Joseph Pero, Superstar

When I first went to DCA as a member of the 2001 Renegades Minicorps, we were all very eager to check out the performing groups, most of which we had never seen.

One of our very favorite groups was the Empire Statesmen, from Rochester NY. The group specializes in entertaining the audience to within an inch of their lives, and they were a direct influence and inspiration for the Renegades.

The highlight of the corps was their main soloist, an impossible good player named Joey Pero. At the time, I think he was 19 or 20, and he blew us all away with his extreme high range, combined with the sensitivity of a much more seasoned performer.

Over the years, I got to know Joey, and hired him to be part of CorpsImpact, a professional drum corps that I put together with producer Frank Boehm. His talent has grown over the years, and he is on the verge of putting out an album that is a must buy for any and all trumpet fans.

You can check out a preview on Joey’s MySpace page. You won’t be disappointed.

Way to go, Joey!