The Sounds of the Islands

Devon & Athenia = D N A

DNA is an entertainment duo. They combine live performance with DJ and MC services to complete your special occasion, leaving it one to be raved about by your guests, long afterwards.

Devon and Athenia, ( DNA ), operating as a duo, first emerged on the scene in 2009, making their premier performance at the then Ross’ Dockside in Sea Bright New Jersey. Since then DNA has performed at various other bars and clubs on the Jersey Shore including, the legendary Parker House in Sea Girt, Bar A – Belmar, The Mad Hatter, The Beach Bar, and have partaken in a variety of charity events including the 5th Annual Bene-fest – Sea Bright, A Day for Kelly, Red Bank and Artspiration Festival in Philadelphia. The Duo is also on the roster for performances with a New York City based non-profit organization that provide music for special events in the 5 Boroughs.

The two talents are involved in creating a sound which incorporates a merge of cultures, that of the Caribbean and Urban North America. Their performance includes a blend of original and cover music in the genres of pop, r&b and reggae. DNA, as a team, focuses on merging the best of the Caribbean and American pop culture.

Athenia Henderson was born in the Caribbean but raised to the influence of North American music. She writes and composes her songs including “A Song In My Head” 2008, “Always” and “Come Over” 2009. Athenia has performed as lead singer for various cover bands and has shared the stage with singing sensation and winner of several international awards – The Mighty Sparrow. Her Career started as singer and back up vocalist for world renowned Swinging Stars band, and has since evolved to Athenia being one of the founding and current members of DNA. Voice of an Angel’ and ‘Extremely Entertaining’ are some of the phrases used to describe Athenia … (Parker House, Ocean Place Resort and Spa, Taste- Red Bank).

Devon Atherley, from the twin Caribbean Islands of Trinidad and Tobago, has earned the name Steel-Pan Maestro. Not only is he proficient in playing the exotic, chromatically tuned and pitch percussion instrument, but he is also master in delivering the sounds in a manner that entertains. His career as a pannist began in 1993 with Kalomo Kings Steel Orchestra, a group still prominent in the pan scene. In addition to his ability on the pan, Steel-pan Maestro is a skilled keyboardist. He arranges the live music sounds of several local bands, mostly of Caribbean backgrounds.

To reserve DNA for your next event contact us at:
Email: ecmusicnj@gmail.com

or

Call: (908)464-0038, (908)451-1955

CARIBBEAN NIGHT FUN

CARIBBEAN NIGHT AT EDGEWOOD COUNTRY CLUB

It was a glorious evening at the Edgewood Country Club in River Vale, New Jersey. The food included traditional Island fare from all parts of the Caribbean Sea, representing a variety of delicious flavors. Empanadas, mofongo, jerk chicken, tender pork, and so much more.

The setting was poolside and everyone wore colorful attire consistent with the theme of the event. Our personal favorite was the music, which was provided by us, Entertainment Consultants. Our steel drum duo, DNA, created the ambiance of the islands with their Reggae beats and Athenia’s beautiful voice.

We can safely say that a great time was had by all.

National Flag Day

June 14 is Flag Day.

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In the United States, Flag Day is celebrated on June 14. It commemorates the adoption of the Stars and Stripes on June 14, 1777, by resolution  of the Second Continental Congress. 

The Flag Resolution, passed on June 14, 1777, stated: “Resolved, That the flag of the thirteen United States be thirteen stripes, alternate red and white; that the union be thirteen stars, white in a blue field, representing a new constellation.”

Our Flag has been officially modified 26 times.

HOW TO OBSERVE #NationalFlagDay

Many people have died protecting our country. On National Flag Day, raise the flag and fly it proudly. Spend time learning more about U.S. flag history, too.

Use #NationalFlagDay to post on social media.

Unstoppable during the Pandemic

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  Photo by David Bartus on Pexels.com

Well, we would be lying if we said that the pandemic hasn’t hit the entertainment business hard. Musicians have been out of work for over a year. However that hasn’t stopped the creative juices from flowing. Some have chosen to perform live concerts over Facebook or YouTube and still others have created podcasts. These platforms have enabled many musicians to eke out a modest income to help support their loved ones, as well of exposing them to new audiences. The very nature of choosing to be a musician means that you need an outlet for your creativity. We can confidently say that musicians have been working on their craft.

We chose to put the extra time to work for us and create new music. This is something that we had been meaning to do for quite a while, but the business of entertaining others had kept our creativity at bay. The pandemic has enabled us to find the much needed time to record and rearrange songs that we had previously written. We have been busy in the studio making new music. CD to follow. Some of the songs were written in the 1980s and are being remastered, while others are brand new. Stay tuned for the excitement. We are busy tweaking and making sure that every note comes out to perfection.

