Alex DePue
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Alex DePue

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"Alex DePue The Fiddler - CD Review"

Alex DePue
The Fiddler
by Craig Yerkes

If red-hot fiddling is what you're after, believe me, you'll get it en masse on The Fiddler by Alex DePue. If this artist were paid by the note, he would be a millionaire by now. Alex DePue is, without question, an amazingly accomplished technician on his instrument, capable of doing things with his violin that seem almost humanly impossible (listen to the triplets he plays on 'Blackberry Blossom' and 'Oklahoma Stomp' ridiculous!). To add to his mystique, the man also plays guitar, mandolin, bass, and percussion on this disc, with the same brand of fiery virtuosity. I listened before I read the liner notes and when one of the guitar solos came up, I was thinking that the artist got a really great guitarist to help him out, but then I looked at the sleeve and saw that it was DePue himself playing the guitar solo, dang! With the superior technical skills of DePue firmly established, let's move on to the more intangible aspects of The Fiddler.

If you read DePue's bio, you will see that he has won numerous fiddling contests/awards (not surprisingly). I think that the key to whether or not this music will turn you on depends on how much you enjoy instrumental competitions and/or recitals. There is a fine line between music performed for the purpose of elevating the music itself and music that is performed primarily for the purpose of showcasing the abilities of a virtuoso instrumentalist. For the most part, this recording made me feel like I was listening to a series of individual demo tapes that very impressively feature the dazzling chops of a master musician. There is certainly nothing lacking in the area of song choices (a few cool originals and a bunch of sure-fire covers) as the artist throws in all of the types of tunes that fiddle lovers want to hear (rags, hot country swing, waltzes, jazz standards, and teary ballads). There is also nothing lacking in the production values (well, maybe too much reverb on the violin from time to time). So, what IS lacking? To be fair, you may find nothing lacking at all here, but what I heard seemed more about musicianship as opposed to music. DePue's playful original 'Sunday Drive' (playing all the instruments) and the beautiful closer 'Nobody Ever Sings My Song' were my two favorite tracks as they seemed to veer away from that 'showcase' approach the most. On the closer, in particular, there's a much more relaxed, subtle feel in the playing that didn't come off like it was in 'fiddle competition mode.' I would have liked to hear more material done with that feel, but we are firmly in the realm of personal taste here and probably most of the people who listen to this disc wouldn't make such micro distinctions. It's my job as a music reviewer to dig in a little harder, but I don't want to stray too far away from the fact that Alex DePue is a fiddler of the highest order and if you have a fever for the hottest fiddling you're likely to hear anywhere, you're going to like this disc a lot more than you liked reading this review! - The San Diego Troubadour


"Alex DePue The Fiddler - CD Review"

Alex DePue
The Fiddler
by Craig Yerkes

If red-hot fiddling is what you're after, believe me, you'll get it en masse on The Fiddler by Alex DePue. If this artist were paid by the note, he would be a millionaire by now. Alex DePue is, without question, an amazingly accomplished technician on his instrument, capable of doing things with his violin that seem almost humanly impossible (listen to the triplets he plays on 'Blackberry Blossom' and 'Oklahoma Stomp' ridiculous!). To add to his mystique, the man also plays guitar, mandolin, bass, and percussion on this disc, with the same brand of fiery virtuosity. I listened before I read the liner notes and when one of the guitar solos came up, I was thinking that the artist got a really great guitarist to help him out, but then I looked at the sleeve and saw that it was DePue himself playing the guitar solo, dang! With the superior technical skills of DePue firmly established, let's move on to the more intangible aspects of The Fiddler.

