History:
With
forty Platinum and twenty-five Gold Albums, Fischer is best known
for his production and arrangement work on Natalie Cole's "Unforgettable"
(the album won seven Grammy awards). Additionally André
won three Grammy Awards (including Producer of the Year nomination
in 1992 ), four American Music Awards and numerous other awards
for songwriting, publishing, album/soundtrack sales and for his
cultural and Fundraising efforts.
studioexpresso interview with Andre Fischer
André
is an exceptional talent offering an inexhaustible resource of diverse
entertainment industry and global business expertise ranging in
record/festival production,
marketing and administration of major corporate
departments and multi-million dollar budgets. He has held executive
positions at various record music/film companies as: Senior Vice
President, MCA/Universal Urban Music, Vice President Jazz A&R
for Quincy Jones, Qwest/Warner Bros., Vice President of Publishing
Development, 20th Century Fox Records & Films, to name a few.
Over
the past three decades André has amassed an extensive network
of contacts and established working relationships with broad spectrum
of industry -- law firms, music publishers, recording artists/composers,
promoters, radio and television program directors, corporate sponsors,
lobbyist and educational institutions. Fischer served on the advisory
committee on the Arts and Humanities, Washington, DC and is the
former Chapter President, Governor, Trustee and Outreach Chairman
for Los Angeles Chapter of National Academy of Recording Arts and
Sciences. He has lectured at Universites and professional schools
at UCLA, California State University, Dominguez Hills and Full Sail
University, Orlando Florida.
"The wealthier we are and the higher our education level, the more we collectively lose sight of the randomness of misfortune and come to believe that we have the power to control variables and thereby eliminate risk, this attitude is solely based on assumption, I think assumption should be considered a luxury that no one can afford," says Fischer who is the executive director of Twin Cities Mobile Jazz Project.
Fischer
grew up surrounded by music and art - his
mother
a jazz singer/sculptor,
his father a music
professor
and trumpet player in a swing band, and his uncle is renowned jazz
composer/pianist Clare Fischer. By the age of four
André began touring with his father who performed and arranged
for the big bands of Woody Herman, Little John Beacher, Harry James
and the Lee William's orchestra. He had extensively traveled throughout
the United States, Mexico and Europe by the time he was 10 and while
still in high school, he began recording, performing, musical directing,
producing and touring with the world's most successful recording
artists.
In 1970, Fischer moved to Chicago and began playing drums for Curtis
Mayfield, Gene Chandler, Jerry Butler, and on jingles while staying
in the basement of arranger/producer Richard Evans (Soulful Strings,
Rockie Robbins, Natalie Cole, Peabo Bryson's Reaching for the Sky).
He played with local band American Band who hit with "Bend
Me Shape Me."
The band became Ask Rufus and after adding singer
Chaka Khan became Rufus, recording their first album for ABC Records
in 1973. In a ten-year span, the band charted 15 pop singles (including
two gold singles, the number three pop/R&B hit "Tell Me
Something Good" written by Stevie Wonder and the number five
pop/number one R&B hit "Sweet Thing").
Fischer is
responsible for producing, executive producing, performing and recording
with many of the music industry's most gifted pop, R&B, rock
and jazz performers: Rufus featuring Chaka Khan ( founding member
and producer), Patti Labelle, Michael Franks, Natalie Cole, Tony
Bennett (
Perfectly Frank, which won a 1993 Grammy Award for Best Traditional
Pop Vocal),
James Ingram, B.B. King, Gladys Knight, Nina Simone, Frank Sinatra,
Pointer Sisters, Diane Schuur, Temptations, Dusty Springfield, Brenda
Russell, OC Smith, Dr. John, Laura Nyro, Lou Rawls, Jackie DeShannon,
Nancy Wilson, Milt Jackson, Bruce Hornsby, Oscar Brown, Curtis Mayfield
& the Impressions, Jerry Butler, The Rolling Stones tour, Elton
John tour, The Who Tour, Etta James, Neil Diamond, Anita Baker,
Janet Jackson, Vesta Williams, Leroy Hudson, Betty Wright, Phil
Perry, Steve Khan, Tower of Power, Vanessa Ruben, Angela Winbush,
James Moody, Ahmad Jamal, Isley Brothers, Donny Hathaway, Richie
Havens, Eddie Harris, Clarke Terry, Randy Crawford, Ralph Tresvant,
Jackie Lomax, Al Green and Bobby Brown.
Andre
is the co-founder and drummer of Rufus. One of the most commercially
successful funk groups of the '70s, the multi-racial Rufus are today
best remembered for launching the career of soul diva Chaka Khan,
whose fiery lead vocals were easily the band's focal point. Powered
by Khan -- who was eventually billed in addition to the group --
and an unerring sense of groove, Rufus scored an impressive string
of hit singles on both the pop and R&B charts, which lasted
through the early 80's. Fischer produced urban Adult Contemporary/Smooth
Jazz/Pop artist Eloise Laws. Barry Rudolph engineered and mixed
the sessions. André played drums and is joined by CO-original
Rufus member Bobby Watson on bass guitar. The supporting cast of
musicians include: keyboardist Bill Cantos, guitarists Dwight Sills
and original Gap Band member Fred Jenkins. Bridgette Bryant sang
backing vocals on most of the ten tracks. As president of KSF Enterprises
Fischer provided all music production services -- budget management
& event planning, marketing and lecturing, for a variety of
entertainment and technology companies.
Current
Credits: André Fischer served as the Dean of Music Industries
at McNally Smith College of Music where a Bachelor Degrees in Music
Performance, Music Business and Music Composition is offered. In 2019 he worked with the Danish Radio (DR) Big Band feat International singer, Sinne Eeg.
The record of her songs was produced by André Fischer (Diane Schuur, Nina Simone, Natalie Cole) and mixed at Capitol Studios in Los Angeles by the legendary Al Schmitt (Frank Sinatra, Miles Davis, Ray Charles). Fischer is executive director of a non-profit, Twin Cities Mobile Jazz Project.
