George Mamalakis grew up in the San Francisco Bay Area. When he was 8 he began 11 years of classical piano studies. After attending UCSB, his primary musical focus was Jazz and Jazz/Fusion. His continuing musical education included 6 years of study with his mentor Terry Trotter, renowned LA Jazz Pianist. During the late 80s and early 90s, George was the keyboard player for the popular Jazz/Fusion band Mirage, which performed weekly at Joseppi’s Jazz bar on State Street in Santa Barbara. Besides Terry Trotter, George’s influences include Keith Jarrett, Brad Mehldau, Chick Corea, Herbie Hancock, Bill Evans, and Eliane Elias. In addition to George’s Trio involvement, he is currently the keyboard player for the Jazz/Fusion quartet Transfusion. The George Mamalakis Trio played at Stella Mare’s Bistro every Wednesday night for over 22 years. Born in Brussels Belgium, Sam McKinney began playing classical guitar at 12 and then switched to bass. He attended Berklee College of Music in 1981 returning to Brussels to play and record in a variety of bands and styles. He later moved to Santa Barbara to study at University of California, Santa Barbara. For the past three decades, Sam has played in a number of settings in Santa Barbara mainly with jazz and latin ensembles. He has played with George Mamalakis on many occasions in a number of settings. He also plays with the M.O.B quintet, a local Santa Barbara ensemble focused on progressive contemporary jazz and Brazilian genres. Drummer Shaun Oster’s playing is versed in whatever style can be performed on a drumset. With a main focus on Bebop and Funk, he attended Calarts for jazz drumset performance. Having studied with Mark Craney and Joe Labarbara, his playing is an eclectic mix of senstitive brushwork ranging to hard-hit funk and bebop. Shaun is also a singer, having studied with Ron Anderson. His vocal compositions were used to create the world’s first Virtual Reality Record/album experience on Oculus rift. www.doubleheadmusic.com – You can catch him playing around town weekly, and he teaches drumset privately. Tom Devaney is a native of Santa Barbara and a UCSB graduate. During college he was active in jazz groups in the community. After college he briefly worked full time in music here and in Ventura County. He returned to school for a graduate degree in education which led to a 34 year teaching career in local high schools. All the while he maintained his music contacts and actively worked the local club and hotel scene. Tom’s heroes were drummers Shelly Manne and Stan Levey and the West Coast jazz scene. He was also heavily influenced by singers such as Sue Raney and Irene Kral, two of the very best of their generation. Much of his musical career involved backing singers which demands a specific set of skills, especially playing brushes.
