Tini Martini Bar Performers Bio Page


	Kelly Atkins Kelly Atkins has been an accomplished professional singer and actor for fifteen years, appearing regularly in many different venues Florida and throughout the country. A native Virginian, she began classical vocal studies at a young age and graduated from Shenandoah Conservatory with a BFA in Music Theatre and Performance Certificate in Voice. She has been a four-time First Place winner in the statewide and regional NATS Competitions in both the Classical and Musical Theatre divisions. Since moving to Ponte Vedra from New York City several years ago, Kelly has spent most of her time starring in musicals, plays, and reviews in professional theatres around Florida. Local audiences may have seen her at the Alhambra Dinner Theatre in Jacksonville: My Fair Lady, The King and I, Guys and Dolls, Showboat, and Damn Yankees, to name a few, or at the Hippodrome State Theatre in Gainesville, where she has starred in 8 Track: the Sounds of the 70's, Shout: The Mod Musical, in the title role of Alice in Wonderland, and most infamously, as Pippi, in the all-time record breaking hit The Great American Trailer Park Musical. Most recent favorite productions include the title role in Victor/Victoria at the Show Palace in Hudson, Audrey in Little Shop of Horrors at American Stage in St. Petersburg, and My Way, a Tribute to Frank Sinatra at Florida Studio Theatre in Sarasota.
Kelly has been seen in over 50 commercials, numerous print ads and voiceovers, and she recently landed a role in the HBO film Recount starring Kevin Spacey. She is thrilled to now be pursuing her long time fantasy of being a jazz chanteuse, having recently joined forces with the incredibly talented Rusty Springfield, Tony Scozzaro, and Sean Andrews.


	Von Barlow One of the finest ensemble players around, always taking sensitive stylistic cues from his fellow performers, engaging in sympathetic and interesting dialog with any ensemble in which he plays. His stick work is never studied or monotonous, but filled with thoughtful listening and original thinking. Capable of the artistic understatement necessary in a quiet restaurant, Von is equally famous for his fiery jazz drumming as well as his floor filling dance grooves. Truly he is a seasoned performer and a master of his craft. As a top call drummer in the southeast for the last ten years, Von has never been accused of being inexperienced as his resume reads like a veritable who’s who in jazz and pop music. Mose Allison, O.C. Smith, Lou Rawls, The Ray Charles Trio, Arthur Prysock, Les McCann, Eddie Harris, Bobby Hutcherson, Bunky Green, Roy Ayers, Etta James , Buddy DeFranco , Ray Brown,Ira Sullivan, Pete Jolly, Bobby Bluebland, Joe Sample , Barney Kessel, Buster Williams, Longineu Parsons, Ben Tucker, Marcus Roberts, Harry Connick Jr, Della Reese, Jack Wilson, are just some of the names Von has performed and recorded with.
Von has also been the house drummer for the Jacksonville Jazz Festival for several years and has played in the festival’s Great American Piano Competition rhythm section four times, including the first year when Marcus Roberts and Harry Connick Jr. were a part, ( Marcus won, but look how far Harry has come) Von played with the late great O.C. Smith at the famous Woodstock Festival of 1969, Montery Jazz Festival, Madison Square Garden, The Apollo, The Hollywood Bowl, The Coconut Grove and many articles including 1966, 1967 and 1968 Downbeat Magazine. For some years, he played with Ben Tucker and various renowned guest artists at Hannah’s in historic Savannah. He also performed frequently for the Hilton Head Jazz Society, and Von is seen a lot with Longineu Parsons Tribal Disorder (hard core off the chain music), Von, Lawrence Buckner ( bassist), Neal Faison (guitar), which makes up the foundation of the rhythm section, have been on many tours together, places like France, Spain and are working on a tour of Italy at the end of 2006. http://www.vonbarlow.com

Peggie Black
Musician Consultant Writer

"Peggie Black ís voice has a saucy 'Come up and see me sometime' flair that laces each note with plenty of double entendres," wrote Mark Faulkner, Florida Times Union.

