Dominic Romano

world. Since he was born he would attend his parents' Balkan Folk Band weekly practices, often trying to sing along with the foreign and dissonant harmonies that he heard. In 1998 a traveling gypsy band came through town and the lead fiddle player showed a five-year-old Dominic how to hold his instrument and play a simple tune. With this in mind, Dominic started taking classical violin lessons in the ever-popular Suzuki Method. The Suzuki method stresses the importance of knowing how to learn music by ear. Music is not the notes on the page, it is the vibrations that we hear and the emotions we feel and it should be treated as such. After several years of classical violin, Dominic got hold of an Irish fiddle tune. He connected with the rollicking fun so much that he changed his focus from classical to Celtic, playing in a local Celtic Fiddle/Harp Duo. At thirteen, Dominic started singing and picked up the guitar as accompaniment to his voice. He began writing songs as a way of processing his own emotions and ideas; essentially a method of self-therapy. Writing allowed him to summarize a situation, paint it with his words, romanticize it if need be, process what happened, choose to see it in a positive light, and finally move on. Dominic started branching out in styles even more to include rock, pop, hip hop, and many more. He also played in another Celtic duo throughout high school with is good friend and fiddler extraordinaire Evan Morden, making appearances in many venues and on local radio. It was during this time that Dominic began the journey of studio recording. Starting recording just himself, he soon moved into collaborations and received requests from others to bring his distinctive touch to their recordings. In 2015, Dominic graduated from Bennington College with a focus in Music/Recording Arts & Sound Design. "Bennington and it's wonderful professors had an astounding effect in helping me grow as an engineer, a musician, and as a person. Through the space, support, and critique they provided I not only learned the theory and technical skills of a musical education but they also helped me discover what it means to be an artist. For that and much more, I am forever grateful." - Dominic Romano
Dominic currently works as chief engineer and producer at Bongo Boy Recording Studio in Mckinleyville, CA. (bongoboystudio.com)
In addition to playing solo gigs, he also plays with local progressive folk quartet “The Gatehouse Well.” (Thegatehousewell.com)