We still hope that the pandemic meets its demise real soon, that way we can return to the normalcy of performing our music for others, going to concerts and dancing the night away at parties. We are beginning to book parties for future dates. These parties include weddings, birthday celebrations, anniversaries and even some graduations. Right now it looks like we will have a Christmas Season that will be much closer to normal than what we witnessed during November and December of 2020.

We will keep you posted as soon as the new CD comes out. In the meantime…keep the music alive, we are!

Music in the Times of Covid-19

Gochild, performed by Virtual Jazz Trio of Rick Crane on bass, Vinnie Cutro on trumpet, and Joe Verrusio on guitar.

The musicians recorded this video in their own homes, during the time of the Corona Virus Pandemic.

The song Godchild was composed by George Wallington.

The following information is from the site Wikipedia:

His best-known compositions are “Lemon Drop” (which gained attention when played by Woody Herman in the late 1940s), and “Godchild” (one of the pieces played for The Birth of the Cool recordings led by Miles Davis). Birth of the Cool is a compilation album by American jazz musician Miles Davis, released in February or March 1957 on Capitol Records. It compiles eleven tracks recorded by Davis’s nonet for the label over the course of three sessions during 1949 and 1950. Featuring unusual instrumentation and several notable musicians, the music consisted of innovative arrangements influenced by classical music techniques such as polyphony, and marked a major development in post-bebop jazz. As the title suggests, these recordings are considered seminal in the history of cool jazz. Most of them were originally released in the 10-inch 78-rpm format and are all approximately three minutes long.

Wallington was born Giacinto Figlia in Sicily, and then moved to the United States (New York) with his family in 1925. His father sang opera and introduced his son to classical music, but Wallington listened to jazz after hearing the music of saxophonist Lester Young.

He said that he acquired the name Wallington in high school: “I like to wear flashy clothes and the kids in the neighborhood would say, ‘Hey, look at Wallington!'” He left school at the age of 15 to play piano in New York.

In 1960 Wallington stopped playing music and moved to Florida to work in the family air conditioning business, citing the stress of endless touring. He returned to music in 1984 and recorded three albums, Virtuoso in 1984, Symphony of a Jazz Piano in 1986 and Pleasure of a Jazz Inspiration in 1992. He also performed at the 1985 Kool Jazz Festival in New York

Entertainment in the time of COVID-19

We are musicians, our friends are musicians and the lock-down isn't going to stop us from doing what we love.

When the pandemic started we were out working at clubs, weddings, parties, etc.  You name it, if someone wanted music, we were there for them.   Most of us have degrees from some of the most prestigious music programs in the country.  Those of us who don't have the degrees spent years studying under our mentors and learning our craft while performing.  Some of our musicians have Grammys or are Grammy nominated artists.  Currently these artists are making $0 income.  They still have families to support.  

Music is in the DNA of our friends and colleagues.  While performing for the public has come to a screeching halt, we continue to compose, create and play our instruments.  Just like athletes who must continue their daily workouts to remain in shape, we continue to practice every day in anticipation of our return to the work that we love.

In this video we are featuring three Jazz Musicians,  they are:  Rick Crane on upright bass, Vinnie Cutro on the trumpet and Joe Verrusio on the guitar.  All three men have been performing together in the New York Area for over 40 years.  In the course of their careers they have become dear friends.  

The idea to create virtual videos came to Joe Verrusio.  When the lock-down started, he was seeing a number of Zoom videos featuring orchestras and choirs and could not find any Jazz Trios doing the same thing.  He still wanted too perform with his band mates to keep up his "chops."  This is how this video came to be.  To this date we have made three virtual videos, improving on each one based on what we learned from the previous ones.  The first video in the series was Misty.  If you watch the video you can see that the lighting is poor on Joe, while the lighting is much better on Rick Crane.   The difference is that Joe taped himself using the Zoom app., while Rick used his iPhone.  Our second video was When You Wish Upon a Star.  
On When You Wish Upon a Star the lighting is much improved, because Joe used his iPad to self film.

Now we come to the third video in the series, On a Misty Night.  In this video we feature three artists:  Rick Crane on upright bass, Vinnie Cutro on trumpet and Joe Verrusio on the guitar.
The addition of a third instrument really enriches the overall sound and vibe that we want too convey to our viewers.

Amanda D., singing “Feel it Still”

 

Amanda D., sings “Feel it Still”

https://www.musicnewjersey.com

Amanda D., cover of “Feel it Still”

We like to show the range of our musicians. This is our second release of a video with Amanda performing. The first video that we released was of “Landslide” a classic rock tune. For her second release at Entertainment Consultants we chose a more current hit. This time we went with the Pop tune “Feel it Still.” The song was made popular by American band “Portugal. The Man.” We wanted the clubs hiring Amanda for their events to get a quick sense of her talent and versatility. Each time that we have introduced her at a new club, members and management alike have wanted her either bar-side or poolside on a regular basis. The earlier that you book her the better. This way you will not be disappointed later on in the season.

