----------------------------------------------- JULY 19, 2001 ----------------------------------------------- Source: San Diego Union Tribune http://pqasb.pqarchiver.com/  (abbreviated link text) When YES calls ...Larry Groupe answers in the affirmative  By George Varga  POP MUSIC CRITIC  Larry Groupe just couldn't say no when invited to record and tour with Yes, the pioneering progressive-rock group he idolized as a teen-ager in the '70s. "They are my favorite band of all time, so it really is a dream come true," said the Oceanside musician, whose credits include the scores for such acclaimed films as "The Contender" and "The Usual Suspects." Groupe, 44, is best known to San Diego music fans as the keyboardist in the bands Bordertown and Wooden Angel. But it's his skills as an orchestral composer, arranger and conductor that won over the members of Yes. "Larry sent us a tape of his work that was very impressive," said Yes bassist Chris Squire, who -- with lead singer Jon Anderson -- is one of the veteran English band's two remaining original members. "He told us he'd been a longtime fan," Squire continued. "And we assumed that would help in his arrangements. It gave him a head-start." Groupe contacted Yes' management last year, after learning the group was planning an orchestral tour. This spring he met with Squire, Anderson, guitarist Steve Howe and drummer Alan White in Santa Barbara, where the four Yes-men were starting their next album. Armed with three new Yes songs to work on, Groupe returned to the North County home he shares with his wife, singer Cici Porter, and four children. He spent the next week in his home studio, where he used state-of-the-art computers and samplers to craft vivid orchestrations for the songs. "I could've played it safe, and not pushed the envelope," Groupe said. "But I did what I thought would work. The new album is as intricate and intense as Yes' music has been for the past 33 years. The mixed rhythms and difficult meters aren't as prevalent, but the contour of the melodies and harmonies is probably more mature than before." The members of Yes liked Groupe's work so much they asked him to write and conduct the orchestrations for the band's next album, "Magnification." They also had him do orchestral arrangements for several extended Yes compositions, including 1972's "Close to the Edge" and 1974's "The Gates of Delirium," and for some shorter Yes classics, including "And You and I." The fruits of Groupe's labors will be heard when Yes officially starts its YesSymphonic World Tour Wednesday at downtown's Summer Pops at Navy Pier, where he'll conduct the San Diego Symphony. Groupe will also lead various orchestras at most of the other dates on the 34-city North American leg of the tour, which stops in Mexico, Canada and at the Hollywood Bowl and New York's Radio City Music Hall. The concerts will include two new songs and a mini-set of Yes favorites sans orchestra. Asked if Groupe was given a mandate to do more or less, musically speaking, bassist Squire laughed. "That would depend on if you were talking to Jon (Anderson) or Steve (Howe). One would say more, and one would say less," Squire replied. Groupe likens his role to working with four directors on the same film. "I hope what I did is (create) the best bridge between all four," he said. "I'm surprised they haven't done an orchestral tour until now. But they've been writing and performing for years as if there was an orchestra there. Some bands work with an orchestra because they think it gives them credibility. Yes is one the few bands where it makes sense for them to do a symphonic tour." Close Window YesInThePress.com For site comments, problems, corrections, or additions, contact YesinthePress@aol.com