Chris Burchard. – his face is hurting from smiling so much Born in Pittsburgh, PA, Chris Burchard spent time in California but his formative years were spent in Chapel Hill, North Carolina. He began playing piano at six years old and received his first guitar in the 4th grade. Early in high school, he played […]
Rob DiStasi Born to a large Italian family in Belleville, New Jersey, Rob started learning the accordion at five years old. Later he took piano lessons but they were overtaken by a larger interest in baseball. While in Belleville High School Rob’s music interest was renewed and he became part of the chorale group and […]
Nancy 3. Hoffman – In these shoes? Born and raised in Cleveland, Ohio to a musically inclined family, taking piano lessons at an early age. She started at Brown University in 1968 then moved to the University of Michigan, in Ann Arbor. After graduating from college in 1975 with a degree in architecture and a […]
David Feder – Music was always his first love David Feder was born in Niagara Falls, New York. His father was in the military, and they lived in a few places but spent most of the time in Buffalo area. To David, Buffalo was a great place to grow up. It was a center for […]
Tim Mayer “Music really lives here” Tim Mayer was born in Salt Lake City, Utah, grew up near Portland, Oregon, and finished high school in San Luis Obispo, California. He learned music in elementary school and joined the school band. Mayer originally played the clarinet but at age 10, he switched to the saxophone. He […]
Harry Schroeder – “Doctor Cabbie” Harry Schroeder was born in New York City. At the age 7, he took piano lessons and did his best to ignore them. Schroeder heard Louis Armstrong for the first time when he was fourteen years old. He discovered music again. He started playing trumpet in the high school band […]
Jeff Dalton – if only that bass could talk Jeff Dalton, the youngest of four brothers who are all bass players, was born and raised on Long Island, New York. His father, Big Al Dalton, was a music teacher and leader of the Dalton Family Band. At fourteen, he attended the Interlochen Arts Academy, a […]
Richard “Richie” Ciavolino “Once you become a drummer, the beat will be inside of you.” Richie Ciavolino was born in Brooklyn, NY in 1960. His father Bob “Chevy” Ciavolino was a drummer in Italian street bands in New York and had a great singing voice. The elder Ciavolino performed and booked acts for the Italian […]
Skipper Kripitz. – has developed his own music identity Samuel David Kripitz, lovingly known as Skipper, grew up in pre-casino Atlantic City, New Jersey during the 50’s and 60’s. His sister was a jazz groupie and inundated him with Billy Holiday, Carmen McRae, Sarah Vaughn, Count Basie, Miles Davis, et al. Located just 50 miles […]
Dave Bootle “Sing, Dance, Laugh” David Wayne Bootle, the youngest of four brothers, was born just outside of Toronto in Orangeville, Ontario in 1962. His parents were from England and immigrated to Canada. His father worked at McDonald Douglas Aircraft and was a solo pianist who played in small venues. Bootle started playing drums in […]