If you read DePue's bio, you will see that he has won numerous fiddling contests/awards (not surprisingly). I think that the key to whether or not this music will turn you on depends on how much you enjoy instrumental competitions and/or recitals. There is a fine line between music performed for the purpose of elevating the music itself and music that is performed primarily for the purpose of showcasing the abilities of a virtuoso instrumentalist. For the most part, this recording made me feel like I was listening to a series of individual demo tapes that very impressively feature the dazzling chops of a master musician. There is certainly nothing lacking in the area of song choices (a few cool originals and a bunch of sure-fire covers) as the artist throws in all of the types of tunes that fiddle lovers want to hear (rags, hot country swing, waltzes, jazz standards, and teary ballads). There is also nothing lacking in the production values (well, maybe too much reverb on the violin from time to time). So, what IS lacking? To be fair, you may find nothing lacking at all here, but what I heard seemed more about musicianship as opposed to music. DePue's playful original 'Sunday Drive' (playing all the instruments) and the beautiful closer 'Nobody Ever Sings My Song' were my two favorite tracks as they seemed to veer away from that 'showcase' approach the most. On the closer, in particular, there's a much more relaxed, subtle feel in the playing that didn't come off like it was in 'fiddle competition mode.' I would have liked to hear more material done with that feel, but we are firmly in the realm of personal taste here and probably most of the people who listen to this disc wouldn't make such micro distinctions. It's my job as a music reviewer to dig in a little harder, but I don't want to stray too far away from the fact that Alex DePue is a fiddler of the highest order and if you have a fever for the hottest fiddling you're likely to hear anywhere, you're going to like this disc a lot more than you liked reading this review! - The San Diego Troubadour


"Steve Vai comments on Alex DePue"

Alex
"So many wonderfully talented violin players came down and the choice was very difficult. But Alex’s sound was so sweet and at the same time so ballsy, (that’s a technical term). He has ferocious chops and his intonations blends seamlessly with my guitar. Another lucky find for me." - From Vai.com


"Steve Vai comments on Alex DePue"

Alex
"So many wonderfully talented violin players came down and the choice was very difficult. But Alex’s sound was so sweet and at the same time so ballsy, (that’s a technical term). He has ferocious chops and his intonations blends seamlessly with my guitar. Another lucky find for me." - From Vai.com


"Richard Greene On Alex DePue"

"Wow! He truly is the best!" - Richard Greene - Personal Email


"Richard Greene On Alex DePue"

"Wow! He truly is the best!" - Richard Greene - Personal Email


"Associated Press"

"His peers can only dream of playing the things that he can play on Fiddle"
- Associated Press


"Fiddle Me This..."

fiddle me this …
alex depue
It’s likely that Alex DePue wound up with a violin under his chin due to circumstance. With a concert pianist for a mom and a professor of music for a dad, he began classical training at age 5. By age 10, DePue had already won a major competition in his home state of Ohio, and at 14 he earned the honor of performing at Carnegie Hall with the National Guild Youth Orchestra, under the direction of Joseph Silverstein.

As one of four brothers (all of whom study and practice music professionally today), DePue says his childhood was quite a dichotomy. “During the year we were classical musicians, but every summer my father would pack us up and head to nearby bluegrass and fiddling festivals. It was a real shock to go from the snooty world of classical musicians to redneck land.” Obviously it was the down-and-dirty, no-holds-barred style of fiddling that struck a chord with

DePue, who is making a career out of “classical grass” music today.
DePue’s professional accomplishments are lengthy — and growing. With championship titles across the U.S., he was rated one of the nation’s top 10 at the Grand Masters Fiddling Championship in Nashville, and is the 2007 California State Fiddling Championship winner. As musical director for Capitol Records recording artist Chris Cagle, DePue has regularly performed with Cagle at the Grand Ole Opry, and on TV channels such as Country Music Television and VH1 Country.

After years of touring around the country, San Diego is now home to the 34-year-old. In addition to working on his second album (consisting of all original arrangements and compositions), DePue recently accepted a sub position with the San Diego Chamber Orchestra. For local enthusiasts looking to catch an intimate performance, DePue is known to grace the stage at Lestat’s coffee house in Normal Heights.

The recent buzz regarding DePue’s rock ‘n’ roll style of fiddling is his video on YouTube.com, which was the No. 1 featured clip on March 26 with 380,000 hits. The video, recorded by DePue’s manager Chris Richards of Six Palms Presents, shows the fiddler at a recent show playing Yes’ song “Owner of a Lonely Heart” and Michael Jackson’s “Smooth Criminal.”

