Gypsy Roots - The Band

Thomas Wakefield (guitar) At age 5, piano lessons were a weekly staple in Thomas' life. At age 10 the trumpet was added to his studies as the primary instrument, and it was during this time that he discovered two of his lifelong influences: Louis Armstrong and Dizzy Gillespie. At the age of 14, Thomas purchased his first guitar after years of peeking into his father's Gretsch guitar case. Like many teens, he explored rock and roll, but his true interest laid in improv jazz and blues. Largely self taught, he studied as much jazz theory and technique methods as he could find, but pursued studying the styles of the great guitar artists by ear and transcription. Through college, Thomas composed and performed with the regional rock and roll band, Hit and Run, as well as Kingfish Crawl, a local blues favorite. As an anthropologist, one of his primary focuses is in ethnomusicology and he has extensively studied the BATA drumming of Cuba and its roots with Lukumi of western Nigeria. In recent days, he has rediverted his ethnomusicological gaze to gypsy swing and jazz manouche. Thomas has found his home! Thomas continues to compose, teach (private and classes - director of music at Benedictine High School), lecture, and perform. He is a Dell'Arte guitar endorser and has performed at the Stonehaven Folk Festival in Scotland.

Larry Lyles (violin) began his music studies at the age of eight. A graduate of East Carolina University, he has taught instrumental music in North Carolina, Florida and Virginia. In addition to running his private teaching studio, Larry has performed with the Petersburg Symphony, Northern Neck Symphony, and the Williamsburg Symphonia, as well as numerous weddings and other special events. As one of the top jazz violinists in Virginia, Lyles credits his success to the influences of Stefane Grappelli, Regina Carter, and especially the late Joe Kennedy, Jr., who personally encouraged Larry to nurture his talent in this musical genre.