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The title of John Favicchia's second independently released recording Dharma may first bring to mind a popular ABC sitcom, but that's just our pop culture talking. On a deeply spiritual level, "Dharma" is a Sanskrit word for one's purpose in life, the reason one is put on this earth. For the New York native and popular, well traveled jazz musician, that means playing the drums. Or more specifically, getting behind the skins with an amazing group of Big Apple musicians at a club or in the studio and playing his heart out. His well-received 1997 solo debut World Time earned rave reviews and was a critics pick for Top Ten of the year by Jazziz Magazine. On his dynamic follow-up Dharma, Favicchia expands upon the strengths of that recording-brilliant melodies, wondrous eclecticism and tight ensemble playing-with an even wider variety of stylistic excursions, an exciting array of all-star guests (Steve Khan, Chieli Minucci, Dean Brown, David Mann, Harvie Swartz,) and, most importantly, a greater showcase for his ever evolving skills as a timekeeper nonpareil. "I created my first record for the very simple reason that I was always moved so much listening to the music of other artists and I thought it would be exciting to share the music I'd been playing with more people the same way," says Favicchia. "Along the way I learned that the real joy is in the doing . World Time featured musicians who had played with Pat Metheny and as a result the album had a cool, Metheny-esque, be-boppish vibe. The concept behind Dharma was to be more contemporary, aggressive and upbeat. Last time, my drumming was mostly in the service of the whole ensemble, but here I wanted to play more aggressively, put more of my own stamp on it. There's a lot of diversity here, from world rhythms and Latin grooves to fusion and even smooth jazz, but it's all music that's close to my heart and it's wonderful to have the freedom on an indie project to express myself this way." For Favicchia, the key to creating Dharma was in finding great songs which worked melodically, harmonically, rhythmically and gave him room to either be featured prominently in the mix or find the perfect spots to do solos. "I wanted each song to have a different feel to it," he says. "Working with or using songs by a wide variety of writers with different approaches really made the tracking unique."
Several of John Favicchia's great uncles were well known trumpet players who played with legends like Benny Goodman, but the downside of their traveling musical lifestyles led the drummer's father to originally discourage his son's pursuing a career in music. Favicchia's Dharma won out, however, and in junior high, he saved enough money to wheel home in a shopping cart his first used drum kit; he was also by this time playing drums in the marching band in school. His influences soon shifted from progressive rockers like Rush to the jazz eclecticism of Chick Corea and versatile drumming of Steve Gadd. At 16, the Long Island native began studying drums with many private instructors and soon thereafter, he began an intense practice schedule which included many hours of private drum instruction from the top teachers in the country, as well as receiving his A.S. degree in Jazz - Commercial music from Five Towns College. At the same time, he was a drum instructor at the Long Island Drum Center and doing as many side club gigs as possible.
When not on the road, John resides in the New York area where he is engaged in many creative activities: playing in a Latin/Jazz group called Afro Dysia; doing gigs with Enee recording artist Natural Elements; leading his own Fusion band as well as his own Quintet; running his own music company called FAV MUSIC for which he books Jazz acts for all kinds of situations; and keeping a busy schedule as a freelance artist playing with the (Blue Note Recording Artist) Lonnie Plaxico, Inner Voice Band, Billy Eric Band, Destiny, and Primo. In the educational field, John has been teaching in his own studio as well as doing drum clinics world wide . Recent drum clinics for Vic Firth,LP, Sabian, Yamaha, Remo & Hansenfutz have been an East Coast Tour for Guitar Center, Quebec City Music in Quebec Canada, Drum Fest 2005, Slam Jam 05' , Drummers Collective NYC,Just Drums Toronto,Salem Music School Toronto. John has just completed a play along book and is working on a book about his "Elements" teaching concept. In the spirit of "Dharma" and his belief that we should all use our own individual gifts to help benefit others, a portion of each CD sale will go to cancer research. "In addition to all of the diverse musical situations I've been able to plug into and create during my career, the most rewarding thing for me is having the opportunity to meet new and different players all the time," Favicchia says. "I love playing with them live and it's been amazing to have the chance to document some of these performances now on disc. Working on Dharma has been an unbelievable journey, from building a small studio in my house to finding writers to write me songs in which I could express myself fully. I'm happiest when I'm playing, and it's so exciting to once again be able to share that joy in this way." For a complete discography, tour and clinic information, visit John online! | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||
John Favicchia's Bio, continued
