My roots go back to Buffalo, NY where I grew up and started playing guitar at age 14 after my brother (a guitarist/songwriter) gave me a Kramer acoustic guitar. I started taking lessons and gradually started working on writing my own songs. I had been singing already for years in choirs from elementary school and leading up to classical vocal training in college. I have always been a music person....I knew early on that music was something that was a real part of what my self expression would be. Song-writing was also an early love of mine, and still is today. In college I placed an advertisement in the local Buffalo newspaper "Art Voice" seeking fellow musicians to start a band with, and very soon Desert Hum was created. We released a few studio recordings and performed locally in Buffalo for a few years.
Next to creating music, (in the 90's) college radio really made an impact on me and introduced me to an unlimited amount of bands, solo artists, and genres during my college years. I started as a disc jockey at the Buffalo State College radio station, WBNY, in the fall of 1991 and remained a loyal weekly host of an eclectic music mix program until my departure in May 1996. On occasion I thoroughly enjoyed the opportunity to fill in for the folk and roots music show "Rooting About" hosted by Al Riess, and searching through Al's extensive world and folk music cabinets in preparation for these shows is what introduced me to music from around the globe. This music exploration not only inspired me and opened my mind to endless music possibilities, but I credit this radio program for broadening and expanding my ear for music to a completely new level, and allowing me to develop my appreciation for so many different genres of music today.
While situated at the college station, I also started working as an on-air disc jockey during over night shifts at the commercial modern rock station, 103.3 FM The Edge (WEDG). I interned at Ani Difranco's record label Righteous Babe Records, and in the summer of ‘96 I relocated to Los Angeles, CA where I worked doing radio promotion in the music business for a couple years. Los Angeles is where I started performing as a solo musician and performed on a consistent basis at various coffeehouses, and venues. I relocated to the city of Boston in 2001, and have been ever since (except for a one year NYC experiment).
When I met fellow singer-songwriter Keith Hampton one day when I was playing guitar in the Boston subway, it led to an opportunity to be a part of his compilation and include my song "The Point" on “Coming Home: Boston Song Collective” showcasing local Boston songwriters.
Next to writing pop acoustic songs, I also have a real passion for Indian culture and music. It led me to begin my study of Classical Indian Hindustani singing in 2003 with Soma Sarkar and I soon found this challenging style of singing to benefit me as a vocalist in many ways. It has strengthened my voice, and taken me to a new level of vocal exploration. I have recently spent time in India and have begun learning the instrument Shankar-guitar from Dr. Kamala Shankar. I intend to eventually weave this music influence more into my own compositions and to work on some unique collaborations. While time spent in Delhi, I performed a weekly show at TLR in Hauz Khas Village and a performance at The Banyan Grill at O Palacio in Saket, Delhi.
Currently I am recording music and gradually posting a song at a time, working towards self releasing a full album in 2011.