To schedule a performance or for more informaion contact:
Judith Insell, Music Program Director
212.926.4100 x312
jinsell@hsanyc.org

Faculty Band Members

Rudolph “Rudy” Bird (Drums and Percussions)
has had a professional careerthat has spanned over twenty-five years and has earned him respect and recognition as a master drummer and percussionist. He has toured extensively, performing in the United States, Europe, Asia and Africa with such names as Miles Davis, Duke Ellington Orchestra, Dance Theatre of Harlem Orchestra, Phylicia Rashad, Lauryn Hill on her “Miseducation” world tour, and most recently Warner Bros. recording artist Leela James.

Bob Dellureficio (Bobby Dee) (Guitar)
attended the Berklee College of Music. A composer and guitarist, he has been part of the alternative music scene for almost 20 years. He considers blues, jazz, classical and Eastern music among his strongest influences. Mr. Dellureficio has performed throughout Europe and the United States with groups such as Ronald Shannon Jackson and The Decoding Society, as well as in major jazz festivals. He has collaborated with Woody Shaw, Gunter Hampel and Dave Douglas among many others. He has been a session guitarist for New York City commercial houses. He has also performed with the Belzonics behind actor and comedian Richard Belzer.

Steven Oquendo (Trumpet)
has studied at the Third Street Music School, The Harlem School of the Arts, LaGuardia High School and Manhattan School of Music. Mr. Oquendo has taught at the Celia Cruz High School of Music. As a musician, he has toured in Africa, Europe, South America and the Caribbean. Mr. Oquendo has recorded and performed with a diverse range of artists including Destiny’s Child, Celia Cruz, Wynton Marsalis, Eddie Palmieri, Ray Santos and Jon Faddis.

Marcus Persiani (Piano)
has worked/toured with Mario Bauza’s Afro-Cuban Jazz Orchestra, Joseph Bowie and Defunkt, and Willie Colon and Legal Alien. He has also performed with Max Roach and Sacred Drums, Dizzy Gillespie, Charlie Persip, Curtis Mayfield, The Impressions, and Tito Nieves. Mr. Persiani holds a Bachelor’s degree in Piano Performance from the American Conservatory of Music. He is currently performing with the Sugar Hill Quartet.

Yuki Tei (Clarinet, Saxophone)
holds a B.F.A. from Mannes Jazz and Contemporary Music at the New School and a MA from Aaron Copland School of Music at the Queens College. Mr. Tei has studied jazz with great masters like Antonio Hart, Sir Roland Hanna, Michael Mossman, Rick Margitza, Chico Hamilton, Reggie Workman, and among many others. Yuki is also a classically trained clarinetist. He has toured and performed in the United States, Europe, and Asia. Mr. Tei leads his own jazz group and plays in chamber music ensembles around the NYC area. He was the recipient of the Hiroshima Young Artist Scholarship Award given by the Hiroshima International Cultural Foundation for outstanding performance.

Simon Walsh
is a composer and multi-instrumentalist who has been part of the New York music scene for the past twenty years. He moved here after being graduated with a Music Composition Degree from Virginia Commonwealth University in Richmond, Virginia in 1985. There, he studied composition with Allan Blank, flute with Francile Bilyeu, and bassoon with Jonathan Friedman. In New York, Simon attended electric bass classes with Percy Jones and Patrick Pfeiffer.