So it would seem that this is the first time we’ve seen each other… Or rather, that you’ve seen me address you through this random assortment of characters sorted in lines and spaces. I may never get the privilege of seeing you, and now you have the full advantage of knowing a cross-section of me. I guess that means it’s only right that I should introduce myself.
My name is Jerry, and I’ve been a tenor sax player and musician with Hideo since spring of 2010. Blair and Chris came to the SJSU music department flyering for musicians to try out for a project involving video game and anime music from Japan. As a video game nerd and as a musician I was instantly presented with a neat little package of doing two things I enjoyed simultaneously. I auditioned in front of what were then strangers playing the solo tenor line from the “Sax Quartet” from Cowboy Bebop. Hearing a few days later that I would be playing on “Piano Black” from Cowboy Bebop and “Epic Battle” – a medley of video game battle themes – I was on the hook (as if playing video game and anime music didn’t mean I wasn’t on the hook already).
One of the first things I was somewhat taken aback by was the expectation for all the music (aside from “Epic Battle”) to be memorized. Having been a part of a great many concerts before, that has never been something that has been encouraged by any director I’ve ever had. It took me a little bit to figure out, maybe until the 3rd or 4th rehearsal of “Piano Black,” why memorization was going to be so important. The musicians were going to be a part of the staging, not hidden like in a musical, or a lump sitting on stage at a concert.
This was unconventional, weird, and awkward… A good match to my personality I’d say. It started to make even more sense when we added staging and acting, and it all fell into place eventually. The memorization wasn’t hard. We even ended up adding two more pieces to my slate, “Destiny” from Fullmetal Alchemist and “Red Wings” from Final Fantasy IV.
We finally finished that premiere show in October, but it wasn’t over. We came back with a vengeance in 2011 to play in front of a packed San Jose Civic Auditorium during FanimeCon, with just a one off rehearsal then show. This time I played the theme from R.O.D. Around the same time I found out we would also be playing another full scale show in SLO in 6 months. This time there were brass instruments to replace me on “Red Wings,” but largely the run remained for me with some minor changes to the musical lineup.
After that show, I was added as a core member, a “resident musician” I suppose, to perform and give musical insight on our performances. We went to Washington DC Maryland earlier this year to attend MAGFest, spreading the good word about Hideo to the East Coast, making some good connections, and of course playing some sweet sweet “Frog’s Theme” (bet you didn’t know Chris played snare drum did you?).
So here we are now, a few weeks away from playing another short show at AOD, and I’m pretty stoked to be playing a cool new arrangement by Chris… Maybe you’ll be at AOD too, and we can actually see each other instead of just you seeing an amalgamation of runes all bunched up in rows.
Until next time.
