Joseph Vincelli

Dallas, Texas - His performances sizzle and his new CD turns up the heat. Jazz saxman Joseph Vincelli is a happy man these days with the upcoming release of Touch in the midst of a heavy touring schedule.
In referring to the new release, Vincelli is high in his praise of fellow smooth jazz artist and guitarist Paul Jackson, Jr., who produced and played on three tracks. "Working with Paul was a breeze; I feel that he made a significant contribution to the project."
Vincelli continues, "We expanded our horizons on Touch, including vocals by R&B artist Benita Arterberry. The tracks done in Texas studios have a special energy because of the momentum that happens when everyone is brought together at the same time. There's a lot more of my flute work on this CD, as well."
Recognized for his upbeat and passionate style, Vincelli is classified as a "smooth" jazz artist. Many reviewers have described his music as "smooth" with an "edge". Others have simply used "high octane".
No matter what, Vincelli serves up a cocktail of romance with a funk chaser to his audiences. "The show is my party.," says the engaging young artist. "I want to make sure that each guest is having a good time."
Vincelli continues, "In the new CD, I wanted to express what I feel whether I'm performing on stage or in the audience. There is such a communication there through the music, and I feel that they pay me the highest of compliments when my performance touches them."
The summer release will be Vincelli's sixth with the independent label, Breakaway Records. His 1997 CD, After Five, did well in national airplay and gained such strong footholds as heavy rotation for several weeks on CD-101 in New York City, the nation's number one market.
Preview comments from the radio industry indicate Touch will be even more successful that its predecessor. As one radio personality put it, "There's no burn on this CD", meaning you don't get tired of it. Breakaway Records CEO, Hillary Lancaster, concurs. "We did everything we set out to do on this one; we challenged the smooth jazz stereotype and let Joseph Vincelli do what he does best, which is make terrific music."
Vincelli and his band have been enjoying national and international popularity for several years now, sharing playbills with such notable jazzmen as Al Jarreau, Earl Klugh. Joe Sample, and Boney James. They recentley opened fpr the national "Guitars and Saxes" tour at two different venues, The Nancy Lee and Perry R. Bass Performance Hall in Fort Worth, Texas and the Stranahan Theatre in Toledo, Ohio.
Vincelli and his grouphave also headlined a tour to Johannesburg, South Africa where they played at the Illovo Blues Room and the Hard Rock Cafe and appeared on the TV show, "Good Morning South Africa".
Fans frequently see Vincelli on Dallas TV as well. He has made many appearances on "Good Day Dallas", "Good Morning Texas," and "Positively Texas." As he tours nationally, he's been known to wake up fans when he visits their homes via early morning news shows.
Joseph Vincelli was born in New Jersey and at the age of 13 made a career choice between gourmet chef and musician. He still "cooks" in the kitchen as well as on stage, and has been performing professionally since that time.
Vincelli earned a music degree from the prestigious Berklee School of Music in Boston, then went West to find his fortune in Southern California. Although he was music director for the TV show, "Evening Shade", it was still difficult to exist as a full-time working musician. That came with relocation to Dallas, which is his home base when he's not on tour.
In his first notice in the Dallas Morning News, Vincelli was incorrectly and affectionately, called a native Texan. "I'm a Texan by proclamation," he said. "I like the atmosphere of Dallas. It's a combination of both coasts; it's laid back but still has an edge to it."
After arriving in Texas, the most significant turn in Vincelli's career took place a world away from his East Coast upbringing and sojourn to California. He called Hillary Lancaster, head of Breakaway, to fill a last minute opening on the playbill of the jazz festival that she was organizing. The audience's enthusiastic response to him sealed a bond between the two that led to the production of Vincelli's six CD's with Lancaster as the executive producer.
An unusual aspect of the new release is the inclusion of band members, rather than studio musicians, on most tracks. Gary Freeman is on keys, Rick Rigsby, bass, and "J.T." Thomas on drums. They even co-authored some of the tracks.
"The build to Touch has been a 16-month project," says Vincelli. We started working on a strong tour schedule as soon as 1997's After Five was released. When we did an exploratory recording in September for Touch, we realized that not only had the performance schedule laid down a bed for promotion of the next CD, but that the band, itself, had gelled to create tracks with more impact and energy.
I think that's what the listener will hear on the album; that warmth that comes when several good musicians get together, have a good time, and make something wonderful."