Member Since: 17/05/2006
Band Website: www.myspace.com/innocentassassins
Band Members:
ALESSANDRO DHANI DEANGELIS WAS BORN IN PARIS, FRANCE IN 1978. AT THE AGE OF 7, HE ENROLLED AT THE NICE CONSERVATORY OF MUSIC IN THE SOUTH OF FRANCE. HE SPENT 6 YEARS STUDYING CLASSICAL PIANO AND MUSIC THEORY. THIS TRAINING WAS INSTRUMENTAL IN BEING AWARDED 5 NATIONAL PRIZES IN CLASSICAL PIANO INCLUDING THE RADIO FRANCE AWARD, CLAUDE KAHN COMPETITION AMONG OTHERS. THESE LED TO PERFORMANCES IN NICE, MARSEILLES AND PARIS AT THE SALLE GAVEAU ONE OF CHOPIN'S HAUNTING GROUNDS. AT THE AGE OF 12, ALESSANDRO MOVED WITH HIS MOTHER, WHO HERSELF TAUGHT JAZZ DANCE IN FRANCE FOR 10 YEARS WITH EXPERIENCE UNDER ALVIN AILEY AND RUDOLPH NUREYEV, TO NEW JERSEY. HE CONTINUED PIANO LESSONS IN PHILADELPHIA UNDER LYDIA RUSSO AND PLAYED COMPETITIVE TENNIS IN HIGH SCHOOL. HE PARTICIPATED IN THE SUMMER ARTS INSTITUTE @ RUTGERS UNIVERSITY PERFORMING LIVE PIECES OF MUSIC ACCOMPANYING CHOREOGRAPHED DANCE. HE ALSO PLAYED AND ACCOMPANIED SINGERS IN VARIOUS HIGH SCHOOL PLAYS. aT AGE 20, HE MOVED TO ORLANDO, FL TO PURSUE A COLLEGE EDUCATION IN LIBERAL ARTS FOCUSING IN MUSIC TECHNOLOGY. IN 2000, WHILE STUDYING MIDI, HE WON A SCHOLARSHIP THROUGH NYU TO STUDY FILM MUSIC IN FLORENCE, ITALY UNDER BRADE ZIVCOVIC. THE ARTISTIC ATMOSPHERE OF FLORENCE INFLUENCED HIM TREMENDOUSLY ESPECIALLY A SHORT STAY IN THE TUSCAN TOWN OF MONTELCINO IN A COMMUNE FOUNDED BY HARVARD GRADUATES. HE APPEARED IN TWO SHORT FILMS BY NYU STUDENTS AS AN ACTOR. IN 2001, ALESSANDRO STARTED WRITING MUSIC SCORES FOR UCF (UNIVERSITY OF CENTRAL FLORIDA) STUDENTS INCLUDING A WINNING INDEPENDENT COMEDY SHORT AT THE ATLANTIC CITY INDEPENDENT FILM FESTIVAL. DURING THIS TIME, HE PLAYED IN VARIOUS MUSICAL OUTFITS IN CENTRAL FLORIDA. A TRIP TO JAMAICA THAT SAME YEAR SPARKED AN INTEREST IN REGGAE AND CARIBBEAN MUSIC WHICH HE LATER USED IN THE GROUP JAMMIN WITH TRINIDAD CARNIVAL QUEEN SHIRLANE HENDERSON AT THE HELM. A PERFORMANCE FOR AIR JAMAICA AT THE HARD ROCK LIVE WAS THE PINNACLE OF THAT GROUP BEFORE BREAKING UP. JAZZ WAS ALSO AN INFLUENCE PICKED UP IN AMERICA, FIRST EXPERIENCE BEING THE PIANO PLAYER FOR THE WIZ WITH A FULL JAZZ BAND AT THE AGE OF 15. IN 2002, ALESSANDRO FORMED HIS WORLD MUSIC GROUP YANBO WITH WHICH HE HAS PERPETUALLY BEEN PERFORMING UNTIL THE PRESENT. THIS MUSIC COLLECTIVE FOCUSES ON PUSHING THE BOUNDARIES OF IMPROVISATIONAL INNOVATIONS. YANBO HAS APPEARED AT THE GLOBAL PEACE FILM FESTIVAL IN 2006, AT THE ORLANDO LATIN FILM FESTIVAL IN 2005,2006,2007, AT THE DOWNTOWN MEDIA ARTS CENTER AND VARIOUS OTHER EVENTS IN THE CENTARL FLORIDA AREA. SINCE 2002, ALESSANDRO DE ANGELIS HAS TRAVELED TO