Peggie is a renowned singer of "The Great American Songbook," and has garnered rave reviews from audiences for her witty, sophisticated performances. The jazz standards of Gershwin, Cole Porter, and Ellingtion, to name a few, come to life with Peggie's velvety voice and unique connection with her audience. Not only is Peggie steeped in the juices of the great instumentalists of jazz but, as a vocalist, Peggie gives special attention to the lyrics written for these tunes. She ties them all together with stories of the amazing personalities of jazz. Peggie graduated Summa Cum Laude from the nationally acclaimed jazz program at the University of North Florida. She has been the featured vocalist with the Marc Dickman Orchestra at the Jekyll Island Resort New Year's Eve Gala, and has performed in many of the finest venues in the Jacksonville area including, World Golf Village, Jacksonville Landing, Sea Island Resort, The Brick, The Atlantic and many more. Peggie's CD, "Let's Do It" is available from itunes and most other online music sites.


	Cathy DeWitt Musician Consultant Writer Cathy DeWitt was destined to be a musician, and playing jazz is in her blood. Before she was born her father Bruce led his own band in New Orleans, regularly opening for Louis Armstrong at Pete Fountain's place. At a very early age music filled her house, from her father's Dixieland trumpet and stride piano to the Rachmaninoff and Chopin pieces her brother Peter, a prodigy pianist, rehearsed every day on the grand piano in the living room. As the family gathered to watch the television variety shows of the 60s, she heard all the famous singers interpreting the great songbook of jazz and show tunes, and she never forgot the lyrics to many of those songs.
She also writes her own songs, and in the past two years has had two Honorable Mentions in the Jazz category of Unisong's International Songwriting Contest, competing with over 4,000 entries from 90 countries. After honing her harmonic skills as a member of the University of Florida Choir and Willis Bodine's Chamber Singers, Cathy met and began performing with jazz guitarist Charlie Bush. This was the beginning of her career as a jazz singer, which led to performances throughout Florida, as well as New York, California, London, Hawaii, and the Virgin Islands. After Charlie's untimely death in 1984 she formed her own band, MoonDancer, which is still playing today. A board member of the Gainesville Friends of Jazz & Blues, she has produced and/or performed in many concerts, singing with many great musicians, including pianists Dave Frishberg, Frank Sullivan and Rob Bargad, guitarist Larry Camp, and bassist Walter Booker. Several of these concerts were recorded for broadcast by the local public radio affiliate, WUFT, and make up the basis of her album, Love Notes. LISTEN at www.cathydewitt.com/recordings.htm.


	Bob Fraioli Bob Fraioli (originally from the East Coast where he studied music and received his Bachelor in Music Degree with a major in Performance) actually comes here from Los Angeles. He has appeared for various audiences from Southeast Asia to New York and Los Angeles. The list of quartets he has played in or formed is astounding and has been going on since he was 14, even then participating on the Ted Mack Amateur hour!!! In the Army, he wrote his own jazz television show weekly in the U.S. and served in Viet Nam as one of the dedicated pianists. Since then he has appeared in clubs all over the United States, wowing them with his style and technique. Currently residing here in Florida he is bringing a level of jazz that this area needs.
Bob Fraioli and guest artists who sit in provide an opportunity for lovers of jazz to listen to a level of innovative music seldom found beyond the music centers of the West Coast, Chicago and New York City. Bob Fraioli is now captivating a growing audience of jazz enthusiasts in Florida. He presents his unique interpretations of the classic works of the jazz masters of the past and present, including Ahmad Jamal, Bill Evans, and Thelonius Monk. His influences being Bill Evans and Oscar Peterson, you don’t have to listen very long to him before that is evident. Bob is currently doing the booking for the “Tini” Bar, so for all those interested he can be contacted at orchestr8@cfl.rr.com. He appears at the Tini Martini Bar every Thursday and encourages all those people who “play” to bring their instruments. (Please, no novices, learn your ax at home...only pros)
Recorded live by the Bob Fraioli Trio at the Tini Martini Bar, this song is called "Django" (named after French jazz-guitar great Django Reinhardt)


