2025 Steve Weiss Mallet Festival:
A Deep Dive Into The Vibraphone
There are two parts to this event.
The vibraphone workshop and the concerts.
Below are the performance dates as well as below that the info on the workshop and the featured artists!
All the concerts this year will take place at Chris' Jazz Cafe:
July 31st - "PHILLY ALLSTAR VIBRAPHONE JAM SESSION
- Chris' Jazz Cafe - 1421 Sansom Street, Philadelphia, PA 19102
Performers The top vibraphone players in Philadelphia and an All Star Philly Rhythm Section!
Aug 1st - Chuck Redd - From Hampton to Burton - Featuring compositions from the vibe greats!
- Chris' Jazz Cafe - 1421 Sansom Street, Philadelphia, PA 19102
**Aug 2nd - A Tribute To Terry Gibbs Feturing The Earl Phillips Big Band and Vibraphonists - Tony Miceli Behn Gillece, Oliver Mayman and Morgan Wallbridge ** * Chris' Jazz Cafe - 1421 Sansom Street, Philadelphia, PA 19102
Workshop July 28 - Aug 1
The workshop will take place beginning July 28 and end August 1.
- It will take place at Settlement Music School in the Queen Village section of Philadelphia, PA.
Timeline of a typical day.
- 9am-10pm: practice (optional)
- 10am-12pm: Class 1
- 12pm-1pm: lunch
- 1pm-2pm: Mallet quartet & sight reading
- 2pm-4pm: class 2
- 4pm-5pm: bass and drums jam session
Click here for a map with the location of the school.
- There will be instruments provided to practice on as well as practice rooms.
- There are a lot of Air BnB's in this neighborhood and you're a 10 minute walk from Center City, 20 minutes from shops on Walnut and Chestnut Street. The areas of Philly to do an Air BnB search for are Queen Village and Bella Vista however it's easy to get to from Center City as well. Those neighborhoods are very close to the school and not a long walk to Chris' Jazz Cafe and not too long to the Barnes Foundation for the Sunday concert. And they are very safe.
Workshop classes by: Tony Miceli Behn Gillece Oliver Mayman
More about the workshop
This year we want to do an especially deep dive into vibraphone world.
We will have two 2 hour classes a day and practice time around the classes and at the end of the day. Each day we want to give you things to practice as well as a lot of information to take home. So we will give you goals after each session.
We will have a piano, bass and drum player show up each day for you to play with.
I would also like to do some sight reading. It's something we should all be working on!
In addition this year we are adding a mallet quartet. We will post music ahead of time for you to look at and practice and each day we'll have a mallet quartet rehearsal and students will take turns play the parts.
We will have several vibraphones there for you to practice on. Between the classes, the jazz ensemble and the mallet quartet we'll have plenty for you to do and work on.
Email me if you need anything else: tony@tonymiceli.com
Expect a few minor changes but this is usually how it goes!
About The Artists
Chuck Redd
Chuck Redd is well known internationally as a performer on drums and vibraphone. Chuck began recording and touring the globe when he joined the Charlie Byrd Trio at the age of 21. He also became a member of the Great Guitars (Barney Kessel, Byrd and Herb Ellis.) To his credit are 25 European tours and six tours of Japan, with the Barney Kessel Trio, Ken Peplowski and the Benny Goodman Tribute Orchestra, Terry Gibbs and Conte Candoli. He served as Artist-In-Residence at The Smithsonian Jazz Café in Washington, DC from 2004-2008.
Tony Miceli
Tony Miceli
Internationally renowned jazz vibraphonist Tony Miceli has established himself as one of the primary voices on the mallet instrument, winning hearts and minds wherever he plays. His achievements, however, go much further beyond. A sought-after recording artist, Miceli is an inspired educator who delivers vibraphone master classes the world over, enriching the students of Ireland, Germany, South Korea, Italy, for example, with an accompanying concert finale. Miceli promotes the instrument through his brainchild, vibesworkshop.com, a virtual meeting place and teaching tool for some 4000 student and professional members. He is also the co-creator of the World Vibes Congress, a formal gathering of players who share the desire to bring public awareness to the vibraphone. It is worth noting that Miceli is part of Team Omega, an elite group of vibes players that includes only three others, headliners Mike Mainieri, David Friedman, Joe Locke, and Stefon Harris. At All About Jazz, Victor Schermer describes him as
“... a vibraphonist of astonishing virtuosity, musical resilience,
and inventiveness. His vibes playing is nothing short of
phenomenal.”
Behn Gillece
Having spent many years deeply embedded in the vibrant jazz scenes of New York and Philadelphia, Behn Gillece has carved out a distinguished reputation as both a virtuosic vibraphonist and a prolific composer. Drawing inspiration from luminaries like Milt Jackson, Gary Burton and Bobby Hutcherson, Gillece has dedicated himself to pushing the boundaries of vibraphone artistry while leaving an indelible mark on the jazz landscape as a composer. Hailing from New Jersey, Gillece honed his craft through numerous performance opportunities in his home state and Philadelphia before making
the leap to New York City in 2006. Since then, he has solidified his status as a sought-after sideman, as well as a formidable bandleader and recording artist.