SYRIA, LEBANON AND JORDAN STUDYING THE ARABIC LANGUAGE AND CIVILIZATION WHERE HE WAS FIRST EXPOSED TO MIDDLE EASTERN MUSIC. ALSO A CROSS-COUNTRY TRIP IN 2004-2005 ACROSS THE SOUTHERN UNITED STATES BROADENED THE MUSICAL INFLUENCES OF AMERICAN FOLK MUSIC. ALESSANDRO DE ANGELIS ENTERED A TROUBADOUR PHASE PLAYING MOSTLY GUITAR AND FLUTE ACROSS CALIFORNIA, ARIZONA, NEW MEXICO, TEXAS, LOUISIANA AND FLORIDA. THIS INCLUDED PLAYING THE STREETS OF CITIES AND RURAL AREAS. HE PLAYED AT THE MERCURY CAFE AND THE MOZART LOUNGE IN DENVER, PERFORMED WEEKLY BEFORE FILM SCREENINGS @ SPONTO'S GALLERY IN VENICE BEACH. VENICE BEACH WAS A VERY ARTISTIC PHASE FOCUSING AWAY FROM THE EDUCATIONAL FORMAT INTO A MORE REALISTIC HANDS-ON APPROACH. THIS RESULTED IN SONGWRITING AND POETRY. HE LIVED FOR 4 MONTHS ON A ROOFTOP WHILE SELLING BOOKS DURING THE DAY. BACK FROM HIS TRAVELS, HE SETTLED IN MIAMI IN 2006 FOR A FEW MONTHS AND JOINED JAHFE AS LEAD KEYBOARDIST. GIGS INCLUDED TOBACCO ROAD, MIAMI'S OLDEST BAR AND AN EVENT FOR HAITI OPPOSITION PARTY. ALESSANDRO THEN RETURNED TO ORLANDO TO FINISH HIS COLLEGE DEGREE WHILE PERFORMING STEADILY WITH YANBO AND HIS NEW LIVE ELECTRONICA SET CALLED INNOCENT ASSASSINS. HE JOINED LOCAL GROUP THE WINDHAM GROUP AS HOUSE BAND FOR BLOW SUNDAYS EVENT EACH WEEK IN 2007 @ TANQUERAY'S IN DOWNTOWN ORLANDO. ALSO A SHORT STINT WITH THE HIGH MINISTERS OF FUNK INCLUDED GIGS @ 11-12 LOUNGE, THE BLACK STUDENTS LAW ASSOCIATION EVENT AND CLUB KOHA IN EATONVILLE. A WEEKLY JAZZ JAM @ NATURA COFFEE AND TEA LED BY ABEL AVELOS HAS BEEN A REGULAR PLACE OF PERFORMANCE. AMIDST ALL THESE EXPERIENCES, ALESSANDRO DE ANGELIS HAS ALSO FOUND TIME TO COMPOSE WORKS FOR PIANO, GUITAR AND POETRY. HE IS CURRENTLY WORKING ON AN ADAPTATION OF PABLO NERUDA'S "TWENTY LOVE POEMS AND A SONG OF DESPAIR" FOR PIANO AND VOICE. ALESSANDRO DE ANGELIS IS SURELY TO BE A MUSICAL DIAMOND IN THE ROUGH TO RECKON WITH FOR A TIME TO COME ON AN INTERNATIONAL LEVEL.
QUESTIONS OR BOOKING INFO CAN BE ADRESSED BY CONTACTING ALESSANDRO AT [email protected] tunnel of eternity
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Influences:
Music with groove and texture, classical, jazz, blues, r&B, house, downbeat, samba, afro-beat, middle eastern, indian, jungle. influenced by literature, poetry and most of all life experience. "There's only two kinds of music : GOOD and BAD." Duke Ellington. "You Play what you experience in life" Charlie 'Bird" Parker.
Sounds Like: nothing else around, remnants of world styles fused into a modern amalgamation of ethnic tones weaved into a unified music bridging cultures.
Record Label: Yanbo Musik Collective www.myspace.com/yanbomusic