the East Coast with the award-winning Afrobeat ensemble The Superpowers.
I currently live in Boston and do outreach music education in Boston Public Schools. I'm planning a cross-country tour this summer in a vegetable oil-powered Mercedes Benz that was acquired with the help of the Green Grease Monkeys. Come fall a new life adventure in the Northwest awaits.
solo Sean Frenette (Elijah B) extravaganzas: solo guitar (classical, acoustic, electric), 3string guitar, songs, piano, flutes, loops, drums, audience participation, etc. Original and improvised music as well as compositions, recompositions, and tributes.
Music and Movement Improvisation: w/ movers Liz Roncka, Olivier Besson, Emily Beattie, Mindy, and the dancers from InterAlia (a Boston-based multi-discipline art ensemble); and musicians Jessyka Luzzi, Jane Wang, Grant Smith, Scott Hannigan, Jake Wise, and Yael Bat-Shimon from InterAlia.
Kalliope/Grit and Grace/?: duo with singer/cellist/improviser Jessyka Luzzi. Improvisations, songs, Renaissance, etc. TBN (To be named...). On tour this summer!
The Superpowers: afrobeat-inspired 21st century dance music. Also on tour this summer!
Classical Indian music: in the works, but has in the past included tabla players Kazi Kamal and Chris Pereji. I play sitar, 3string guitar, and sing. Hoping to work again with sitarist/bassist Josh Feinburg in Portland, OR.
School and outreach programs: free improv. with saxophonist Tom Arabia (Om Mudra) at the Home for Little Wanderers, "Around the World with the Violin" with violinist Shawpong Liu at schools, and "Around the World the Guitar" and "Sonic Inventions" in the works as a solo performance.
Sean Michael Frenette (Elijah B)'s Friend Space (Top 36)
just listened to an old recording of "vienna waterfalls" that you gave me about 6 years ago. still love it today! hope all is well with you, warmly, sar
Hey i just posted a new song! It's a little too quiet right now, but i'll fix that sometime soon. Drop by and let me know what you think! Thanks! -Alex
Oh yes! we must also cross crystal lake at least 4 times before july 1 Ahhhhh! and Sharada must be visited! My, I bet she's reciting the computational permutations of the golden ratio in relation to the human body by heart now.
Village Building Convergence! Hay house building, gray water oasis creating, native plant education eating, heart singing,Permaculture perfecting, mandala street painting, cob constructing, extatic dancing, potluck, community building Ahhhhh! I can't wait to share all this with you.
I talked to time tonight, asked her to hurry up. She said her hands were tied and that the coo coo had swallowed a cog. None the less, I am waiting patiently, agonizingly patient. Indeed only 10 more days, minutes, seconds. Oh heck! I can't divide time and I can't wait.
haha, mike hedges... check out his tune Rikki's Shuffle, he basically one up's bobby mcferrin with that one. To me, he's like the bobby mcferrin of the guitar, most people when they first hear him go "oh what a cheeseball" but he just so happens to be the most badass guitarist ever LOL... as far as a living goes, you're talking to the wrong guy. I work for the Greek Orthodox Cathedral... and I grew up in portland so I'm getting kind of sick of it! Anyway, I guess service industry, and try and temp while you look for work because rent is retarded here
wow... just wow. Your vocal phrasing is flooring. How do you know Christie? She's my homegirl!!! I have been pretty lazy with her though, I was supposed to send her these jazz duet arrangements I made for our upcoming session (hopefully) to record a great jazz guitar duo record, but that was about a month and a half ago. Life got in the way, and I don't know how to tell her besides saying that. LOL. BY THE WAY, I noticed there was no Mahler or Wagner on your classical list... ever gave those guys a chance? They are pretty long winded but well worth it
Good to be friends Sean Frenette, Elijah B, §. Enjoying your site!
I've just had a massive spring-clean and re-organised my main myspace site (click the image to visit). There's a new photo-shoot by the ace music photographer Martin Tomkins, new artwork, and links to items of interest. Including news of an exciting new collaberation in The Bath Fringe.
Come see what the mad scientist has been up to, and enjoy.
Ash :o)
p.s. My sounds-like section has always been a problem. A good friend recently said: "If one were to take a genetically spliced hybrid of Moondog, Tiny Tim, Ron Geesin, Bert Jansch and Peter Buck , placing them into a time slip going back to a surreal medieval folk/rock rave...you would then hear the sound of Ash Mandrake." (Sheer Zed)
beautiful artwork and atmosphere on this page, sean. it's always a treat when i wander by carla and jim's and you're there making musics. hope to run into you there some bright sunny day this summer :)
