Joe Waslousky is one of the most diverse drummers in the Pittsburgh region, which is reflected both in his style of playing and in his own personal music tastes. A tour of Joe's colossal CD collection takes you from Albinoni to Zappa. And the list of those he's studied with is just as impressive, including drumming legends David Garibaldi and Roger Humphries. Currently, Joe plays with Hewlett Anderson, Heather Kropf, Cityscape and Mark Pipas. Past groups include Love Child featuring Jenn Wertz of Rusted Root, Hipster Dufus, Kenny Blake, Dave & Maureen Budway, Late Edition, Dave Hanner, Modern Times and What If.. (nominated for Best Jazz group in the 1990 In Pittsburgh Music Awards.) And Joe isn't just a pretty face behind the drum kit! He has a Bachelor of Science degree from Pitt in Business & Economics.
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Lisa Bleil has been singing professionally in the Pittsburgh area for over 20 years. Her career has been extremely varied, covering every kind of style and venue from delivering "Singing Telegrams" in college to performing on nationally broadcast television programs with some of the legends of Rock 'n Roll.
Over the years, she has performed in several local bands, including Obsession and The Sponges, former winners of the Graffiti Rock Challenge. Her current band, Cityscape, has performed at many major corporate and charity events including The Heart Ball, The Cinderella Ball and The Pittsburgh Zoo Gala.
Recently, Lisa was featured on WQED-TV's "All-Star Holiday Jam" as well as the nationally televised "Rock, Rhythm and Doo-wop" and "Red, White and Rock", performing with Frankie Avalon, Connie Francis and Frankie Valli, among others.
Lisa's theater credits include Fiddler on the Roof, The Sound of Music and Kiss Me Kate, plus appearances with Don Brockett Productions and several industrial shows including the Dupont Style Awards in Chicago. She also worked for about 12 years for Latshaw Productions where, in addition to performing, she was involved with the writing and direction of several musical revues. She toured with these shows all over the Eastern United States and Canada.
Lisa has also been the voice of many television and radio jingles including work for Eat n Park, Wendy's, The Three Rivers Arts Festival, Great American Federal, Peerless and Baierl Chevrolet.
She attended Carnegie-Mellon University's prestigious School of Music, where she majored in vocal performance and was a featured soloist in the "Carnegie Salutes Carnegie" celebration at the Civic Arena.
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With over twenty years of professional experience, Eric DeFade is in demand as a performing artist and studio musician. Few musicians can boast of a schedule as demanding or varied.
Currently, Eric performs with The Billy Price Band, Salsamba, Five Guys Named Moe, The Balcony Big Band, and The Benny Benack Band - and still finds time for an impressive array of freelance gigs, including frequent appearances with Sandy Staley, HB Bennett, Mark Perna, Roger Humphries, Eric Suesoff, and many other local artists.
Nationally, Eric has performed with John Scofield, Dave Liebman, Rosemary Clooney, New York Voices, The Temptations and many others.
Most recently, Eric played with jazz legend Nancy Wilson on the Oprah Winfrey Show and was featured soloist for the Pittsburgh Ballet Theater production, "Indigo in Motion."
A McDonald's All-American, Eric received a scholarship to study jazz performance at North Texas State University and won outstanding soloist honors at the Witchita Jazz Festival, the UT. Austin invitational and the Latin American Music Festival. Eric was also the featured soloist for the Dallas Jazz Orchestra and worked extensively in the Dallas club and studio scene before touring internationally with the Tommy Dorsey Orchestra and the Artie Shaw Band
After two trips around the world as a show band musician for Princess Cruises, Eric led his own combo in Tokyo and then returned to the U.S. to freelance on the east coast.
Eric currently resides in Pittsburgh and is an artist/lecturer at Carnegie Mellon University. Back to the top
Brian Stahurski has earned a reputation as one of Pittsburgh's most versatile musicians. He has performed locally with the Pittsburgh Ballet Orchestra, Civic Light Opera's Broadway Series, The Wheeling Symphony, Dave & Maureen Budway, The Balcony Big Band, Jeff Bell, Benny Benack, Sandy Staley, Modern Times, Joe Negri & Billy Price, to name a few!
Brian recently returned from two years of touring with jazz trumpet legend Maynard Ferguson and his Big Bop Nouveau Band, playing at jazz festivals, clubs, and Universities in the U.S., Europe, and Asia.
In addition to numerous local recordings, Brian has recorded with vocalist Michael Feinstein on "Big City Rhythms" and with renowned vocalist Diane Schuur on "Swingin' for Schuur". Both recordings are on the Concord Jazz Label.
Brian received his formal education at Duquesne University, earning a Bachelor's degree in Jazz Performance in 1989 while studying with Jeffrey Mangone, and a Master's degree in General Performance in 1992 while studying with Anthony Bianco.
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Over the past 20 years, guitarist Dave Brown has recorded and toured with various jazz groups led by Nathan Davis, Eric Kloss, and Dwayne Dolphin, as well as being a founding member of the progressive jazz quintet, The Dave Harger Group. He has also performed with such legendary musicians as Herbie Hancock, Larry Coryell, James Moody, Joe Henderson and The Modern Jazz Quartet, among others.
Taking a break from the jazz world in 1994, Dave co-founded the rock band The Gathering Field with singer/songwriter Bill Deasy. After the regional success of the their song "Lost in America", the band was signed to Atlantic Records in 1996 and spent three years touring the country with various acts like Vertical Horizon, Rusted Root, Storyville, and The Pat Magee Band. The Gathering Field also played opening slots for artists such as Tom Petty, K.D. Lang, Toad the Wet Sprocket, and Blue Rodeo.
In addition to being a guitarist, Dave has also made a name for himself as a producer on such releases as Rusted Root's "Cruel Sun" as well as their remake of the Santana hit "Evil Ways" for Jodi Foster's film "Home for the Holidays". He has also produced releases for Push, Carol Espy, Rachel McCartney, and all four Gathering Field CDs,including "Lost in America", which was released nationally by Atlantic Records.
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