Chris Arpad
| Christopher Arpad | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Background information | |
| Birth name | Christopher John Arpad |
| Also known as | Steel Sunsations, DJ Arpad |
| Born |
July 27, 1967 Osborne, Kansas |
| Genres | Reggae, calypso, world music, pop, Scottish highland |
| Occupation(s) | Musician, solo steel pannist, percussionist, vocalist |
| Instruments | Steelpans |
| Years active | 1983–present |
| Labels |
|
| Associated acts | Stainless Steel |
| Website | www.ChrisArpad.com |
| Notable instruments | |
| Steel Pan | |
Christopher John Arpad (born July 27, 1967) is an American steel drummer based in Los Angeles, California. He is best known for his solo steel drum performances which combine his own vocals and live steel pan with his custom instrumental and vocal backing tracks to create a full band sound; and he is also known as DJ Arpad, adding DJ music to his live steel drum shows.[1][2][3][4][5][6][7][8]
Early years
Chris grew up in McPherson, Kansas and attended Hutchinson Community College and Wichita State University.[9]
Career
Chris began performing and managing the band Stainless Steel from 1986 to 1991, and continued performing steel drums as a soloist and various other band formats to present. Stainless Steel was a regional success at the time, billed as "the Midwest's Only Steel Drum Band", touring the states of Minnesota, Kentucky, Colorado, Texas, Missouri, and Kansas. Stainless Steel opened concerts and shared stages with such notable acts as Carlos Santana, Andy Narell, Stanley Jordan, Sinbad, Tower of Power, Bonnie Raitt, Head East, Jeff Healey, The Rainmakers, and Steel Pulse; appearing at the annual South by Southwest, aka "SXSW", Music and Media Festival held in Austin Texas, in 1990 and 1991. Under Arpad's management, Stainless Steel was also a Central region showcase member of the National Association for Campus Activities, NACA, attending showcases and performing for college campuses throughout the region.
Credits
- Steel drum soloist for a 2004 "Celebrity Mom" episode of television series show "Live Like A Star".
- Arpad executive produced and performed two recordings with Stainless Steel on the World Beat Record Label: A four song EP, “Know Bounds, No Barriers”, and CD, “What You See”.
- Arrangement of three songs for solo Double Second Steel Drums; the Scott Joplin ragtime tune, "The Entertainer", and George Harrison classic, "Here Comes the Sun", and Herb Alpert's " Spanish Harlem". All edited by Steve Popernack and published through Panyard, Inc. Akron, Ohio circa 1993.
- January 2007, Chris Arpad recorded steel pans for the dream pop band West Indian Girl on the song "Up the Coast", the album 4th & Wall, released on the Milan Records label October 2007.
- June 2011 – Chris Arpad recorded steel pans with VH1 rock reality star Jeramy "Rainbow" Gritter, aka "Beardo", formerly with the band Whitestarr and the rockumentary TV show, The Rock Life. Arpad appears on the song "When I Think of U" – Attack Decay, on the Shoot to Kill records label.
- In 2013, Arpad provided song arrangement, vocals, and featured steel pans on Richard Bangs's song called "Cancún Colada" penned by Bangs for a segment piece on Cancún, featured on the series show Richard Bangs' Quest.
Arpad with a steelpan in Malibu.
Chris Arpad, Scottish Highland Drum Competition Santa Rosa Highland Games, 1987.
References
- ↑ Bandhauer, Rob. "To The Beat of a Different Drum", "The Good Life", Wichita, KS publication, spring 1991, p 30, 31.
- ↑ http://www.imdb.com/name/nm6056674/?ref_=fn_al_nm_1
- ↑ "Cancun Colada". Richardbangs.com. June 24, 2014. Retrieved 2014-07-27.
- ↑ Cunningham, Tricia. "Stainless Steel Seeks exposure with eclectic fare", "The Sunflower" publication, February 13, 1989, p 6, 8.
- ↑ Holman, Rhonda. "Steel band unafraid of being panned", "Wichita Eagle" newspaper, Friday 1989
- ↑ Bates, Mike."Stainless Steel", "Wichita Associated Press", April 12, 1990
- ↑ "Member Christopher John Arpad @ All About Jazz". Allaboutjazz.com. Retrieved 2014-07-27.
- ↑ "Site Maintenance". Remixmag.com. Archived from the original on October 6, 2008. Retrieved 2014-07-27.
- ↑ Chris Arpad - Bio. Archived August 27, 2013, at the Wayback Machine.