So what’s next? While the temptation is there, don’t expect DePue to take on a lazy, Southern California beachcomber’s way of life. Aside from his solo career, he continues to collaborate, arrange music and perform with the DePue Brothers, made up of his older brother, Wallace Jr., and younger brothers, Jason and Zachary. - 944 Magazine


"Two Minutes Of Fame..."



More Features news
INTO VIEW
Two minutes of fame on YouTube ...

... multiplied by a million or so hits lands violinist Alex DePue a shot at stardom
By George Varga
UNION-TRIBUNE POP MUSIC CRITIC

June 17, 2007

Violin virtuoso Alex DePue has distinguished himself in country, bluegrass, rock, swing and classical music, with his Carnegie Hall debut coming when he was just 14. But this Ohio-born, Rancho Santa Fe-based musician's national profile really took off after he played an open mic night Nov. 11 at Lestat's, the tiny Normal Heights venue that has a seating capacity of just 50.


STEVE COVAULT
The competition was intense, but San Diego's Alex DePue is now the violinist in guitar star Steve Vai's new band. "He has ferocious chops," Vai said. "Another lucky find for me."
His classically-tinged solo violin medley of “Owner of a Lonely Heart” by the English prog-rock band Yes and Michael Jackson's “Smooth Criminal” was filmed at Lestat's by Chris Richards, his friend and manager. Richards posted the barely two-minute clip on YouTube three days later, and the response was dizzying.

“It got 80,000 hits in the first week,” a still incredulous DePue recalled last week. “Now, it's up to over 781,000 hits on YouTube alone. If you include the other Web sites that have posted it, like break.com and iFilm.com, and add them up, we've had 1.5 million viewings.”

One of those viewings came last month in the Los Angeles management office of rock guitar star Steve Vai, who was then auditioning violinists for his new touring band.

Vai rose to fame in Frank Zappa's group in the early 1980s, then worked with everyone from Joe Jackson and David Lee Roth to Ry Cooder and Tony Williams. On the basis of his YouTube video, DePue was invited to audition after he learned three Vai compositions, including the violin feature “Sparks and Shadows.”

DePue,34, got the gig. He begins a monthlong European tour with Vai June 28 in Luxembourg, followed by a two-month North American concert trek that includes a Sept. 10 date in Alpine.

“The rehearsals are very demanding and very rewarding,” DePue said from a Burbank soundstage, where he has been preparing for the tour under Vai's strict supervision. “It's a 21/2-hour show and we rehearse at least nine hours a day, six days a week. And I spend three to four hours rehearsing by myself each day before I even show up for the band rehearsals with Steve. I'm learning so much from him.”

Vai is a stern taskmaster, but DePue welcomes the challenge. One of four violin-playing sons of a concert pianist mother and classical music professor father, he was only 10 when he won a concerto competition and performed with the Bowling Green State University Orchestra.

He discovered rock music the same year, thanks to one of his mother's Beach Boys' albums, then became enamored with bluegrass and the work of French jazz violin pioneer Stephane Grappelli. His diverse tastes are showcased on his self-produced 12-song “Live” album, which features him performing everything from “A Maiden's Prayer” by Western Swing legend Bob Wills and a traditional Hungarian folk-dance number to a jazzy version of “Mr. Sandman” and a quicksilver excerpt from Beethoven's Violin Concerto.

Beginning in 2000, DePue spent six years in Nashville as the musical director in country singer Chris Cagle's band. In 1999 and 2005, he won first place in the Walnut Valley National Fiddling Contest in Kansas. Earlier this year, he won first place in the California State Old Time Fiddlers Association's annual competition.

Lured by the weather, DePue moved to San Diego last fall, with a suitcase in one hand and his violin case in the other. Nearly broke, he quickly took matters into his own hands.

