Redeemer Evangelical Lutheran Church - New Paltz

February 5th, 2012 is sure to be a memorable music afternoon.  The Bernstein Bard Trio and Brian Melick are back, but the group has grown by one.  They're now a quintet! Join us for an afternoon of incredible music, and relax a bit before the Superbowl festivities!

The Bernstein Bard Trio, brothers Mark and Steve on guitar and mandolin and Robert Bard on upright bass, have been playing and recording together since 2004. Their 13 song debut CD "We'll Know When We Get There", includes fiddler Jay Ungar, clarinetist Peter Davis, percussionist Brian Melick and Steve Gorn on bamboo flute. Their newest offering, "Center of the Wheel" was just released in April of 2009 and also includes Brian Melick, Peter Davis, singing bowl player Amy McTear, and violinist Michael Snow.  Both CD's can be found at www.cdbaby.com or at one the band's performances. Currently incorporating classic styles from around the world, their repertoire includes Italian mazurkas, tangos, Irish fiddle tunes, popular and traditional melodies, Latin, Swing and Jazz, and some of their own tunes. The Bernstein Bard Trio is available to play for any occasion. Visit their website, www.bernsteinbardtrio.com, for more information.

Guitarist, Mark Bernstein also plays bass and has performed with such artists as Willie Nelson, The Oakridge Boys, Boots Randolph and Mel Tillis. Playing with the jazz quartet, "Avenues," he has shared the stage with Grover Washington, the Brecker Brothers, Dave Valentine, Kenny Rankin and Bela Fleck.  Mark toured for five years with the ten-time Grammy Award winning Jimmy Sturr Orchestra and maintains an active teaching practice in addition to performing with the BB Trio.

Mandolinist, Steve Bernstein also plays guitar and mandola.  He has played folk and country blues guitar with the "Bear Brothers Band," rock and reggae electric mandolin with "Quallah Battoo," and folk with "Shot of Redemption," and "The Jay Mankita Trio." Steve also plays solo Italian mandolin, plays in Carlo Aonzo's mandolin orchestra, records in Metropolitan area studios, writes songs, and teaches. Steve is also the conductor of the Mountain Laurel Waldorf School's Recorder Ensemble.

Bassist, Robert Bard has studied music theory and composition at Mannes School of Music and jazz at Jazzmobile, both in New York City.  He worked for fifteen years as a composer and music director for CBS-TV and has been nominated for eight Emmy awards during that time. He arrived in New Paltz ten years ago and has performed with many regional Hudson Valley bands. He also has produced and recorded countless artists at Skytop Sound, his production and recording company.

Percussionist, Brian Melick (pictured right) has been actively involved with music for the past thirty years and has developed a wide range of experience as a drummer, multi hand percussionist, and as an educator. He has been a featured artist on over 300 commercially recorded works and has been produced by major as well as independent record companies. His drumming and percussion activities have included recording and performing along with several independent, as well as major, artists and producers. Education has always been very important to him-both sharing and receiving. This has resulted in the formation of an educational program guide which includes group involvement workshops, lectures, master class, and individual instruction. The environment for him and his educational offerings runs the gamut-from
toddler-age children to senior citizens, from day camps, schools, universities, community-based programs to working with professional music therapists and educators. The focus for him has always been to get the participants physically involved by playing the different instruments.  It is very important to him to pass on as many good things as he can to help share, support, encourage, and even inspire those who come into contact with him.  Visit www.uduboy.com for more information about Brian Melick.

Violinist, Michael Snow (pictured left) has an extremely varied musical background. His first instrument was the piano, and he went on to the banjo, the mandolin, the guitar, and the violin, which soon became his main instrument. His passion for expanding his musical boundaries led him from studying with third-stream artist Ran Blake at New England Conservatory of Music, to Yale University as a music major, to jazz violinists Julie Lyonn Lieberman in New York City and John Blake in Philadelphia, to the Bhatkhande School of Music in Lucknow, India (where he studied North Indian classical music on the sarangi, a violin-like bowed instrument). At City College in San Francisco, he studied composition with Jerry Mueller and jazz arranging with David Hardiman. He has been a regular member of dozens of musical ensembles of all sorts - jazz, swing, country, bluegrass, classical, contra dance, rock, fusion, free improv, blues, avant garde, tango, and more; has recorded for records, CDs, demos, film, and TV; has performed for modern dance classes; and has taught privately for over 30 years. He is also the co-creator and webmaster of StringsCentral.com, an online resource for alternative (non-classical) string music charts, arrangements, CDs, books, and videos. Michael currently performs regularly with the Metropolitan Hot Club, the Bernstein Bard trio, and various bluegrass and avant garde ensembles.