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“Steve’s passion and knowledge for sports has energized our fan base and provided our campus with an exciting brand of entertainment, as well as a huge home court advantage.  There is no other announcer/play­-by-play person in our conference that is as dynamic and knowledgeable as Steve.  When we are able to have him do our broadcasts, Concordia athletics are a ‘big time’ event; and when he is on the P.A. – well, it is no wonder that we are undefeated with him as our announcer over the last two seasons.

“Steve DeDoes – where passion and sports meet !”

Andrea Gorski
Athletic Director and Women’s Basketball Head Coach (2012 WHAC Champions)
Concordia University

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“The theme music that Steve created for the ‘Internet Advisor’ has helped us stay on the air for 15 years.  Steve (and Mattie) have now given us the soundtrack for our future.  And as a guest on our show, Steve is always wonderfully informative, entertaining, and engaging.”

Foster Braun
Program Host, “Internet Advisor” – long-running syndicated program on WJR Radio

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“Steve was one of the finest guests we’ve ever had on our radio program.  He really communicates with the audience when ‘on the air,’ and his knowledge and entertaining insights made for a great hour.  We can’t wait to have him back !”

Tom Loewe and Sarah Burdick
Co-hosts, “Notes From Above” Syndicated Feature Music Show, WDEO Radio

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“Steve’s music was clever, inventive, and very funny.  Without a word from me, he understood what I was trying to do.  Then he made it better.”

Jeff Daniels
acclaimed playwright, and star of stage and screen
referring to his collaboration with Steve DeDoes on his stage production “The Vast Difference”

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“The theme music that Steve created for the ‘Internet Advisor’ has helped us stay on the air for 15 years.  Steve (and Mattie) have now given us the soundtrack for our future.  And as a guest on our show, Steve is always wonderfully informative, entertaining, and engaging.”

Foster Braun
Program Host, “Internet Advisor” – long-running syndicated program on WJR Radio

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“Steve was able to keep us focused upon the basics.  Faced with verbiage and technical detail, he helped us to refine our message and ensure that it was delivered to our audience with maximum emphasis.”

Ronald A. Lambert (USAF ret.),
Program Manager for USAF GoldPan Project (promotional film produced by Steve DeDoes)

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“TerraViva! began as an exciting scientific vision of ours that had commercial potential and educational value.  Steve DeDoes has not only enhanced our vision with his creative touches, and helped our ideas really come alive, but has also been a key contributor in turning TerraViva! into a total product with his promotional talents and his production skills.”

Richard C. Cicone
President, ISCIENCES, L.L.C.
makers of TerraViva! Products

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“I enjoyed ‘Michigan Christmas Air‘ … and found it to be unique and delightful. Very high class.

“I’ve had the opportunity to work with Steve DeDoes in the studio.  As a producer, Steve gets the best from his collaborators.”

Ernie Harwell
longtime voice of the Detroit Tigers, baseball Hall-of-Famer, and a treasured sound of Michigan

Satchell Paige...he definitely had a strong arm--

We (DeDoes Music) have twice produced recordings of the classic baseball song, “Take Me Out To The Ballgame.”

The first time was back in 2002.  We decided to add a Dixieland-jazz version to the CD “Hittin’ Your Mark,” produced for Move&Learn.  Listen to StrongArm Satch & The All-Stars of Swing bring this one home !

Then…Mattie got introspective on his debut CD “I’m A Player” in 2009.  An early version of this disc was produced to benefit his high school baseball team; this song was a MUST for that project.  When the full CD was completed later that spring, “Ballgame” stayed on.

Enjoy these new versions of a song that we’ve not only enjoyed since Mattie was a boy, but one that we’ve always enjoyed playing and, in recent years, producing our own “takes.”  What’s more – the original sheet music for this song hangs in the National Baseball Hall of Fame in Cooperstown…and another copy hangs on a wall in our house !

Take Me Out To The Ballgame – SWINGIN FROM THE HEELS…

(Click Here to hear the SWING VERSION of “Take Me Out To The Ballgame” – opens new window)

"Satchmo" - caricature by Tom Petiet

Composed by Jack Norworth & Albert Von Tilzer; arrangement by Steve DeDoes.

Performed by StrongArm Satch and the All-Stars of Swing – first released on the Move&Learn CD “Hitting Your Mark” in 2002.

© 2002 S.DeDoes/Full Score & 7 Music.  All Rights Reserved.

Take Me Out To The Ballgame – BRINGIN’ IT ON THE HORN…

(Click Here to hear Mattie DeDoes’ soulful sax on “Take Me Out To The Ballgame” – opens new window)

Composed by Jack Norworth & Albert Von Tilzer.