“I put on my wrinkled tuxedo and went up and down Fifth Avenue in the Gaslamp Quarter, shaking hands with restaurant owners, until this wonderful Italian man let me come into Asti Ristorante and play for his customers for tips,” DePue recalled. “On a good night, along with CD sales, you can do very well just playing for tips.”

The pending tour with Vai will introduce him to an international audience beyond YouTube, and DePue hopes to work with the guitarist indefinitely. As for his future goals, he has a glittery vision.

“I'd be very comfortable in Las Vegas doing a 'violin freak show,' ” DePue said. “Every single style possible on the instrument would be exposed during the show so I could bridge the gap between people who are fans of only one style. I would also involve elements of magic and illusion. I've always had this dream where, in the middle of a slow, sexy, swing song, I let go of my silver bow and watch it float up in the air around me, with no visible strings attached.”

George Varga: (619) 293-2253; george.varga@uniontrib.com - San Diego Union-Tribune


"Two Minutes Of Fame..."



More Features news
INTO VIEW
Two minutes of fame on YouTube ...

... multiplied by a million or so hits lands violinist Alex DePue a shot at stardom
By George Varga
UNION-TRIBUNE POP MUSIC CRITIC

June 17, 2007

Violin virtuoso Alex DePue has distinguished himself in country, bluegrass, rock, swing and classical music, with his Carnegie Hall debut coming when he was just 14. But this Ohio-born, Rancho Santa Fe-based musician's national profile really took off after he played an open mic night Nov. 11 at Lestat's, the tiny Normal Heights venue that has a seating capacity of just 50.


STEVE COVAULT
The competition was intense, but San Diego's Alex DePue is now the violinist in guitar star Steve Vai's new band. "He has ferocious chops," Vai said. "Another lucky find for me."
His classically-tinged solo violin medley of “Owner of a Lonely Heart” by the English prog-rock band Yes and Michael Jackson's “Smooth Criminal” was filmed at Lestat's by Chris Richards, his friend and manager. Richards posted the barely two-minute clip on YouTube three days later, and the response was dizzying.

“It got 80,000 hits in the first week,” a still incredulous DePue recalled last week. “Now, it's up to over 781,000 hits on YouTube alone. If you include the other Web sites that have posted it, like break.com and iFilm.com, and add them up, we've had 1.5 million viewings.”

One of those viewings came last month in the Los Angeles management office of rock guitar star Steve Vai, who was then auditioning violinists for his new touring band.

Vai rose to fame in Frank Zappa's group in the early 1980s, then worked with everyone from Joe Jackson and David Lee Roth to Ry Cooder and Tony Williams. On the basis of his YouTube video, DePue was invited to audition after he learned three Vai compositions, including the violin feature “Sparks and Shadows.”

DePue,34, got the gig. He begins a monthlong European tour with Vai June 28 in Luxembourg, followed by a two-month North American concert trek that includes a Sept. 10 date in Alpine.

“The rehearsals are very demanding and very rewarding,” DePue said from a Burbank soundstage, where he has been preparing for the tour under Vai's strict supervision. “It's a 21/2-hour show and we rehearse at least nine hours a day, six days a week. And I spend three to four hours rehearsing by myself each day before I even show up for the band rehearsals with Steve. I'm learning so much from him.”

Vai is a stern taskmaster, but DePue welcomes the challenge. One of four violin-playing sons of a concert pianist mother and classical music professor father, he was only 10 when he won a concerto competition and performed with the Bowling Green State University Orchestra.

He discovered rock music the same year, thanks to one of his mother's Beach Boys' albums, then became enamored with bluegrass and the work of French jazz violin pioneer Stephane Grappelli. His diverse tastes are showcased on his self-produced 12-song “Live” album, which features him performing everything from “A Maiden's Prayer” by Western Swing legend Bob Wills and a traditional Hungarian folk-dance number to a jazzy version of “Mr. Sandman” and a quicksilver excerpt from Beethoven's Violin Concerto.

Beginning in 2000, DePue spent six years in Nashville as the musical director in country singer Chris Cagle's band. In 1999 and 2005, he won first place in the Walnut Valley National Fiddling Contest in Kansas. Earlier this year, he won first place in the California State Old Time Fiddlers Association's annual competition.

