Patryk's musical journey began with his father, an accomplished accordionist
from Akron, Ohio. There was an antique upright piano in the deRosa family
basement and the two would sit while Dad played through and explained jazz
standards late into the evening. He would get out his Italian, hand-made accordion.
This was a sound Patryk recalls fondly. "It sounded so rich, just wonderfully huge.
My Dad played through a 1958 Ampeg B-15N amplifier. This was fairly common for
professional accordion players. The amplified accordion was sort of the predecessor
to the amplified guitar. That Ampeg would become my first amp to use."
"Dad can play these gorgeous chords and scalar passages." Patryk remarked. He
also took piano lessons from a neighborhood teacher, Mrs. Berge. It was trumpet
lessons in the 4th grade and finally a guitar on his own terms, saving $30 from his
paper route to purchase his first six-string, a 3/4 scale Spanish classical. An electric
guitar was his 15th birthday present, along with a practice amp. A new world
opened up, as he discovered the riffs of KISS, Toto, Ozzy Osbourne, Van Halen, Led
Zeppelin, and Motley Crue.
Early gigs were with a local mariachi group, Alma Latina, playing weddings and
festivals. There were jazz groups and rock cover bands in high school. Attending a
Northern Arizona University jazz camp one summer on a scholarship, he started to
formulate ideas for his own compositions, using a combination of jazz, classical and
rock influences. More interest and influences from instrumental and progressive
bands started to develop, including John Goodsall of Brand X and the Fire
Merchants, Scott Henderson of Tribal Tech, Chick Corea, Allan Holdsworth, National
Health, Bill Connors, Frank Zappa, Rush, Steve Morse, Dixie Dregs, Jason Becker,
Greg Howe, Al diMeola, Yngwie Malmsteen, Jeff Beck, Joe Satriani, and Steve Vai.
After graduating from high school, Patryk attended and graduated from NAU
with a BA in Creative Arts. While an undergraduate, he formed his first original
power trio, The Wee Lads. They would perform statewide across Arizona and land
some local radio spots, including airing on the classic rock FM station KUPD.
Studying under world-class classical guitar instructor Tom Sheeley, Patryk would
perform his repertoire at local coffee houses, catered parties, and country clubs.
Moving to Ohio proved advantageous to develop a darker metal sound, joining
LOUD, a Canton-based extreme metal act. A permanent move to the San Francisco
bay placed Patryk on the west coast once again, where he would acquire his first
7-string guitar; which would become his main instrument and join the Santa
Cruz-based metal band Skinfile in 2002.
PDR was officially formed in 2007 and has released 5 full-length albums to date,
available through independent artist distributor CD Baby. Each release shows a
different, constantly evolving sound, yet embodying a focus on the spirit of Patryk's
passion: thick, 7-string, drop-tuned, largely overdriven, classical and blues-based
shred compositions to rock the world. Patryk and his band perform regularly across
the San Francisco bay and have recently expanded to further-reaching points to
help "spread the shred" to all.
by Sara Bantock sara@patrykderosa.com
from Akron, Ohio. There was an antique upright piano in the deRosa family
basement and the two would sit while Dad played through and explained jazz
standards late into the evening. He would get out his Italian, hand-made accordion.
This was a sound Patryk recalls fondly. "It sounded so rich, just wonderfully huge.
My Dad played through a 1958 Ampeg B-15N amplifier. This was fairly common for
professional accordion players. The amplified accordion was sort of the predecessor
to the amplified guitar. That Ampeg would become my first amp to use."
"Dad can play these gorgeous chords and scalar passages." Patryk remarked. He
also took piano lessons from a neighborhood teacher, Mrs. Berge. It was trumpet
lessons in the 4th grade and finally a guitar on his own terms, saving $30 from his
paper route to purchase his first six-string, a 3/4 scale Spanish classical. An electric
guitar was his 15th birthday present, along with a practice amp. A new world
opened up, as he discovered the riffs of KISS, Toto, Ozzy Osbourne, Van Halen, Led
Zeppelin, and Motley Crue.
Early gigs were with a local mariachi group, Alma Latina, playing weddings and
festivals. There were jazz groups and rock cover bands in high school. Attending a
Northern Arizona University jazz camp one summer on a scholarship, he started to
formulate ideas for his own compositions, using a combination of jazz, classical and
rock influences. More interest and influences from instrumental and progressive
bands started to develop, including John Goodsall of Brand X and the Fire
Merchants, Scott Henderson of Tribal Tech, Chick Corea, Allan Holdsworth, National
Health, Bill Connors, Frank Zappa, Rush, Steve Morse, Dixie Dregs, Jason Becker,
Greg Howe, Al diMeola, Yngwie Malmsteen, Jeff Beck, Joe Satriani, and Steve Vai.
After graduating from high school, Patryk attended and graduated from NAU
with a BA in Creative Arts. While an undergraduate, he formed his first original
power trio, The Wee Lads. They would perform statewide across Arizona and land
some local radio spots, including airing on the classic rock FM station KUPD.
Studying under world-class classical guitar instructor Tom Sheeley, Patryk would
perform his repertoire at local coffee houses, catered parties, and country clubs.
Moving to Ohio proved advantageous to develop a darker metal sound, joining
LOUD, a Canton-based extreme metal act. A permanent move to the San Francisco
bay placed Patryk on the west coast once again, where he would acquire his first
7-string guitar; which would become his main instrument and join the Santa
Cruz-based metal band Skinfile in 2002.
PDR was officially formed in 2007 and has released 5 full-length albums to date,
available through independent artist distributor CD Baby. Each release shows a
different, constantly evolving sound, yet embodying a focus on the spirit of Patryk's
passion: thick, 7-string, drop-tuned, largely overdriven, classical and blues-based
shred compositions to rock the world. Patryk and his band perform regularly across
the San Francisco bay and have recently expanded to further-reaching points to
help "spread the shred" to all.
by Sara Bantock sara@patrykderosa.com
| Dad's "Original PdR" |