Biography
To call Randy Tico a bassist touches on only part of his musical identity. Tico has gained a solid reputation as an inventive and versatile bassist, working with Flora Purim and Airto, Matrix, Strunz and Farah, John McEuen, Kenny Loggins, Joe Farrell, Les McCann and many others. Simultaneously, Tico has also extended his talents into the areas of composing for film--"Steal Big, Steal Little" directed by Andrew Davis (the Fugitive), "The Housekeeper" and "Joe's Gyro Palace" for the FX Network's Independent Film Series, episodes for the syndicated TV series "Freddy's Nightmares"--as well as original scores for theater, studio work and realizing his own ambitious multi-media pieces. Diverse as these projects might seem, it all relates to Tico's expansive musical overview and an adaptability to various creative assignments.
In the realm of theater Tico's original music and sound design for APOLLO - PART 1: LEBENSRAUM at the Kirk Douglas Theatre, directed by Nancy Keystone, received the '05 Garland Award and an Ovation nomination. The full 3 Act version of APOLLO premiered at the Portland Center Stage in January of '09. Other collaborations with Keystone have included the '06 Los Angeles premiere of THE AMERICA PLAY by Suzan-Lori Parks, ANTIGONE at the PCS for which he won a Drammy Award, the critically acclaimed AKHMATOVA PROJECT, Marlowe's DR FAUSTUS, THE ROVER, and MEASURE FOR MEASURE (named one of the "10 best" productions in the LA Weekly).
In '05 Tico composed the vocal score for David Hare's version of MOTHER COURAGE AND HER CHILDREN, directed by Jessica Kubzansky for the Theatre @ Boston Court. He continued his collaboration with Kubzansky in '06 as composer/sound designer for THE GLASS MENAGERIE at the Colony Theater in Burbank. In '09 he scored the Kubzansky directed HAMLET for Theater 150 in Ojai. Also in '09 Tico was sound designer for the world premiere of the Stephen Swartz opera SEANCE ON A WET AFTERNOON at the Granada Theater in Santa Barbara.
Born and raised in Santa Barbara, Tico took to music early, studying classical piano, guitar and bass. Out of school, he honed his wares in numerous local club bands, learning jazz, latin and rock techniques that he would later draw upon as the bassist for the internationally acclaimed jazz group Matrix. Tico's involvement with Matrix began in 1978, and included touring and three albums--"Wizard" and "Tale of the Whale" for Warner Brothers and "Harvest" for Pablo. Tico's distinctive, melodic bass style, incorporating unusual techniques with harmonics, was a cornerstone of the Matrix sound.
Tico met Flora Purim and Airto in '81 and toured the globe and recorded many albums with the famous Brazilian couple. Tico's involvement with the music of Brazil continues with artists such as Ivan Lins, Kleber Jorge (singer w/ Sergio Mendes), Dori Caymmi, Cesar Camargo Mariano,Teka and Fabiano Nacimento. In addition, he recorded and toured with the Grammy award winning, world music group "Strunz and Farah" and appeared with them on the PBS television show "Sound Festival". He was bassist on the 2001 PBS special: The Jeff Barry Show, with special guests Brian Wilson, Jeffery Osborne and Denise Williams.
After returning to California from his Matrix stint Tico began assembling large-scale multi-media projects for the annual Santa Barbara Arts Festivals. "Soundscapes", involving music, multiple-projector visuals, and dance, resulting in an album release on Inner Circle records, with Tico at the helm as performer, composer, and producer. The project was refined in subsequent years and evolved into the yet more elaborate "Vision Quest" and "The First People". He then served as music director for Santa Barbara's celebrated Summer Solstice Parades of '88 and 89 and followed that by producing, writing and directing trans-cultural, multi-media, festival concerts for the Solstice Evening Performances of '90-'95.
The album "Earth Dance", featuring original Tico compositions was released in '91 on Higher Octave Music. Also in '91 The California Arts Council awarded him a grant for music composition.
Tico has joined percussionist Efrian Toro and Brazilian composer/keyboardist Rique Pantoja as instructors for educational seminars in Austria, Switzerland and Germany. He was also featured as guest artist/teacher at the Bozeman Bass Bash in Montana along with Brian Bromberg and Barry Green (author of "The Inner Game of Music"). In '98 the Bay Bass Band (founded by Barry Green) commissioned Tico to compose a new work for 5 acoustic basses and percussion. Other composers for the group include John Pattituci and Jimmy Haslip.
Besides composing and producing music for film, television, theater and multi-media projects, Tico continues to be utilized on recording sessions with composers and artists such as Sadao Wantanabe, Henry Butler, Ivan Lins, Willie & Lobo, John McEuen, Nicolas Pike and Peter Melnick.