Lured by the weather, DePue moved to San Diego last fall, with a suitcase in one hand and his violin case in the other. Nearly broke, he quickly took matters into his own hands.

“I put on my wrinkled tuxedo and went up and down Fifth Avenue in the Gaslamp Quarter, shaking hands with restaurant owners, until this wonderful Italian man let me come into Asti Ristorante and play for his customers for tips,” DePue recalled. “On a good night, along with CD sales, you can do very well just playing for tips.”

The pending tour with Vai will introduce him to an international audience beyond YouTube, and DePue hopes to work with the guitarist indefinitely. As for his future goals, he has a glittery vision.

“I'd be very comfortable in Las Vegas doing a 'violin freak show,' ” DePue said. “Every single style possible on the instrument would be exposed during the show so I could bridge the gap between people who are fans of only one style. I would also involve elements of magic and illusion. I've always had this dream where, in the middle of a slow, sexy, swing song, I let go of my silver bow and watch it float up in the air around me, with no visible strings attached.”

George Varga: (619) 293-2253; george.varga@uniontrib.com - San Diego Union-Tribune


"Good News:"

"Bad: Struggling with trying to track down a very occasional bug that may or may not be related to my code. Good: Doing so while listening Alex Depue's fiddle interpretations of "Yes" on YouTube. He's also got some sample tracks on Alex Depue's myspace page" - FLUTTER tm Web News


"Good News:"

"Bad: Struggling with trying to track down a very occasional bug that may or may not be related to my code. Good: Doing so while listening Alex Depue's fiddle interpretations of "Yes" on YouTube. He's also got some sample tracks on Alex Depue's myspace page" - FLUTTER tm Web News


"Athens University Newsletter"

DePue named “Fiddle Champ”

Athens, Ala. – Alex DePue was named “Fiddle Champion” at the 40th annual Tennessee Valley Old Time Fiddlers Convention at Athens State University on Saturday night.

DePue of Philadelphia, Penn., won the title by winning the “fiddle off” which traditionally pits the top fiddlers from the junior and senior divisions. Wayne Jerrolds of Savannah, Tenn., finished runner-up. DePue, who won the junior fiddle division, earned the convention’s top prize of $1,000. He also was awarded a fiddle. It was DePue’s first convention championship.

The convention is sponsored by the Athens State University Foundation and the Athens-Limestone Chamber of Commerce. The convention has contributed more than $500,000 to Athens State to fund student scholarships and university projects.
- Athens University


"Athens University Newsletter"

DePue named “Fiddle Champ”

Athens, Ala. – Alex DePue was named “Fiddle Champion” at the 40th annual Tennessee Valley Old Time Fiddlers Convention at Athens State University on Saturday night.

DePue of Philadelphia, Penn., won the title by winning the “fiddle off” which traditionally pits the top fiddlers from the junior and senior divisions. Wayne Jerrolds of Savannah, Tenn., finished runner-up. DePue, who won the junior fiddle division, earned the convention’s top prize of $1,000. He also was awarded a fiddle. It was DePue’s first convention championship.

The convention is sponsored by the Athens State University Foundation and the Athens-Limestone Chamber of Commerce. The convention has contributed more than $500,000 to Athens State to fund student scholarships and university projects.
- Athens University


"Herbie Wallace Productions"

"I had some fantastic musicians working with me on this project, such as: Bobby Caldwell, guitar; Alex DePue, fiddle; Charlie Rule, piano; Herby Wallace II, drums; Burton Akers, bass; and Todd McCoig, rhythm guitar. These are all the same players who worked on my last album with the exception of Alex DePue on fiddle, who is without a doubt, one of the finest I have ever heard or worked with." - Newsletter


"Herbie Wallace Productions"

"I had some fantastic musicians working with me on this project, such as: Bobby Caldwell, guitar; Alex DePue, fiddle; Charlie Rule, piano; Herby Wallace II, drums; Burton Akers, bass; and Todd McCoig, rhythm guitar. These are all the same players who worked on my last album with the exception of Alex DePue on fiddle, who is without a doubt, one of the finest I have ever heard or worked with." - Newsletter


