Rick Vandivier

Infobox musical artist
Background = non_vocal_instrumentalist
Instrument = Guitar
Name = Rick Vandivier

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Born = October 18th, 1954
Lima, Ohio, United States
Died =
Alias =
Genre = Jazz, Blues, Jazz Fusion
Associated_acts =
Label = Avatar Productions
Years_active = 1972 - present
Notable_instruments = [http://www.williecarterguitars.com Willie Carter 6-string acoustic] [http://sylvanmusic.com/inventory.php?function=search&search=classical%20guitar&instrument=classical%20guitar G Hernandez Classical Guitar]
URL =

Rick Vandivier (born October 18th, 1954 in Lima, Ohio) [ cite news |first= Andrew |last= Gilbert |title= "Main shading of Primary Colors is the blues" | |publisher= San Jose Mercury News |date= January 23, 2004 ] is an American jazz guitarist, composer and educator. He is the spirit and leader of [http://www.rickvandivier.com Vandivier] and the co-founder and lead guitarist of [http://www.primarycolorsmusic.com/index.html Primary Colors] , a group that evolved from the inspired pairing with vocalist [http://www.primarycolorsmusic.com/nate.html Nate Pruitt] .

Biography

Musical Roots and the Path

Like so many of the jazz greats of this era such as Pat Metheny, John Scofield and Mike Stern, Vandivier is a graduate of the prestigious Berklee College of Music in Boston [ cite news |first= Andrew |last= Gilbert |title= "Main shading of Primary Colors is the blues" | |publisher= San Jose Mercury News |date= January 23, 2004 ] . Vandivier is also a graduate of San Jose State University where he teaches guitar. In his formative years, in addition to private collaboration studies with Pat Metheny and Mick Goodrick,Vandivier took master classes with Christopher Parkening, [http://www.arkivmusic.com/classical/album.jsp?album_id=128754 Rey De La Torre] , [http://adams.mgh.harvard.edu/tigertunes/michael_lorimer_biog.html Michael Lorimer] , Michael Hedges, Tuck Andress and Manuel Barrueco.Over the years, Vandivier has evolved a wide ranging style that extends from pushing the limits of jazz guitar to applying his liquid style to the full spectrum of music from raw blues through bebop, Latin music and classical music all the way to the raging soul of Jimi Hendrix. Though known for the crystalline, glass-like purity of sound, Vandivier can also deftly work with the raw “power sound” of Eric Clapton, Jeff Beck and Jimi Hendrix.

Career Highlights

Vandivier's performing career has been highlighted by performances at Carnegie Hall, the Great American Music Hall and the Berlin Jazz Festival [ cite news |first= Jean |last= Bartlett |title= "Primary Colors struts out a new hue at the Sanchez Concert Hall" |publisher= Pacifica Tribune |date= February 7, 2001 ] in addition to the North Sea Jazz Festival in The Hague, Abidjan (Ivory Coast, Africa) the Lyric Opera of Chicago, the Wilshire Theater in Los Angeles, the [http://www.berkleebpc.com Berklee Performance Center] in Boston, and the American Conservatory Theater in San Francisco, the Seattle Opera House, and the Metropolitan Museum of Art. Artists he has performed with include [http://www.metroactive.com/papers/cruz/04.25.01/dobson-0117.html Smith Dobson] , Albert "Tootie" Heath, [http://www.bruceforman.com/ Bruce Forman] , John Handy, Mose Allison, David Grisman, Richie Cole, and Dr. Lonnie Smith. He has also performed with the orchestras of the [http://www.amtsj.org/ American Musical Theater of San Jose] , Opera San Jose, and [http://www.theatreworks.org/ TheatreWorks] .

Primary Colors

Vandivier and Nate Pruitt achieved growing recognition in the 1980’s in [http://www.primarycolorsmusic.com/review_002.html A Little Night Music] , a South Bay sextet led by keyboardist Ed Manning. That group appeared at a number of international jazz festivals and recorded two albums - Late One Night (1983) (includes [http://www.mattfinders.com Matt Finders] and Tuck and Patti) and Sitting Ducks (1985).

During the period Vandivier was with Night Music, he and Pruitt worked with other musicians and experimented with different groupings [http://www.primarycolorsmusic.com/review_004.html (1)] . Over the years, a deep musical connection and friendship evolved between Vandivier and Pruitt. One of their musical pairings solidified into a group called Threesome with the wellknown bassist [http://www.santana.com/players/benny.asp Benny Rietveld] [ cite news |first= Andrew |last= Gilbert |title= Jazz combo stays flexible |url= |work= |publisher= San Jose Mercury News |date= January 13, 2006 |accessdate=2008-01-18 ] , best known for his work with Santana and Miles Davis. In 1994 they took the name Primary Colors and recorded the bands 1999 debut album, “We Know How ItFeels” (Avatar Productions).

The music of Primary Colors embraces a wide range of musical styles. In this group, Vandivier pushes the limits by bringing his deep experience with experimental [http://www.primarycolorsmusic.com/review_004.html jazz guitar] into a seemless fusion with blues and soul tradition and even swing, Latin and inspirational. Vandivier has performed at Carnegie Hall, the Berlin Jazz Festival and the Great American Music Hall. Nate Pruitt has recorded with, among others Quincy Jones, Dave Brubeck, Dizzy Gillespie.

tudio Work

Vandivier is often called to bring that "special touch" to recording sessions for new CDs. Recent examples are [http://www.allaboutjazz.com/reviews/r0502_078.htm Ed Johnson] , [http://www.allaboutjazz.com/php/article.php?id=10943 Niki Rejto] , [http://www.allaboutjazz.com/php/article.php?id=26197 Alexa Weber Morales] , [http://www.allaboutjazz.com/php/article.php?id=23870 Kat Parra] and the work of Grammy nominee [http://www.raquelbitton.com/default.asp Raquel Bitton] .

elected Discography

* 1983 Late One Night - "A Little Night Music"
* 1985 Sitting Ducks - "A Little Night Music"
* 1994 House of Doors - "Ed Johnson"
* 2000 We Know How It Feels - "Primary Colors"
* 2002 Over That Wave - "Ed Johnson"
* 2003 Every Mother's Son - "Primary Colors"
* 2004 Spirit of the Room - "Rick Vandivier with John Stowell"
* 2007 Birds in Flight - "Kat Parra"
* 2007 Vagabundeo - "Alexa Weber Morales"
* 2008 Azucar De Amor - "Kat Parra"
* 2008 Vandivier - "Rick Vandivier"

References

External links

Rick Vandivier Webpage [http://www.rickvandivier.com] Primary Colors Webpage [http://www.primarycolorsmusic.com]