Some music business majors at SUNY Fredonia got a special treat last week, as they were paid a visit by a founding member of one of the most iconic punk rock bands in America and two of the most successful alternative rock musicians Chautauqua County has ever produced.
Victor DeLorenzo, co-founder and drummer of the legendary band, The Violent Femmes, whose string of alternative hits included the controversial and ambiguous classic, “Blister in the Sun,” came to campus to deliver guest lectures to four different classes on April 13 for students enrolled in MUSB 420 — Fredonia’s student-run record label — and participate in a recording session the following night.
DeLorenzo’s appearance was made possible by the efforts of Armand Petri, visiting professor of music business at Fredonia. Petri, a longtime music producer who has worked with such well known national recording artists as the Goo Goo Dolls and Sixpence None the Richer, has been working with his students this semester to produce and promote Tina Marie Williams, an up-and-coming musical artist from Buffalo.
In addition, John Lombardo and SUNY Fredonia alumna Mary Ramsey, ’95 (Music Performance), joined DeLorenzo, Williams and some students for the recording session in the state-of-the-art sound recording technology (SRT) studios in Mason Hall. Lombardo was a founding member of 10,000 Maniacs, which formed in Jamestown, N.Y., in the early 1980s before becoming internationally acclaimed recording artists. Ramsey later joined 10,000 Maniacs as well, replacing lead singer Natalie Merchant, who left to pursue a solo career in 1994.
“It’s been really exciting. Fredonia is first class. The campus offers students a great opportunity between the curriculum offered and the caliber of teachers,” said DeLorenzo.
DeLorenzo started his performance career as a child, acting and modeling for J.C. Penney’s. He said he was fascinated by acting and actors from the mid to late 50s and 60s. “I was inspired by the idea of transporting yourself into someone else,” he explained. “Music came into play from there.”
He played the viola in grade school and later bought a drum set from a friend who left to fight in the Vietnam War. He co-founded the Violent Femmes in Milwaukee in 1980 with bassist Brian Ritchie. The band stopped performing three years ago, allowing DeLorenzo — now married with three children — to focus on a career as a solo artist, recording, writing and performing. He has since founded Prestige Atlantic Impulse, an improvisational group, and is working on a play with his daughter that he hopes to bring to the theatre.
“The idea of bringing Victor in came during the first month of the semester,” says Scott Byrne, class manager. “The idea was to show Tina Marie with high-profile artists.” Students of the MUSB 420 class picked up Williams after she set aside her music career for a few years following the birth of her child. The students have spent the first half of the semester positioning Williams from a media standpoint, pushing her to radio stations to get more of her music heard. Currently, the class is trying to get her videos on YouTube to generate more awareness of her.
The class is clearly fulfilling what it set out to do. “Our goal was to reach out among all the different departments,” Byrne says. “Armand always says in class that it’s not just the music department that is involved in producing artists. This class has allowed us to unite students from all departments, something that should be encouraged more often.”
Byrne and his classmates have collaborated with students from the School of Music, as well as music business, communication and SRT majors.
“We want to have multiple departments working together as we build a legitimate music industry program and our give students the opportunity to see how all facets of music business work,” Petri explained.
They have received numerous compliments from all of the recording artists involved, as well as their producers. “Everyone is of a great caliber of musicianship, so it’s been really easy working together,” said DeLorenzo.
“The school has an excellent program. I love to see the students working hands on,” added Linda Lindquist, president of Katalyst Performance Associates Co., and DeLorenzo’s manager. “You can’t get a better experience than this. These students are working with masters! How cool is that?”
Lombardo and Ramsey, who have also performed under the duet name of “John & Mary,” joined the students Wednesday evening for the Mason Hall session.
“I’ve had a long friendship with Armand,” said Lombardo. “He’s worked on three records with Mary and me, and hosted and produced stuff for 10,000 Maniacs as well. When Armand called I said, ‘of course I’ll do it.’”
Lombardo said he was particularly impressed with Fredonia’s facilities. “It’s great and unusual because Fredonia is one of the few colleges who have a sound system like this, and have the professional experience that Armand brings to the table.”
Lombardo joined the 10,000 Maniacs in 1981. He also recorded an album at SUNY Fredonia in 1983-84 and was signed in 1984-85. “It’s been an interesting full circle,” says Lombardo, who continues to work on a lot of projects. He performs with Ramsey and their current band, John & Mary and the Valkyries. He also continues to perform with the 10,000 Maniacs.
Ramsey concurred with her longtime band mate. “I give it an A+! I was a student here, and it’s very impressive to see how Fredonia has spent their money,” says Ramsey. “It’s fun coming back. It makes me remember how much fun it was to be working as a student. It’s important to show students the pressure of excelling at a discipline.”
Ramsey started playing the violin at age five. Her family moved to Fredonia and her dad was employed at SUNY Fredonia through the English department. When she was in junior high, her sister played in the orchestra at SUNY Fredonia, which highlights Fredonia’s impact on her as an artist, even before becoming a student. She was always interested in music, and when she left Fredonia she moved to Buffalo to purse her music career. It was in Buffalo that she met John Lombardo, where they immediately became a duo, and she has been writing music ever since.
Ramsey continues to perform with both bands and has become immersed in the Buffalo theatre scene, writing music for plays. She also has a studio of students that she teaches privately.
“I feel it’s great to have a background in education classes. I like to keep a dialogue going with the people that you work with; it’s important to keep it creative,” she said, adding that she “really admires music teachers and teachers in the arts because it is so abstract, but the rewards are huge.”