Discography

The Fiddler
Alex DePue Live
DePue De Hoyos

Photos

Bio

Alex is the 2007 California State Fiddling Champion.
He is also the 2006 Alabama State Fiddling Champion. His Video Hit #1 on YouTube 3/26/07 - Most Viewed - Recently Featured - Music. Over one Million hits to date on YouTube and Break.com combined. Alex is a member of Steve Vai's "String Theories" and will tour Europe this summer.
Alexander Paul DePue, the second of four sons born to Wallace Sr. and the late Linda DePue was born into a musical family. His father is a professor of music; his mother was a concert pianist. Following in his older brother’s footsteps, he began taking violin lessons at age five. He has studied classical violin with Dr. Bernard Linden, Dr. Paul Makara, and Camilla Wicks.

Alex won his first major competition at age 10 and has continued to win competitions and appear as a guest soloist with orchestras and at festivals nationwide. In 1988, he won a competition that entitled him to perform at Carnegie Hall with the National Guild Youth Orchestra under the direction of Joseph Silverstein. Alex has appeared with the Bowling Green State University (OH) Orchestra, the Flint (MI) Symphony Orchestra, the Toledo (OH) Symphony Orchestra, the Bowling Green (OH) Symphony, the Mid-Texas Symphony, the Hamilton-Fairfield (OH) Symphony, and the Clermont (OH) Philharmonic Orchestra. He has also performed at the Batiquitos Music Festival (La Jolla, CA) and the Angel Fire Music Festival (NM).

Alex attended Bowling Green State University as a violin performance major. While attending school, he organized and played (viola) in the university’s first undergraduate string quartet.

Despite all of his classical training, Alex also has an interest in improvisational music, or "fiddling”. He became interested in fiddling at age seven, and began competing in old-time fiddle contests at the age of 12. He has won numerous trophies and has held the Mid-American, Ohio, and Wood County fiddling champion titles. Alex reigned as the Michigan State Fiddling Champion from 1994-1998; won the first-place trophy at the Walnut Valley National Fiddling Championship in Winfield, Kansas in 1999 and 2005; and won first place in the Halletsville, TX “Gone to Texas National Fiddling Championship” in 2000. He has been ranked among the top 10 fiddlers in the nation at the Grand Masters Fiddling Championship (Nashville, TN). In 2005, Alex placed fourth at the GMFC. Alex toured with Capitol Recording artist Chris Cagle from 2000-2006, with whom he regularly appeared on the Grand Ole Opry, Country Music Television, Great American Country, and VH1 Country. Alex also held the position of Musical Director for Cagle.

In addition to performing, Alex is a published composer and arranger of music. At age seven, he and his older brother, Wallace Jr., tied for first place in a field of 250 contestants in a composition contest offered by a Toledo Symphony support group. He also won first prize in the National Federation of Music Clubs’ national composition contest. He is currently arranging music for the DePue Brothers, composed of Alex, Wallace Jr., and their younger brothers Jason and Zachary. Recognized as the 1989 “Outstanding Musical Family of the Year” by former president George Bush, the group performs for sell-out audiences nationwide. They produced their first CD, “Classical Grass” in 2003. With this CD, the DePue Brothers introduce a new style of music to mainstream America. This style combines great classical music with a bluegrass feel, as traditional folk instruments will be used in the arrangements.

Alex has a self-produced CD available which features pieces he arranged and/or composed. He is in the process of working on his second CD. In addition to his own CD, he has produced recordings for other singers and instruments, and records sessions in his off time from the tour. With his brothers, Alex played on the soundtrack for the Philadelphia Orchestra documentary, “Music from the Inside Out”. Alex also composed one of the pieces recorded for the documentary.

With a background in both classical violin and fiddling, and an ability to play not only the violin but also the viola, mandolin, guitar, double bass, percussion, and piano, Alex is an artist that can produce any style of music.