Musicians
David is proud to call as "friends" a wide range of excellent folk musicians and
vocalists, who often support him in concerts.
Kai Altair - Vocals
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Kai grew up listening to David play in the Roosevelt String Band. As a gifted singer and friend,
she was a natural choice to succeed Judy Trachtenberg when the String Band's long-time singer
died suddenly in 2001. Together with Joe Pepitone, Kai began her singing and performing career
in New York City with The Switch. Since then, she has been developing her singing
and performing career in a number of ways that she spells out on her website,
kaialtair.com |
Nalani and Sarina Bolton - Vocals
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Nalani and Sarina Bolton are two beautiful, talented, and hardworking twin sisters from Flemington, New
Jersey. Nalani and Sarina have a background in classical piano, and have composed and
arranged their own material. They are taking voice lessons with Greg Drew (Hayley Williams,
Lenny Kravitz, Avril Lavigne), and are making and marketing their own recordings.
Although Nalani and Sarina's music falls under the likes of Kelly Clarkson, Pink, and other pop
artists, their musical inspiration comes from the folk tradition, especially Bob Dylan. They have
been playing with David Brahinsky and Friends for 4 years.
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Noemi Bolton - Guitar, Banjolele, Vocals
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As a kid, Noemi started playing ukelele and bandoria to Philippine
and Hawaiian tunes. She later learned American folk songs with her
guitar and banjolele and joined David Brahinsky and Friends to further
her interest in music. When she is not performing with the band, she
works with clients in her private practice for expressive art and
psychotherapy.
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Joshua Brahinsky - Bass, Vocals
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When he is not performing with his Dad during visits to New Jersey, and Vermont,
Joshua Brahinsky is a jazz musician, father, amateur carpenter and post doc at Stanford.
He recently published "Body Logics: Cultivating a Modern Senosorium," in the journal
Cultural Anthroplogy, Fall 2011 and is working on at least 2 books. |
Rachel Brahinsky - Vocals, Guitar
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When she is not singing with her Dad during visits to New Jersey and Vermont,
Rachel Brahinsky is a professor of Urban Studies and director of the Urban Studies Graduate
Program at the University of San Francisco. She lives in Oakland, California with her
partner Bruce Rinehart. |
Guy DeRosa - Harmonica
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From Hopewell, NJ, Guy DeRosa has played harmonica in blues, folk, country, and rock & roll bands
for over 30 years, from the Western Flames to the Herd of Blues and The Rippers. His influences
on the harmonica range from both Little Walter and George Smith, Junior Wells, Jimmy Reed, and
Paul Butterfield to Charlie McCoy, Mickey Raphael, and Rock Bottom. When he he is not playing harmonica,
he teaches social science at Mercer County Community College. |
Howie Jacobson - Fiddle, Vocals
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A former resident of Roosevelt, New Jersey, and member of the Roosevelt String Band, Howie Jacobson
may well be one of the funniest fiddle players in any folk band. When he is not cracking jokes and/or performing with
David Brahinsky and Friends, Howie is an internet marketing strategist. He is the author of Adwords for Dummies,
and the creator of Leads into Gold, a home study course that teaches small business
owners how to become their own direct marketing agencies. He is now based in Durham, North Carolina.
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Phil Mcauliffe - Bass
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When he is not playing bass for David Brahinsky and Friends, Phil Mcauliffe is a professional
photographer. His photos of shuttle launches, movie stars, and Presidents (including Barack Obama and Bill
Clinton) have appeared in major newspapers and news magazines throughout the country. His photo of
the devastation caused by Hurricane Sandy appeared as the cover photo for Newsweek in October 2012. |
Joe Pepitone - Bass, Electric Guitar
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Joe Pepitone has been playing music all his life. Starting at five, when he taught himself
piano, Joe has been playing, writing, and producing music ever since. In addition to playing bass and
electric guitar with David Brahinsky & Friends, Joe writes, produces, and performs songs for his own electro pop-rock
band, Circle for Hearts, and works as a music producer at Trakattix. Trakattix specializes in
music compositions for motion media: commercials, films, television shows, documentaries,
video games, animations and instructional videos. |
Paul Prestopino - Guitar, Banjo, Mandolin, Dobro, etc.
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Paul Prestopino has played backup guitar, banjo, dobro, mandolin, dulcimer, and just about any other
stringed instrument you can think of with a succession of world-class performers, including
Peter, Paul & Mary, The Chad Mitchell Trio, John Denver, Judy Collins, Tom Paxton,
and Pete Seeger. |
Ivan Rubenstein-Gillis - Guitar, Vocals, etc.
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Ivan Rubenstein-Gillis spent some of his formative years in Roosevelt, NJ playing music with
David and Josh Brahinsky. Since then he has played in all sorts of
musical situations with all sorts of musicians, but the folk songs and
spirit of his youth will always hold a special place in his heart and
mind. These days Ivan lives in Brooklyn and plays frequently around
the Northeast. He recently completed a collection of his original
compositions called "100 Songs" (yes, it includes 100 songs). Check it
out! For more info: http://www.ivanrubensteingillis.com
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Jenn Sherry - Vocals
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Jenn Sherry began listening to David's music when she was a two-year old, sitting in front of the
stage at Roosevelt String Band Concerts. So she was thrilled when fifteen years later, David asked her
to sing with him after hearing her at an open mic evening. Jenn sang with the Concordia Youth Chorus
in Middletown, NJ for six years, performing at St. Patrick's Cathedral, Carnegie Hall, and Westminster Abbey,
among other venues. She took voice lessons from the operatic soprano, Cynthia Springsteen-Balme for
four years, and continues to love opera. She graduated from New York University in May of 2011, and, when she
is not singing with David, works in the emergency psychiatric ward at
Bellevue Hospital in New York City. |
Hank Skalka - Bass
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Hank Skalka returned to music a few years ago after a 25 year hiatus. He is delighted to
have the opportunity to play with David Brahinsky and Friends. |
Caro Thompson - Vocals
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Caro Thompson of Walden, Vermont, has performed as a vocalist since she was 12. She was
active in the folk scene in Minneapolis in the late 70s before her creative life took a turn
toward the visual arts. She is well-known in Vermont for her documentary films and on-air work
for Vermont Pubic Television. She's been singing with David during his summer visits to
the northland for the past 8 years. Her soaring soprano vocals tell of love gained and lost
as well as bringing poignancy to politically relevant lyrics.
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