Stan Ayeroff – Leader, Composer, Arranger, (Guitars) Stan started
out playing “twangy” surf guitar with his Malibu buddies. He
quickly emerged as a guitar-smashing heartthrob on the teenage
fair circuit with The West Coast Pop Art Experimental Band (Reprise
Records’ first group). High school graduation brought sessions
for cartoons and the film Wild In The Streets, recordings with
Davy Allen and the Arrows, Billy Joe Royal, Bobby “Boris” Pickett,
Wanda Jackson, The Beach Boys, and The Beatles, Cream and Jimi
Hendrix Songbooks. Stan’s band, The Smoke, recorded on Capitol
Records. While studying composition at California Institute
of the Arts, Stan fell in love with swing music, especially
Django Reinhardt and the Hot Club of France. During the 70’s
and 80’s Stan led several swing bands and wrote books on Django,
Charlie Christian and Benny Goodman. He performed with Texas
R&B singer Delbert McClinton and became co-musical director
(with Danny Elfman) of the original “Mystic Knights of the Oingo
Boingo,” the notorious L.A. surrealistic musical theater group.
Becoming arranger and guitarist for singer Vicki Carr became
Stan’s antidote to the Avant-Garde. An active songwriter and
freelancer, Stan has continued to compose and perform for films,
commercials, television and record dates. From 1994-1996 he
served as Orchestral Supervisor for Rod Stewart, Page/Plant,
The Who and Heart, also conducting on Heart’s video “The Road
Home” on Capitol Records. Since 2002, Stan has been the musical
director for a series of projects featuring Roger Daltry of
The Who and completed new, longer books on Django Reinhardt
and Charlie Christian for Mel Bay Publications. For many years
Stan has serenaded the stars on and off camera, once upon a
time inspiring Sean Connery and Sophia Loren to dance to his
solo guitar playing. Stan’s career came full circle when he
returned to a Malibu beach to play ukulele for Jamie Lee Curtis
in the movie House Arrest. What’s Next? The Snapdaddys!
Sid Page – (Violin) Classically trained, Sid Page ventured into
jazz and rock, receiving critical acclaim as featured soloist
with Dan Hicks & His Hot Licks, Sly & The Family Stone and Van
Morrison. He has performed on thousands of film, television
and record projects such as: Christmas with the Cranks, Princess
Diaries, Legally Blonde, The Last Samurai, Something’s Got To
Give, Elf, Finding Nemo, Bruce Almighty, Day After Tomorrow,
Lemony Snickett, The Village, Cinderella Man, U2, Tom Petty,
Alanis Morissette, Madonna, Bette Midler, David Benoit, Toto,
Mark Isham, George Benson and yes, Spinal Tap, to name a few.
Dan Higgins – Woodwinds (Tenor and Soprano Sax, Flute and Clarinet)
After graduating from the University of North Texas, Dan has
been an active member of the LA recording community. He has
recorded with such noted artists as Frank Sinatra, Nelson Riddle,
Phil Collins, Jose Feliciano, Cher, Randy Newman, Babyface,
Whitney Houston, Kenny Loggins, Al Jareau, Clint Black, Roberta
Flack, Stevie Wonder, Barbra Streisand, Patti Austin and Celine
Dion. As a member of the Downbeat poll-winning Toshiko Akiyoshi-Lew
Tabackin big band, Dan recorded two albums and toured Europe
and Japan. Dan can be heard on jazz albums with Quincy Jones,
Sammy Nestico, Natalie Cole, Lee Ritenour, Bill Watrous, Gordon
Goodwin, Dave Grusin, and Diane Schurr. His varied talents on
all woodwinds make him a sought after recording musician including
300 motion picture scores. Finding his voice as a saxophone
soloist with orchestras, Dan is a featured soloist in the scores:
Catch Me If You Can, Ray, Awakenings, A Bug’s Life, Mouse Hunt,
White Palace, Benny & Joon and Sleepless in Seattle. Such notable
composers as John Williams, Alan Silvestri, Randy Newman and
Marc Shaiman call on Dan to play on their film scores.
Dave Stone – (Upright Bass) Dave is a prolific jazz recording
artist, approaching 100 albums with the likes of Jack Sheldon,
Harry James, Stan Kenton, Louis Bellson, Howard Alden, George
Van Epps, Tommy Newsome, Scott Hamilton, Ken Peplowski and Spike
Robinson, Frank Strazzeri, Jake Hanna and many recordings with
Arbors Records. Some popular artists Dave has recorded with
are Frank Sinatra, Barbra Streisand, Linda Ronstadt, Neil Diamond,
Natalie Cole, Jennifer Warnes, Whitney Houston, Diana Krall,
etc. In 2004, he recorded with Paul McCartney and with Brian
Wilson on the new Smile CD. David has worked on many movies
and TV shows including The Incredibles, National Treasure, Day
After Tomorrow, Lemony Snickett, Robots, etc.
Brad Dutz – (Percussion, Mallets) Brad studied music privately
throughout his youth. After high school he studied at the University
of North Texas and Berklee College of Music. In 1982, he moved
to Los Angeles and began freelancing until 1984 when he joined
Maynard Ferguson and toured around the country. Besides his
nine solo CDs, he has co-produced twelve others and played as
a sideman for 210 titles. In 1995, Warner Brothers and Interworld
selected Brad to produce eight videotapes for beginners entitled
Have Fun Playing Hand Drums. He can be heard on TV shows King
of the Hill, Muppet Christmas, Enterprise and Firefly. Some
of the movies that Brad has played on are Prince of Egypt, Incredible
Hulk, Hidalgo, Rugrats Go Wild, Star Trek 5, Ocean’s Eleven,
Hollywood Homicide, Run Down, I Spy, and the IMAX films: Mysteries
of Egypt, Mt. Kilimanjaro, Amazon, and Island of Sharks. In
an effort to create a unique sound while recording CDs for artists
like Alanis Morissette, KISS, Willie Nelson, Tribal Tech, David
Benoit, Rick Braun, Vinny Golia, LeAnn Rimes, Mitch Forman,
Terence Trent Darby, Rickie Lee Jones, Hands’Onsemble, and even
Jeff Bridges. Brad tries to incorporate the strangest percussion
instruments he has (e.g., congas, berimbau, bata, bodhran, bones,
pandiero, djembe, tabla, kanjira, doumbec, riq and others. Since
becoming a member of the part-time faculty of Cal State Long
Beach seven years ago, Brad has finished two books, Practicing
Music on Hand Percussion and Duos, Trios, and Quartets for Percussion.
Last year his Obliteration quartet was the subject of a documentary
film.
Leslie Lashinsky – (Bassoon and Contrabassoon) Leslie’s orchestral
credits include the Los Angeles Philharmonic, Israel Philharmonic,
L.A. Music Center Opera, Bolshoi and Joffrey Ballets, Long Beach
Symphony and Hollywood Bowl Orchestra. She has performed on
film scores and soundtrack albums for all three Matrix movies,
A Bug’s Life, The Thin Red Line, Jurassic Park, The Lion King,
The Fugitive, Batman, JFK, Hook, Far and Away, The Addams Family,
Team America, Panic Room, Rush Hour, Rush Hour II and others.
Leslie is a multi-media artist and active chamber musician,
who directs Go For Baroque Productions. Her creative projects
include marrying lead-Snapdaddy, Stan Ayeroff, and giving birth
to Zander.