His latest album, "Stick Together" (2024, Posi-Tone), is a testament to the power of collaboration and synergy. Teaming up with esteemed musicians such as pianist Art Hirahara, bassist Boris Kozlov, and drummer Rudy Royston, Gillece crafts musical creations imbued with an undeniable sense of joy and ease.
From 2009 to 2013, Gillece co-led four transformative recordings on Posi-Tone with tenor saxophonist Ken Fowser, garnering international acclaim and extensive streaming and radio play. His albums as a leader— including "Mindset" (2015), "Dare To Be" (2016), "Walk Of Fire" (2017), "Parallel Universe" (2018), "Still Doing Our Thing" (2021), and "Between The Bars" (2023)— propelled him into the spotlight, earning him a 2018 Downbeat Rising Star award. Additionally, Gillece has lent his talents as a sideman to various acclaimed recordings, collaborating with artists such as Patrick Cornelius, Michael Dease, New Faces, Walt Weiskopf, Melody Gardot, Idle Hands, Out To Dinner, and Ensemble Novo.
Gillece's performances have reached prestigious venues worldwide, including the Lincoln Center, Kennedy Center, Kimmel Center, Smalls Jazz Club, Mezzrow, Jazz Standard, Side Door, Smoke Jazz Club, Fat Cat, Yoshi's, Chris’ Jazz Cafe, as well as renowned festivals such as North Sea, Montreux, Nice, Molde, Ghent, Montreal, and Toronto festivals.
In addition to his robust performance life, Gillece also has a burgeoning career as a music educator. Gillece is a member of the faculty at Rowan University, where he teaches vibraphone, jazz ensemble, music theory, and online courses. In addition to the various workshops he has been asked to give at colleges and universities across the world, he has prepared over 700 lessons for online instruction on vibesworkshop.com, which benefits percussion students internationally.
A recipient of numerous accolades, including the 2018 Downbeat Rising Star Vibraphonist award, Gillece holds a master's degree from SUNY Purchase and is endorsed by Malletech instruments. Other honors include the 2009 Betty Carter Jazz Ahead residency, winning the Generations competition in 2009, and winning the 2008 Jazz Improvisation competition at the Percussive Arts Society International Convention. For more information on Behn Gillece, to purchase albums, or to view his upcoming performance schedule, visit his website at https://www.behngillece.com.
Oliver Mayman
Oliver Mayman
From Ann Arbor, MI, and now based in Philadelphia, Oliver Mayman is a vibraphonist, composer, arranger, and educator. Beginning on the drums and piano, the vibraphone was an inevitable discovery as a teenager – the instrument essentially fusing the mechanics of drumming with the harmonic capabilities of the piano. Since then, he has quickly become a distinguished voice on the instrument, redefining its role in music through an inventive technical approach and a discerning creative ear.
He has performed as a bandleader across the Midwest and East Coast at storied venues like Cliff Bell’s, the Blue LLama, and Chris’ Jazz Cafe, and has also been featured in several larger, iconic events like the Detroit Jazz Festival and the World Vibes Congress. Additionally a sought-after accompanist and sideman, he has performed in countless other venues with various groups, and aims to play the vibraphone as a suitable alternative to the piano, capable of fully assuming a rhythmically and harmonically supportive role in any setting.
He also has extensive experience as an educator, teaching a full private studio of vibraphone students in addition to being on faculty at vibesworkshop.com, the largest online vibraphone community in the world. With a unique approach and pedagogical method to the instrument, he advocates his own novel dampening techniques, adaptations of pianistic ideas, and other innovative 4-mallet concepts, in addition to the fundamentals required by any modern musician. He is also the author of “Dampening Studies,” a comprehensive method for dampening on the vibraphone.
In 2022, he was selected as a Yamaha Young Performing Artist Competition jazz winner. He was also a member of the 2022 JM Jazz World Orchestra, which tours Europe each summer. In 2021, he won the Italy Percussive Arts Society jazz vibraphone competition, the largest of its kind. He also received a Downbeat Magazine student award for outstanding combo (2019) and outstanding soloist (2020) and was awarded second place in the junior open division at the prestigious 2018 M-Prize International Chamber Arts Competition.
Morgan Wallbridge
Morgan Wallbridge
Morgan Walbridge is a professional musician and composer based in Philadelphia, PA.
She performs her own original music for solo vibraphone and frequently collaborates with other local musicians in ensembles of all sizes. Morgan is also a freelance session musician, recording over 50 projects from her home studio each year.
Morgan has been studying music since the age of 4, beginning on piano and playing percussion in school programs from the age of 8. She began her music career as a drum-set player and percussionist, performing in various small groups and pit orchestras at the age of 14 in her hometown of Rochester, NY. Morgan has a wide range of musical influences including jazz, fusion, rock, R&B, and pop.
In 2020, Morgan completed a B.M. in Instrumental Performance from the University of the Arts in Philadelphia, PA with a specialization in Percussion and minor in Music Business, Entrepreneurship, & Technology.
She currently offers private instruction in Mallet Percussion, Drum-Set & Percussion, Composition, and Music Theory. Morgan also offers services in music transcription.