Vince Tomanelli ~ Born and raised in Montreal, Canada. I had a passion for music from a very young age. I remember singing Elvis Presley songs when I was 6 years old. I always loved all the classic songs that were being played on the radio (Back then AM radio only) The day after Elvis Presley passed away (August 17th 1977) I was 12 years old at the time. It hurt me so much that I asked my Dad to buy me a guitar.
I came home that very same day with my brand new (Nylon String Guitar) and remembered sitting on my bed and playing a few notes from Elvis songs without ever having taken a single guitar lesson. From 1977 to 1982, I would practice at least 5 hours a day nonstop. Picking up and playing music by ear. In 1982, I decided to perfect myself by going to take guitar lessons.
I still remember this as if it were yesterday. I walked into a music school/store and told the owner that I wanted to perfect the way I was playing guitar. The owner sent me in a room to get evaluated by the guitar teacher. The teacher asked me to play a few chords, leads, songs, and whatever I was able to play.
The teacher stood up and told me to wait while he left the room. About 10 minutes later, the owner walked into the room and asked me if I would like to teach for his school? I was puzzled and asked him what’s going on? Is this a joke? He told me that the teacher told him that I played better than him and there was nothing he could teach me that he didn’t already know.
He had fired the teacher on the spot and was begging me to teach there. I was 17 years old, and I wasn’t sure if I was up to that task. I decided to take a chance. I was teaching at that school in 1982, 1983, 1984. I began with 2 students, and in a matter of months, there was a waiting list. I had taught myself how to read music. I was booked solid from Monday’s to Saturday’s.
My students were asking me to teach them everything from ABBA to ZZ TOP and everything in between. In the 80’s punk, disco, dance, rock, pop, were all being played on the radio and even though I was known as a Classic Rock lover, I had to pick up every type of song for my students which helped me become a better guitarist. Ex: Cyndi Lauper, Boy George, Phil Collins, Michael Jackson, Whitney Houston, Van Halen, The Scorpions, Queen, Led Zeppelin, Duran Duran, David Bowie, Prince, Ozzy, and the list goes on and on. I played with many different bands in my life. Did many different shows. Met lots of interesting people. Two of my most memorable shows were, (1) Being invited on a TV show, live on a Sunday night to play with the house band being watched by 1.5 million viewers. (2) An outdoor show opening up for a band that was popular in 1997 (Soul Attorneys) along with 20,000 fans.
I've been doing home studio recordings for the last few years and collaborating with musicians from across the world. It's a whole new chapter in my life, and I love it.
Stay tuned for my next chapter.........
