Here are some original songs created, performed and recorded by Peter and Bryan Fratesi. Each month a new original song will be posted. *
Peter's Musical Bio
Some of my earliest memories involve music. I can recall myself as a child listening to my maternal grandmother play piano. I also spent many pleasant hours listening to my mother’s 78 records of 1950s big band songs and classical music.
Nine years of age was a musical watershed for me; that was the year I began to learn the B flat clarinet. This was instigated by my parents who hoped I would emulate a famous clarinetist of the day, named Artie Shaw (wishful thinking). I can recall many hilarious experiences getting music lessons on both sides of the US/Canadian border. I used to cross into the States as a kid taking music lessons in Soo, Michigan. US Border Officials eventually recognized me as the kid with the clarinet case and would just wave me through!
As a young teen, I joined the Sault Ste. Marie concert band as third clarinet and I had to learn to read more complicated music, in a hurry.
High school was another musical turning point. It was the 60s and rock was in. However, the clarinet was not, so I picked up the tenor sax in the school orchestra (which was easy as there are fingering similarities with the clarinet). Over the next several years, I played sax and sang in a number of Soo rock bands and my friends were quite enthralled when one of my bands made an appearance on the local CKSO rock station.
After high school, there was a musical hiatus. University, raising a family and developing a profession took priority over my musical interests. However, I still kept the musical embers glowing by playing one of my instruments, once in a while, so I wouldn’t get too rusty. I also listened to my first-rate collection of rock recordings, as reproduction technology progressed over the years from phono, to tape decks to digital and back again to phono (for vinyl diehards like me).
In the 1980s, though, I played clarinet in the Ft. McMurray, Alberta, community orchestra and clarinet and baritone sax in the musical ensemble for the stage musical “Oh What A Lovely War”, also in Ft. McMurray.
In recent years, I learned the E flat alto sax to facilitate playing jazz. I also began to write and perform vocal and instrumental songs, accompanied by my musician son, Bryan (guitar, bass and keyboard). These were recorded professionally by Bryan, who is also a recording engineer. We created quite a portfolio of original songs of diverse genres. A new song will appear on this page monthly for free listening. Enjoy!
*This copyrighted material cannot be modified, reproduced or given to third parties without the authors' explicit written consent.