Jim Bruno:
All the things we anticipate in our lives start off as something that’s going to happen in the future, something that becomes the present and finally becomes in the past. And so it went with Stick Night, the Stickband Reunion night – September 23, 2017. I spent quite a while preparing for the Stick Night reunion show in L.A., and it was really a great show and a lot of fun.
The format for the show was to have each performer or group (Stickband) perform two songs before moving on to the next performer. We did that all night long – two songs for Emmett, two songs for Don Schiff, two songs for Stickband and two songs for Bob Culbertson and Rick Allegria. Then we started it all over again.
We’re just now getting around to posting videos from the show, and we’re starting off with a piece Emmett, Rick and I performed (don’t worry, the Stickband videos are coming). I enjoyed it a lot because I was able to leave the Stick duties to Emmett and focus on another musical love of mine – the electric horn.
Look for more videos soon, as we get ready for the second Reunion show in October in San Jose, California!
On September 23, 2017, at the first Stickband reunion in Canoga Park, Ca, original Stickband members Bob Cooper, Jim Bruno and Bob Culbertson sat down with Emmett Chapman, the creator of the instrument, for a rare interview to discuss the history of the Chapman Stick.
A quick and dirty video of the three founding members of stickband getting together for the first time in 30 years, getting a feel for long lost songs. It came together pretty quickly, actually, as we know the songs and each other so well.
Jim Bruno, Emmett Chapman and Rick Alegria took the stage at Stick Night to play a jazz piece.