Born the eldest of four siblings in North Amerika, Tony's parents hired a piano tutor after he'd shown early skills playing piano & organ. While living in Panama City, Panama, a local choir teacher introduced him to musicians under her tutelage & made the initial arrangements for the first of his many public performances which attracted large followings throughout the isthmus. Later he formed bands that played in numerous nightclubs & college campuses from Tijuana Mexico, to Tampa Florida, & up to Winnipeg Canada, & he was the lead singer (sans guitar) for a Platters group which toured clubs along the eastern coast of the USA. In between twice nightly shows & weeks of grueling one nighters, Tony took advantage of rehearsals with Berklee musicians employed in the Platters' backup band to keep his guitar playing skills honed. It was these musicians who first recognized that when he sang & played, a third, new instrument emerged, & they encouraged him to nurture this 'third' instrument by resuming his formal music studies.
Tony studied Jazz Theory & Harmony, Ensemble & Big Band Performances in 1981, graduated from the US Navy-Army-Marine School of Music, Virginia USA in 1983 majored in Guitar Studies & received a University of Maryland Arts degree in 1988. He worked for over seven years as community music director & music instructor in Kaiserslautern & Bamberg, Germany, & since 1984 he has been an active member of the International Association of Jazz Educators.
Stages on which Tony has performed include the Miles Davis Hall Montreux Jazz Café, Stravinski Auditorium Terrasse, Lake Geneva Memphis Boat in 29th & 30th Montreux Jazz Festival (Switzerland), European Cultural Centré (France), Nuernberg Opera House, Würzburg Umsonst & Draussen Festivals, Frankfurt Musikmesse, Dresden Blues Festival, Deutschen Bundesrockfestival (German National Rock Festival), etc. He is also a recipient of the Bavarian Blues Award, state financial grants & Oscars from the Deutscher Rock & Popmusikerverband (German Rock & Pop Musicians Union).
Tony cites as some of his early major influences Nat 'King' Cole, Wes Montgomery, Stevie Wonder, the Beatles, James Brown, Jimi Hendrix, & gospel music regularly played at his family & religious gatherings. Tony supports AIDS Research, Doctors Without Borders, Amnesty International, Frauen & Kinderschutzhausen (Women & Children Protective Houses), & other nongovernmental organizations (NGO).
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