	David Guidi David Guidi is quickly garnering national attention for his contributions as a composer and performing jazz artist. He has been referred to as both a "Significant young artist, clearly committed to a long life of jazz" (Jazzreview.com) and as "Someone to watch carefully in the future" (Cadence Magazine). His compositions have received widespread acclaim, obtaining recognition in several major competitions including the 2005 ASCAP Young Jazz Composer Composition Awards, which he won for his big-band chart entitled Hike!!!.
David is currently an Adjunct Professor in the Jazz Studies Department at the University of Texas at Austin. He has performed extensively across the country and around the world at several of the major European jazz festivals. He is a past student of world-renowned saxophonist Bunky Green and a recent graduate of the University of Texas at Austin with the degree Doctor of Musical Arts in Composition. Performances by his groups and of his music remain well within the realm of the jazz idiom and are deeply-rooted in the blues and swing heritage of the music.

Victoria Horne - Jazz, Blues & More

Victoria Horne’s Jazz Vocals with John Shaffer - Guitarist and John Pellegrino - Bassist. Back in the USA! International Vocalist Victoria Horne joins friends for cool nights of hot Jazz. You can study all the greats, but if you weren't born with the pipes, you'll never cut it as a jazz vocalist. Or, you can be like Horne, who clearly has augmented her deliciously smoky voice with extensive listening to the likes of Sarah Vaughan and Billie Holiday. The results speak for themselves: pitch-perfect renditions of standards, delivered with a sly grin!- C-net Music Editor

My Space pages:
Victoria Horne - http://myspace.com/victoriahornelivejazz
John Shaffer - http://myspace.com/johnshafferjazzguitar
Links to a few of her songs:
http://cdbaby.com/mp3lofi/victoriahorne-09.m3u
http://cdbaby.com/mp3lofi/victoriahorne-07.m3u
http://cdbaby.com/mp3lofi/victoriahorne-01.m3u

Scott Mariash - Drummer

A prominent drummer on the Chicago jazz scene, many great musicians often sought Scott out as their first choice for a drummer. This environment allowed Scott to develop his modern and engaging approach, and apply it to the variety of musical styles to which he was asked to perform. In 1999 he released his first compact disc, "BREATH" (recorded live to two track at C.E. Mikter Studios). It is available at CDbaby.com and features Vinson Johnson (reeds), Robert Applebaum (piano), and Michel Cristol (bass). By the time he left Chicago the "Scott Mariash Trio" was performing at various clubs and was the official group for the Chicago jazz club "Delaney & Murphy".

Scott is the son of prominent show business performers. With his gene pool it is no wonder that Scott has forged his own creative personality.

Cheryl Paige

Born in New York, Cheryl Paige has had the chance to work with some of the greatest names in jazz such as Count Basie, Thad Jones and Mel Lewis, also Mel Lewis and Dizzy Gillespie. She has also done commercials for Coca-Cola, Nabisco, Jordache Jeans, and Nescafe Coffee, just to mention a few. She is now one of the new voices in the State of Florida. Her CD speaks for itself. A voice that is so different with a five and a half octave range. Cheryl can sing just about anything, a voice worth checking out.

John Pelligrino

John appeared with Walt Disney Bands over 35 years. Playing with all the big name bands and groups appearing at various times. Prior appearances on string bass with Tommy and Jimmy Dorsey, The Glen Miller Band, Les and Larry Elgart, Bobby Hackett, Zoot Sims, Urbie Green, Al Cohn. Appearances on tuba with Guy Lombardo, Sammy Kaye, Jewels of Dixie, Willie the Lion Smith, etc. One "master" bassist...a real pro.

Cindy Pierson

Cindy comes to the North Florida area from the Detroit area where she appeared in theatre as Adelaide in "Guys and Dolls," Dolly in "Hello Dolly," Luisa in "Nine" and other traditional roles. She and musician husband Jack worked clubs in the Detroit area before moving to Florida. Cindy has more than 300 tunes in her repertoire, from the swing era to contemporary. Her influences include Peggy Lee, Ella Fitzgerald, Karen Carpenter, Julie London and Diana Krall. As an experienced theatre singer, she tells a story on every tune. She can be heard on www.jazzpiersonified.com.