Performed by Mattie DeDoes (alto sax), accompanied by Steve DeDoes (piano) – first released on Mattie’s debut CD “I’m A Player” in 2009.

© 2009 S.DeDoes/Full Score & 7 Music. All Rights Reserved.

Expected Start Time:  Pre-game 11:50am, First Pitch at 12 noon – Sunday, March 11

Steve DeDoes (R) courtside with Concordia Baseball Head Coach Kyle Rayl (L)

Steve DeDoes will call the game, and provide audio play-by-play, commentary, interviews with guests from both schools, and an early season introduction to both teams and their fortunes.  DeDoes’ broadcast, along with live “game tracker” stats and graphic presentation, will be presented through the Oberlin athletic website, goyeo.com.

(NOTE: you’ll want to make sure your system is compatible in advance–more information, and helpful links, below.)

DeDoes’ ties to both schools will enable him to enthusiastically describe both the action on the field and the prospects for the teams’ 2012 seasons.  Steve has served Concordia University athletics in recent seasons as a distinctive and colorful P.A. voice for many sports, a top-notch play-by-play announcer for basketball broadcasts, and in his writing about notable Cardinal athletic stories.

However–on that day, Steve will also “see red” because of son Mattie DeDoes, who is expected to help lead the charge for the host Yeomen. DeDoes is expected to start one of the contests “on the bump” as starting pitcher, and will be in the lineup for the second game (most likely at 3rd base).

Mattie DeDoes will face not only a school that he knows well, as they make the trip from his hometown of Ann Arbor, but he will also see two former teammates in the opposing dugout.  Concordia freshman Jack Scheel (himself also an P/IF, like Mattie) played on the same 2010 Michigan Sports Academy summer travel team as DeDoes; another Cardinal freshman, LHP Mike Goike, was a teammate of Mattie’s at Gabriel Richard High School.  As team captain, DeDoes led Gabriel Richard to the state finals during his senior year, and Goike was a junior member of the squad which set a Michigan state record for victories in a season, with 43.

So, the on-field connections on March 11 will be rampant.  We hope you, too, will make a connection–tune into hear Steve’s call as Concordia, Oberlin, Mattie and friends take the field !  Baseball season is in full swing !!

TO TEST COMPATIBILITY IN ADVANCE:

• go to the Oberlin Baseball “Schedule” page (opens new window);
• click on “Live Audio” link for March 11 games;
• click on “Webcast readiness check” button;
• follow instructions, install Microsoft Silverlight if necessary.

ON GAMEDAY:

• Bring Up “Live Audio,” along with “Live Stats,” in separate windows – follow the action, along with S.D.’s “call” !!!
• Expected Start Time: Pre-game 11:50 am, First Pitch 12 noon

"The Bling is the Thing" - click to see it better !

“Ace M.D.” is the rapper on this track.  He is otherwise known as Mattie DeDoes, pitching ace of Oberlin College‘s baseball team and member of the 2012 Lorain County Ironmen of the Prospect League.  Mattie’s pictured at right wearing the World Series ring of his good friend Mike Cervenak (member of the 2008 champion Phillies).

Of course, Mattie is also a prominent recording artist on the alto saxophone.  In his composition “Never Givin’ Up (Go Yeo)”, Mattie pays tribute to all the athletes at Oberlin College–and shouts out the vibes of being a college athlete.

M.D. States It, then Plays It

The ensemble “StrykNine” lays down the groove here for Mattie to express himself — both in words and in musical line.  “NGU-GY” is an incredible fusion of jazz, hip-hop poetry, and funk…coming from the heart of a college athlete who comes from a unique place.  Enjoy Mattie’s clever raps–as well as a scintillating horn solo !  You’ll listen to this again and again.

(Click Here to hear “Never Givin’ Up (Go Yeo)” ! – opens new window)

Composed by Mattie DeDoes; music by Steve DeDoes.

© 2012 M.DeDoes/Full Score & 7 Music.  All rights reserved.

Mattie D - Makin' Noise for Yeo Athletics

* Additional Notes:  Along with this production, Mattie and Steve DeDoes also co-composed a new fight song for Oberlin.  Titled “Oberlin Fanfare,” it joins with “Never Givin’ Up” to make a proud statement for OC athletics.

The school expects to employ both these songs to help enhance and build the image of the athletic teams at the venerable institution.  Stay tuned for more information about this, along with future recordings of the “Oberlin Fanfare” !

Now (March, 2012), hear a longer, thematic version of this track. The extended artistic improvisations of Mattie DeDoes on alto saxophone take you on a interesting ride…and the resulting sonic experience will put you on the “cutting edge” of musical expression !

