BACKGROUND

Biography

Rick Peralta is an Emmy-nominated guitarist from the San Francisco Bay Area. A professional musician in the DC area for fifteen years, Rick has a Masters in Music in Stage and Studio Guitar from Howard University and has supported Grammy and Tony award-winning artists. He toured the mid-Atlantic region with Back to Zero, twice voted one of the top bands in the metro area. An accomplished jazz and classical guitarist, Rick now performs in many settings including Laissez Foure, a jazz quartet appearing in the metro area for more than ten years, and MIN, a flute and guitar duo that presents an eclectic repertoire. Rick is highly sought after on the musical theatre scene, having won three Washington Area Theatre Community Honors (WATCH) as a pit orchestra guitarist. A consummate musician, Rick has been described by The Washington Post as a musician whose playing is “smooth and lively.”

Influences: The Doobie Brothers, Earth, Wind and Fire, Journey, Boston, Van Halen, Tower of Power, George Benson, Pat Martino, Barry Galbraith, Wes Montgomery, Jimmy Bruno, Chuck Loeb, Doc Powell, Ed Hamilton, Paul Jackson Jr., Richard Smith, Joe Pass, Norman Brown, Brian Bromberg, Charlie Parker, Hank Mobley, Diana Krall, Hawaii, Praha, SF 49ers

Rick would like to thank: Mom & Dad, Frank P, Michelle D, my teachers John Fogleman, Shawn Purcell, Gerry Kunkel; Dee Chin M ("I want you to be my manager"), Dr. Diana J, Pacific Horizons (you know who you are), Miss Paulette, B52P, The Difficult Run Jazz Band, Ken Matthews, Back to Zero, Norio Imai of Imai Guitars NYC (for flawless maintenance of my guitars), Hexagon (2001-03), the USAF, Col B. Washington, Roger Sadowsky and Sadowsky Guitars NYC, Swissvale Music PA, and Anderson Guitars