Jack Pierson

Jack has had a varied career since receiving his Masters Degree in Music Composition from Ohio University where he was principal trumpet in Orchestra, Band and was arranger for the Marching Band. His early experience was with Cannonball Adderly, Neil Hefti, Les Elgart and even Blue Barron. After a stint in the Army, he spent 35 years in the classroom teaching high school and performing in the evening with top Detroit jazz musicians. His teaching also included Interlochen School For The Arts, Blue Lakes Fine Arts Camp and head of Jazz Studies at Schoolcraft College. Jack was also Coordinator of the Henry Ford College Jazz Studies Program of Detroit and Monteux Switzerland which also included Donald Byrd, Bunky Green and Nathan Davis on the staff.
Jack's former students include Rick Margitza, Bob Hurst, Tim Ries, David Mann, Walter White, the Bissonette Brothers, Greg and Matt, and many other first call players in Detroit. Jack is a well respected pianist for his accompanying abilities and jazz improvisation. His Detroit area performances included both the Michigan Jazz Festival (which was dedicated to him in 2004) and the Detroit International Jazz Festival, both with his trio and quartet as well as with his College and High School Groups. He was music director for the Detroit Playboy Club and performed in the legendary "Bakers Keyboard Lounge" as well as the "Firefly Jazz Club" in Ann Arbor.

Tony Scozzaro

Guitarist Tony Scozzaro was given the "Outstanding Player of the Year" Award while a student at GIT in Los Angeles. After returning to Buffalo, NY, Tony was voted "Top Guitarist" three years in a row at the Buffalo Music Awards. Tony was also the leader of the jazz fusion group, Gamelan, before moving to Florida in 2006, where he continues to teach and play music with a variety of artists.

John Shaffer

"John Shaffer is an outstanding guitarist who learned to play on the tiny island of St. John." - Downbeat Nov 1987
"Not since I witnessed Carlos Montoya play with a symphony orchestra or Kenny Burrell play live have I been as impressed or excited by a guitar virtuoso’s performance." - Rick Grant, First Coast Entertainer, June 1995
"Man, Wave is my song and you played it better than me." - Attila Zoller 1/5/89
As an International Performing and Recording Artist, Musician, Composer and Arranger with over 7000 gigs and over 30 years of professional playing experience under his belt, John Shaffer plays the guitar with a passion and style that ranks him as one of the world's most accomplished. In over 40 years as a multi-instrument instructor he has seen many of his students become professional artists and has developed a unique method to get the point across. After studying North Indian Classical Music (sitar, sarod, tabla) in the early 1970's with Ali Akbar Khan and Zakir Hussain, studying the oud and dissecting Afro-Cuban music (salsa) with Eddie Reyes, he eventually synthesized a World Music approach to playing and teaching the guitar that is both challenging and fun.

Rusty Springfield

A Berklee College of Music alumnus, Rusty has been playing bass for thirty years. His musical experiences range the gamut, from funk, R&B, jazz, and symphonic work, to stints at Walt Disney World, The Ringling Brothers & Barnum and Bailey Circus, The Big Apple Circus in New York City, and the Montreux Jazz Festival in Switzerland.

Rusty has performed with many varied artists as well, including vocalist Lou Rawls, The Chiffons, Danny and the Juniors, The Four Lads, jazz greats Eddie Harris, Ritchie Cole, Bill Evans, Charlie Byrd, Mose Allison, Ira Sullivan, Rob Mullins, Tower of Power's David Garibaldi, and Rio Clemente