2:40 Track performed by Mattie DeDoes (Alto Sax) & StrykNine

Our techno-funk ensemble is the studio entity, “StrykNine”.  Led by Steve DeDoes on keyboards, they serve as the rhythm machine for this driving funk composition.  Hear for yourself – click on any of the links below, including the “headphone” icon !

(Click Here to hear “Cutting Edge” – opens new window)

Composed by Steve DeDoes.

© 2012 S.DeDoes/Full Score & 7 Music.  All rights reserved.

The following video is an excerpted from a 2011 Internet broadcast. Steve DeDoes provided play-by-play presentation for the Concordia Invitational Tournament (CIT), held at Concordia University (Ann Arbor).  This was the 60th annual CIT, making it the nation’s 2nd-longest running collegiate basketball tournament event (second to the NIT).

© 2011, S. DeDoes / Concordia University, Ann Arbor
Used by permission. All rights reserved.

“Steve’s passion and knowledge for sports has energized our fan base and provided our campus with an exciting brand of entertainment, as well as a huge home court advantage.  There is no other announcer/play­-by-play person in our conference that is as dynamic and knowledgeable as Steve.  When we are able to have him do our broadcasts, Concordia athletics are a ‘big time’ event; and when he is on the P.A. – well, it is no wonder that we are undefeated with him as our announcer over the last two seasons.

“Steve DeDoes – where passion and sports meet !”

Andrea Gorski
Athletic Director and Women’s Basketball Head Coach (2012 WHAC Champions)
Concordia University

Sebesky was gracious enough to allow Steve DeDoes to not only include this song as part of the “Michigan Christmas Air” project – he allowed Steve to pen some additional lyrics for this recording.  According to DeDoes, “Hurray” was “a must-do part” (of MCA), and he appreciates the artistic license that Sebesky gave him for the recording.

“We wanted to do it as a jazz waltz,” remembers DeDoes.  “‘Hurray For Christmas’ is really an intricate and challenging tune, and yet still resonates with delightful appeal. I had asked a prominent singer (name withheld) to sing the lead, but she didn’t work hard to learn the melody.  It wasn’t going to work.”

Enter April Tini, herself an established pro with a versatile and energetic voice that would bring “Hurray” to life.  “No one could have sung this better than April did,” says DeDoes.  “She absolutely nailed it; not only in the challenges of the song itself, but in her incredible ‘scat’ improvisation.”

Along with Jake Reichbart‘s wonderful acoustic guitar solo, DeDoes achieved what he was after in the production.  “I wanted the sophistication of the song, the arrangement, and all the pieces to come together,” he recalls, “but for the overall vibe of the piece to reflect the pure, simple joy that comes from Christmas – like it does with kids.  In fact, I remember telling Jake on the session that I wanted the guitar solo to be as if he opened a new instrument on Christmas morning.”

The fluid background voices of the Bricktown Quartet were the final piece to the puzzle.  “The overall sound of the vocal ensemble both blends with April but also is its own distinctive texture,” says the producer.

“After all these years, I continue to revel in the work that these artists did for me,” DeDoes adds.  “And, I’m always thrilled with people’s reaction to this recording.  The song itself (by Sebesky) deserves to be heard, and we all are extremely proud that our version introduces so many listeners to a carol they didn’t know existed.”

(Click Here to hear “Hurray For Christmas” – opens new window)

Composed by Don Sebesky / additional lyrics & arrangement by Steve DeDoes.

featuring April Tini (lead vocal), the Bricktown Quartet (backup vocals), and Jake Reichbart (guitar) – from the award-winning CD “Michigan Christmas Air,” in a jazzy DeDoes arrangement of a great song by Grammy & Tony winner Don Sebesky.

Available here by permission.  Click here to read reviews and commentary about the “Michigan Christmas Air” CD.

(Note to reader: If you haven’t listened to the tracks, or aren’t familiar with the basis for this discussion and the purpose for which this music was produced, go back to the introductory page.)

It is a challenge to write successful commercial music.  For something like a radio program theme – a short piece of music that will be used to introduce a topic and set the tone for its audience – it must be simultaneously distinctive, yet “catchy.”  It should make a dramatic, recognizable statement; drive the mood forward; then get out of the way in order to accommodate a voice-over or other discussion.

Over sixty-second intervals, the original “WJR Internet Advisor” theme music worked extremely well.  With a signature “hook” at the beginning – a driving buildup – a pulsating, rhythmic bed – and arrival at a thematic conclusion – this music propelled this show for fourteen years of broadcasting, and counting.

The original piece employed what is referred to as a “compound meter” – in this case, 12/8.  This metric basis helps to create what musicians sometimes call a “shuffle feel.”  The 3-within-4 groove has a natural drive to it.  Combined with the harmonic structure (or, “changes”), the piece develops into a “vamp” that provides the bed for some ongoing little inventions on the hook.  Even though it’s a relatively short track, it still has shape, dramatic line, and interesting orchestration.

