Mandolin / Vocals
Bio
Ernie's musical seed was planted at age 12, inspired by his father and local musicians in Northwestern Ohio. Banjo soon became his primary instrument and veteran musicians quickly recognized him. He played professionally throughout the tri-state area and at age 16, he joined the high school jazz band playing upright bass to stay active in music. Touched by the art of Jazz, he pursued guitar but never let go of bluegrass. He soon became a well-known jazz-grass guitarist performing festivals, nightclubs, radio and TV. At age 18, he married his high school sweetheart. He then formed his own group called "Detour" and toured the United States, Canada and Europe performing a variety of show music including top 40, country and even bluegrass. In 1987, his treasured relationship with his family drew him back home to be together. It was back to local gigs until 1996 when he moved his family to Jacksonville, Florida to pursue work in the flooring industry. In August of 2001, he was introduced to legend fiddler "Vassar Clements" and his interest for bluegrass was resurrected. His first chance to revisit the stage was joining Vassar in a concert, playing mandolin in Orlando (talk about shaking the cobwebs off). From there, there is no telling what the future holds. Ernie's biggest inspirations are his family, playing with "The Platters", "Alan Munde & Country Gazette" and of course, "Vassar Clements".