The song “Feel it Still” won the Best Pop Duo/Group Performance at the 60th Annual Grammy Awards on January 28, 2018. The song has an long list of composers which includes members of the band and two producers. Here is the list of the composers: Robert Bateman, Zachary Scott Carothers, Freddie Gorman, John Baldwin Gourley, John Hill, Brian Holland, Eric Andrew Howk, Kyle O’Quin, Jason Wade Sechrist, and Asa Taccone

To book Amanda D. for your events, contact us through the following channels:

Email:

ecmusicnj@gmail.com

Call: (908)464-0038, (908)451-1955

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Meet Amanda and why we think she’s great

https://www.musicnewjersey.com

Email:

ecmusicnj@gmail.com

Call:

(908)464-0038, (908)451-1955

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Amanda is one of those performers that we wish we could clone.  Whenever we book her at a club, the members and staff can’t say enough good things about her.  We believe so strongly in Amanda that we think one day her name will be a household name.  We don’t say that lightly  and we rarely say that about musicians.  Simply put:  We have that much confidence in her, her work ethic and her talent.  Some clubs have booked her poolside, others have chosen to book her year round in the bar area.

One of the things we love most about Amanda is that she makes each song her own.  What we mean by that is that she takes songs that we have heard hundreds of times before and gives them a spin all her own.  Her songs are covers and she does the arrangements herself.  She, also, composes some of her own material.

In this video we see and hear her singing “Landslide,” a song written  by Stevie Nicks .  The song was first featured in the 1975 album simply titled “Fleetwood Mac.”  Twenty three years later the song resurfaced in a live reunion album titled “The Dance.”

Nicks says she wrote this song while considering going back to school or staying on professionally with Lindsey Buckingham, guitarist for Fleetwood Mac.  Nicks and Buckingham were not getting along at the time and making matters worse, Polydor records had just dropped them. She wrote the song in Aspen, Colorado, while sitting in a friend’s living room “looking out at the Rock.y Mountains pondering the avalanche of everything that had come crashing down on us … at that moment, my life truly felt like a landslide in many ways”.

This is the song that is most frequently performed by Fleetwood Mac while on tour.  Except for the Shake the Cage Tour, Stevie Nicks has performed this song on every tour with the band and on her own as a solo artist.

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“Literally” …GONE!

A New York City bar is banning customers from using the “L” word in their establishment. Patrons uttering the dreaded word have five minutes to finish their libation (that L word is still ok) and they must leave.

Owner of the Continental, Trigger Smith, is enforcing the ban in order to put an end to “Kardashianism.” We didn’t know that was a thing, now we do. Thank you, Trigger Smith.

If you would like to enjoy an evening with friends, free from the loathsome “L” word head on over to:

Continental

25 3rd Ave

New York, NY 10003

Continental’s new policy brought to mind certain expressions that make us cringe, we simply had to wonder…what words or expressions would you like to disappear from our vernacular?

From Classical to Rock!

Meet our Latest Rock Stars!

Elegance String Quartet performing the Main Theme from Game of Thrones during the cocktail hour at a New Jersey wedding reception.

…they had just performed during the ceremony, as well.

​From the classics to modern rock, Elegance String Quartet embraces both musical tradition and innovation. Weddings, corporate functions, private events – They do it all! Bringing fresh and creative musical arrangements to their audiences, and there’s always a modern edge in their performance. Check ’em out right here, and see why they’re the right choice in the Northeast!

The sounds of the instruments are often the first thing your guests will hear when they enter the hall, and you want that to be a great first impression. Having played hundreds of ceremonies, the musicians of Elegance Strings know that every wedding is as unique as the couple that is getting married. Their purpose is to complement and enhance the atmosphere, and their goal is to tell your story musically.

Is there a song you would like arranged for string quartet? Elegance Strings has over 750 songs listed on their Music Catalog. If you do not see your favorite songs listed, please make a suggestion for what we this musical group should arrange next!

One of the coolest things about shooting this video was that there were a number of guests doing the same.  The second that I heard the theme music from Game of Thrones I ran over to the group to take a little video for Instagram.  I stood under the P.A. so that there would  be less outside noise.  I was only using my cell phone.  When I turned around to see the crowd’s reaction, there were about 20 people shooting with their phones!   Seriously, you never see that a a wedding.  People will shoot video and photos of family and friends, but rarely will they video the musicians.

Simply put, this is the caliber of musicianship that we have at Entertainment Consultants/Music New Jersey.

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