As the composer, I have to say that I still like this piece of music.  I’m kinda proud of it…and feel that it continues to work well.  However, both I and the weekly audience for the “Internet Advisor” (not to mention the program’s HOSTS !) have heard this now for, well, fourteen years…that’s a long time.

The “WJR Internet Advisor” radio program itself now heads into syndication and hopefully, some new horizons.  Eminating out of Detroit, always about what’s *new* on the Internet–can we reflect that in our theme ?!?  How to retain the audal signature – the sense of direction and purpose – and yet create a whole new “mood” as well as a sense of the future ??

* Well, here’s what we did.  Though, if you’re still reading this–it’s only a total of a couple of minutes of music we’re talkin’ about!!  Nonetheless, these two “shorties,” along with some other jams provided below, allow for a conversation about some fun elements in the musical language.

It’s always great to have a soloist who can deliver the goods in a commercial sense.  Mattie DeDoes, like other great musicians I’ve had the chance to work with over the years, has great instincts when asked to reflect mood in his sound and melodic ideas.

To give this artist a canvas, I decided to “square up” the beat.  Hip-hop and electronic music rarely use anything like a compound meter.  They like to present a transparency in their beat to create a sense of accessibility.  With rhythm subdivisions in powers of two (4, 8, 16,…), these kind of textures seem more “standard” to many listeners.

Part of the challenge remains, however, to make music that still has a creative evolution – that while serving its purposes, is still fundamentally interesting.  Even in a :60 track, we want to take our listener somewhere intriguing.  For me, this is the part I get into – making music that still delights the listener, especially after multiple hearings.

In the case of the “new” version, some of the creativity can be found in how a “triplet” motif plays against the “square” rhythmic bed.  This occurs right at the start, when the original fanfare gives way to the solo saxophone – which takes us into a more “urban”-style groove.  The sound is a little more dark, maybe with a little more intrigue.  Certainly, the instrumentation is different as well, as we use a combination of natural and synthetic sounds, in the funky rhythm we’ve described earlier.

Listen to what’s similar between the two tracks, and also to what’s different.  As I always say to music students when I teach theory or musicology classes  – all of us can, and should, improve our listening abilities.  Where better to do that than with music ?!?

We hope you found this little “music theory” lesson interesting.  With the new track and its variations, titled “Cutting Edge,” we also hope to help the “WJR Internet Advisor” achieve more years of success !  Then, somewhere around 2025 or so, we’ll redo the theme again…

The TRACKS:

(Click Here to hear Steve’s original “Internet Advisor” theme ! - opens new window)

(Click Here to hear the new “Internet Advisor” theme – titled “Cutting Edge” ! - opens new window)

(Click Here to hear a variation of “Cutting Edge”, with more alto sax improvisation by Mattie DeDoes ! - opens new window)

(Click Here to hear one more variation of “Cutting Edge” – this time, with hot sax and synth solos ! - opens new window)

November 3, 2011 – Mattie DeDoes, Oberlin College sophomore pitcher/third baseman, has accepted an invitation to join the Lorain County Ironmen of the Prospect League for the summer of 2012.  DeDoes will begin playing with the Ironmen on the heels of his sophomore collegiate season.

The Ironmen and the Prospect League represent an opportunity for DeDoes to play alongside and against other college players (mostly Division I) who have professional aspirations.  The so-called “wood bat” league involves a professional-style format, with daily games scheduled in three- and four- game series.  Travel is extensive, throughout the eastern U.S.  Though an amateur organization, players sign contracts and cannot play with other teams.

Because of his mound prowess, DeDoes was selected for the Ironmen as a pitcher.  While he will be able to work on his hitting and third base play on a daily basis, his selection was based upon the expectation that he would be a part of the Lorain County pitching staff – and thus, he is not expected to see game action as anything but a hurler.

“I think this is a great opportunity for Mattie,” said Oberlin head baseball coach Adrian Abrahamowicz.  ”I’m anxious to see how he does against that level of competition.  I expect him to perform well.  One thing I do know – no one will outwork him.”

Last summer (2011), DeDoes played for the Toledo Hawks Gold and helped that team win the Tri-State League championship and advance to the NABF College World Series.

Given the level of commitment that this opportunity represents, Mattie DeDoes’ burgeoning performance career as a jazz artist will be curtailed for the summer of 2012.  Some concert dates have already been dropped from his schedule; however, DeDoes plans to continue studio and session work along with performing “live” whenever possible.

The Ironmen play their home games at “The Pipeyard,” a stadium built for the team in Lorain, Ohio.