Back at the Allison this weekend

I'm very happy to announce that I will be playing this weekend on the beautiful Allison grand piano: Friday and Saturday 5-9 p.m.  Bring your list of favorite song requests. Check my calendar for more dates in March, including the last two weekends.  I hope you can drop in. 

Summer 2022 Update

 Greetings. 

I guess once a year, the least I can do is update my calendar and blog. School is out, and my performance schedule is filling up.

You can still find me at the Allison Inn & Spa a couple nights a week, Thursdays through Saturdays. 5:30-9:30 (check the calendar for specific dates).

This Wednesday I will be at Arrivederci with my talented friend, Heather Lindaman. Showtime is from 7-9 p.m.

Send me email requests at: gapappelis@aol.com

I hope to see you one of these nights.

Fridays at the Allison Inn Spa Living Room Grand

Greetings, all. 

After a full year away from public performance (like everyone else), I am happy to announce that I will be playing at the Allison Inn Spa in Newberg on Friday evenings from 5:30 to 9:30 p.m.  Their "Living Room" grand is excellent, and the room's atmosphere is elegant and refined. 

Check their website for more information and directions. Hopefully, I'll see you there.

Gus

Disneyland Golden Horseshoe Jamboree (very early treatment - again if you are looking for something different)

Safeyoutube link:

Disneyland Golden Horseshoe Jamboree (early treatment)

Many years ago, in a galaxy far, far away (California)...

I helped write a live stage show for Disneyland and Walt Disney World.  Here is a wonderful memory of a long running favorite, The Golden Horseshoe Jamboree (The Diamond Horseshoe Jamboree in Florida). Marilyn Magness was the show's director and choreographer. I was the  musical director and was in charge of writing and arranging the show. The Golden Horseshoe Jamboree title song was our original collaboration.

This particular video is one of the earliest versions of the show which underwent adjustments and fine tuning as it ran in the theme parks for many years. It is great to see this early treatment. I hope it brings a smile to you, too.  gp

Sanrio Puroland Christmas Show (if your are looking for something different)

Safeyoutube link:

Sanrio Puroland Christmas Show

Here is the Christmas Show in its Sanrio Puroland (Tokyo) version. I haven't heard this in 30 years. The show was directed and choreographed by Baayork Lee (of A Chorus Line original cast fame) and Matt West (of A Chorus Line movie fame). The musical director (arrangements and studio production) was by yours truly. MelloMacs should especially get a kick out of this. Maybe we can learn the show in Japanese. gp

Our first summer surprise: Blues Pianist Eric Adcock graces the Portland City Grill

I am amazed at how quickly the months fly by. It's summer! Time for some fun...

We all had a delightful surprise last night at the Portland City Grill.  Eric Adcock, New Orleans Blues pianist extraordinaire, is in town performing with Roddie Romero & the Hub City All-Stars in the Portland Blues Festival (in fact, they play today at 4:10 and 8:20 p.m.)  Eric and his wonderful wife, Jennifer, stopped by to enjoy the PCG atmosphere and view last night.  I knew exactly how to handle that situation: put him to work on our Yamaha Grand.  Thanks, Eric, for sitting in for a couple tunes. The music was sublime.  Let's do it again some time soon (maybe tomorrow night, if you're still in town). Have fun at the Festival, and have fun visiting to our fair city. Maybe we can make it down to New Orleans and see you there.

If you are in the neighborhood, I'll be playing Sunday at the PCG from 5-8 p.m.

Summer Thoughts - continued

While I'm reminiscing over my musical journey, I want to take time to thank another inspiration figure in my college experience, Mike Hanes, the long-time musical director of the SIU's Summer Music Theater program, member of the School of Music faculty, and fearless leader of the infamous Marching Salukis.    Now retired, Mike was truly an energetic educator in all the years that I knew him.  For many years, he directed many of the musical productions for SIU.  There were many Jr. and Sr. high school summers days which found me in the back of McLoed Theater observing rehearsals and performances, soaking in the magic that is music for the theater. In those days, the McLoed Summer Playhouse program would produce up to four Broadway musicals in two months! Every weekend there would be a musical or Broadway play. It was great for me.  I already loved the Broadway repertoire, and now I was able to watch each show come together, piece by piece: music, actors, sets, lights, everything.  I also was able to watch performances and see the reaction of the audience to each of the elements of the shows.  What a great opportunity for me.  As a high school junior, I was hired to play piano for SIU's production of Oh, What a Lovely War in that same McLoed Theater.  I already felt quite at home as part of the production in that space.  Many more shows would see me in the orchestra pit or on stage as part of the action.

As an undergrad student, my first year days were spread all over SIU's beautiful campus.  I was a science and math major my first two years (in fact my Bachelors degree is in cellular biology).  I would crisscross campus with my chemistry, physics, biology, and calculus books.  At the same time, I was also selected to play piano for the SIU Women's Gymnastic Team by coached Herb Vogel.  Their practices took place in the SIU Arena.  I could often hear the Marching Salukis practicing outside the Arena readying music and marching routines for the upcoming football games. Somehow, I was encouraged to join the band as their marching grand piano player (picture a small, hollowed-out grand piano with an electric keyboard inside and mounted on wheels).  I'm not sure if this was the first year of the marching band grand, but it could have been.  It was a blast. The Marching Salukis were a lively and sometimes mildly wild group of fun-loving musicians.  Their musical director and musical performance guru: Mike Hanes.

By my very good fortune, Mike Hanes was assigned as chairman of my Masters committee in the School of Music.  He mentored my graduate level studies as I studied music for the theater and Gershwin's use of the Jazz idiom in Porgy and Bess.  It was Mike who encouraged me to take up the directing baton and strengthen my skills as a conductor and, consequently, as a composer and arranger.  One of my master's projects was to musical direct SIU's production of Frank Loesser's Hans Christian Anderson. The many skills that Mike helped me develop in my musical repertoire all came together. I didn't know then that in just a year's time I would be using all of those many directing and performance skills in Los Angeles.  I remain very thankful to have had the chance to work with the very talented and inspiring Mike Hanes as part of my career preparation.