Pro Musica Musical Evenings

 
 
 

Musical Evenings is very pleased to bring back one of our favorite duets!!
Tony & Joe have played here the last two years and it is always a beautiful event. I hope you can make it to kick off the summer!!
Ken Christianson, Pro Musica, Chicago

Doors Open at 7pm
Concert at 8pm

Tony Richards
Tony Richards is a Chicago based guitarist, writer and arranger born in New York City. Tony, having been raised by opera singers, began teaching himself guitar at the age of 11. Early on, he listened to classical music, jazz and the pop music of the sixties. Later on, he started to be influenced by progressive artists of the early seventies. As a teen he was fortunate to see live performances by Thelonius Monk, Vladimir Horowitz and Andrés Segovia. Tony regularly performs with his Trio, and in 2017 released a live album of his own compositions. Recently, Tony has played with fine artists such as: drummer Larry Beers and bassist Rafe Bradford in the Tony Richards Trio, singers Rachel Drew Phil Angotti, Anna Fermin and Patrick Gemkow, classical pianist Paul Hamilton (in the film score for Koentopp), jazz guitarists Andy Brown, Roddy Elias and Matt Warnock, and guitarist/record producer Jay O’Rourke. Tony has a melodic approach to jazz which utilizes his finger-style technique. His original compositions encompass a wide variety of styles across the jazz spectrum. In addition to his own music, his repertoire includes the great composers: Thelonius Monk, Bill Evans, Miles Davis, Duke Ellington, Antônio Carlos Jobim, Jerome Kern and Johnny Mandel, and others. Tony has many musical influences and is greatly inspired by Lenny Breau, Wes Montgomery, Bill Evans, Johnny Smith, Ben Webster, and many others.

Joe Policastro
Originally from Cincinnati, OH, Chicago-based bassist, composer, and arranger Joe Policastro earned his Bachelor of Music in Jazz/Studio Music from the College Conservatory of Music at the University of Cincinnati and his Master of Music in Jazz Studies from DePaul University in Chicago. After performing and recording in Germany, he settled in Chicago where he quickly established himself an in-demand musical voice as both performer and arranger/composer. He has performed and recorded with a wide array of artists such as Diane Schuur, Jeff Hamilton, Howard Levy, Pat and Debby Boone, Phil Woods, Tim Ries, Ira Sullivan, Howard Alden, Rick Margitza, Jim Snidero, David "Fathead" Newman, and Billy Hart. He leads the Joe Policastro Trio, a progressive jazz trio featuring guitarist Dave Miller and drummer Mikel Avery. The band has released four albums to date and extensively tours having even performed for President Obama. He also leads and co-leads the Gerry Mulligan tribute ensembles, Jeru, and the Mulligan Mosaics Big Band, both for which he has extensively written and arranged. As composer/arranger, his work can be heard on recordings by artists including Ira Sullivan and the Rob Parton Big Band. As an educator, he has been a Ravinia Jazz Mentor, a Lecturer of Jazz Studies at DePaul University, a bass instructor at Morton College and the Chicago Academy For The Arts, and jazz director at the Midwest Young Artists Conservatory.