Ray Suen

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Ray Suen
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Ray Suen on set of Yo Gabba Gabba!, October 2009
Background information
Birth name Raymond Liang Suen
Born July 5, 1985
Origin Newark, Delaware, USA United States
Genres Rock, Jazz, classical
Instruments Violin, guitar, keyboards
Associated acts Mariachi El Bronx, The Flaming Lips, Childish Gambino, Passion Pit, The Killers, Louis XIV

Ray Suen (born July 5, 1985) is an American multi-instrumentalist. He is currently a touring member of Passion Pit and the backing band for Childish Gambino.[1] In 2013, Suen released EP1 as his solo project, Savio Savio.[2]

History

Raised in San Diego, California and classically trained, Suen began playing violin at the age of three. He served as a principal violinist with the La Jolla Symphony Orchestra and also studied jazz while earning a degree in Psychology at UCSD. He became a fixture in the San Diego music scene performing with several different area rock, folk, jazz, and world music groups.[3]

He is a former touring member of the rock band, Louis XIV, and has appeared and recorded with numerous Southern California artists including Jason Mraz, Matt Curreri & the Exfriends, Joanie Mendenhall, and Gregory Page among others.[4] Suen was also featured in 2007 as an occasional member of the Joe Firstman house band on Last Call with Carson Daly.

Other artists Suen has performed with include Donald Glover, Devon Sproule and The Flaming Lips. Suen played with Sproule during a short tour in February 2009 [5] and played percussion with The Flaming Lips on The Tonight Show with Conan O'Brien in October 2009.[6]

Suen appeared again with The Flaming Lips at the 2011 New Year's Eve Freakout playing harp, guitar, synth and other percussion for the first live performance of The Soft Bulletin album.[7] He performed subsequent Soft Bulletin shows as well as Dark Side of the Moon shows as an auxiliary musician.

Suen joined Glover as Childish Gambino during his I Am Donald tour playing guitar, keyboard, and violin.[8] He resumed playing with Childish Gambino during his Camp tour.[9] In 2015, Suen was a touring member of Passion Pit in support of their third album, Kindred.

The Killers

Upon graduation in 2007, he began his first national tour with Louis XIV[10] opening for the Las Vegas rock band, The Killers on the last leg of their Sam's Town Tour. Suen would later join The Killers in 2008 as keyboardist, guitarist, violinist, and backup vocalist for their Day & Age World Tour and has since appeared with the band on Saturday Night Live, The Tonight Show with Jay Leno, Jimmy Kimmel Live!, Late Show with David Letterman, Friday Night with Jonathan Ross, Taratata and Later... with Jools Holland. Suen also appears on The Killers' first live concert DVD, Live from the Royal Albert Hall, filmed July 2009,[11] and on The Killers' performance on Live from Abbey Road.[12]

Mariachi El Bronx

Suen met members of Mariachi El Bronx when they opened for the Killers. He began touring with them following the end of the Day and Age Tour.[13] Subsequently, he became a member writing and contributing vihuela, jarana, harp, guitar, violin, and vocals to Mariachi El Bronx (II)[14] and III.[15]

Selected Discography

[17]

References

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  12. http://www.imdb.com/name/nm3647947/
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  17. "http://www.allmusic.com/artist/ray-suen-mn0002671478" at AllMusic. Retrieved "2013-10-23".

External links and references