	Sean Tarleton Sean Tarleton is a versatile bassist who has performed many diverse styles of music with numerous groups during his career. He most often performs jazz, funk, gospel, R&B, world music and rock, but has played in just about every conceivable genre and instrumentation. His formal musical training began at age 12 when he began playing the euphonium and later trombone in the school band. At 14 he bought his first electric bass, an instrument in which he had developed an intense interest. A year later he was playing bass in the high school jazz ensemble and studying with electric bass virtuoso Troy Millard. At 19, Sean began playing professionally. Since then his musical experience has consisted of performing in a broad array of settings. Sean graduated summa cum laude from the University of North Florida's American Music Program with a Bachelor of Music degree in Jazz Performance. He has appeared and recorded with a long list of entertainers that includes jazz artists Toshiko Akiyoshi, Lew Tabackin, Robert Conti, Nat Adderly, Randy Brecker, Gary Starling, Phil Woods, Les DeMerle, and Bunky Green, the alternative rock trio Dear John, and the actor Mickey Rooney.
Sean currently resides in North Carolina and performs along the East Coast with various bands that include Caribbean Sound, The Rig, The Jason Anderson Group, and his own band, The Sean Tarleton Group. Sean has laid down tracks with many artists, including material for an upcoming release by The Rig availabe in November 2007.

Al Waters - Saxophonist

This saxophonist/flutist of Jacksonville, Florida began his musical education in the seventh grade. While attending junior high and high school, he played in the Marching, Symphonic Bands and many small ensembles. After high school, he attended Florida A&M University (FAMU), performed in the Symphonic Band and was a member of the “Marching 100”. During his junior year, he joined FAMU's Jazz Band and performed with major artists like Donald Byrd and "Patti LaBelle & the Bluebells." After earning an instrumental music degree, he moved to Richmond, Virginia, to accept a job as Band Director at Virginia Union University. After a three and a half year stint teaching, he decided to devote all his energies to becoming a full-time musician. During this period he performed in bands playing Dixieland, Big Band, Blues, Rock and Jazz. In addition to playing in clubs, private parties, local festivals and weddings, he also performed with the Richmond Symphony. Some of the artists he has opened for or accompanied include Milt Jackson, Frank Foster, Jackie Byard, Benny Carter, Ellis Marsalis, the Temptations, Rita Moreno, Florence Henderson and Barry Manilow.

In 1987, Al began to tour and made stops in the Caribbean and Hong Kong with "Panama Francis and the Savoy Sultans." In 1990, he became a member of the "Ray Charles Band and Show." His association with this organization lasted ten years. While touring with Mr. Charles he performed concerts in Africa, Asia, Europe, North America and South America. After touring with Ray Charles, he returned to Jacksonville, and began searching for a local band to join or form. Fortunately, he found the former and has performed with many of Jacksonville's finest artists and groups (Teddy Washington & The Point After, Doug Carn Quartet, KTG, The Bob Fraioli Quartet, First Coast Jazz Orchestra, Lawrence Buckner Quartet and YaGozo).

Dot Wilder

Dot Wilder's innovative sound and unique phrasings twice earned Downbeat Magazine's Student Award for "Outstanding Performance of a Jazz Vocalist", has become well known to Northeast Florida jazz fans over the last 12 yrs. Dot's performances of jazz standards that she makes fresh and new, using her voice like an instrument, along with showcasing her diverse influences, expressive nature and an impressive set of pipes. A summa cum laude '98 grad of the acclaimed University of North Florida Jazz School, dir. Bunky Green, Wilder has been heard at the Florida Theater, Sea Walk Pavilion, Jacksonville Landing, World Golf Village, Jazz Corner in Hilton Head, S.C., Savannah Grande in Gainesville, Fla., St. Simons Lighthouse in St. Simons, Ga., the Jacksonville Jazz Festival 2000 & 2004, & the Guantanamo, Cuba, Jazz Festival 2003 & 2007. Her debut album, "Dot Wilder, Live from the Warehouse",'99, has been given airplay (grassroots) from Miami to Washington, D.C to Eugene, Oregon, Bogota, Columbia to Adelaide, Australia and in-between. To conclude, Norm Vickers of the Jazz Society of Pensacola states that "Dot, an outstanding vocalist, can sing a jazz standard and improvise a jazz chorus like the best instrumentalist."

Here a few links to her songs:
http://cdbaby.com/mp3lofi/dotwilder-11.m3u
http://cdbaby.com/mp3lofi/dotwilder-07.m3u
http://cdbaby.com/mp3lofi/dotwilder-03.m3u

Kelly Atkins

Von Barlow

Peggie Black Musician Consultant Writer

Cathy DeWitt Musician Consultant Writer

Bob Fraioli

David Guidi