Nicky Sanders

About me:

I'm Nicky...I play fiddle full-time with STEEP CANYON RANGERS in Asheville, NC. I've been with the group since July 2004, and we've been performing the 50 states and beyond....The group now performs as far afield as Ireland, Sweden, Germany & Canada. A few places I really hope to perform someday are Japan, Italy, Russia & The Czech Republic.

Check out the Steep Canyon Rangers Official Website at:
http://www.steepcanyon.com

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CLICK BELOW TO WATCH STEEP CANYON RANGERS ONSTAGE WITH STEVE MARTIN

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NICKY ONSTAGE WITH THE LEE BOYS & TRAVELIN' MCCOURYS

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MORE FACTS ABOUT ME:

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I'm originally from San Francisco. Left when I was 18 and added a "y" to my nickname. Return often as a fiddler (and as a son).

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Lived in Boston for almost 6 years; attended Berklee College of Music. Left when I was 24. Return often as a fiddler.

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In 2004, my targets were set on moving from Boston to Nashville, TN....Instead, I landed quite happily in Asheville, NC.

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I was actually born in Vermont. Left the week I turned 1. Return often as a fiddler (and as a grandson).

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Began classical violin lessons in San Francisco at age 5.
May explode into Bach or Paganini riffs without warning.

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First learned to pick Bluegrass while in Massachusetts playing with The Bagboys, Southern Rail, 2nd Wind, and others.

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At Berklee I shared classrooms and studio space with the likes of Rushad Eggleston, Casey Driessen, Carrie Rodriguez, Laura Cortese, and Hanneke Cassel to name a few.

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All of my Post-grad work took place at the Cantab Lounge in Cambridge, MA alongside Berklee students Chris Pandolfi, Nate Leath & Warren Hood.

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In March 2006 I bought an ACCORDION at Steve's Guitars in Carbondale, CO. On a personal crusade to revamp the repertoire of the much-maligned accordion (currently working towards mastery of Yann Tiersen's ..Amelie.. soundtrack.) May also explode into Tarantellas or Turandot excerpts without warning.

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TRUTH: In the 3rd week of teaching myself to play accordion, I discovered I'd been playing it upside-down! 8^P
-- Since reversing it (so the piano keys are in the RIGHT hand) progress has accelerated noticeably.

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When I was 16, I decided I would memorize every lyric on Bob Dylan's ..Highway 61 Revisited.. (1965) album......Still got'em. :)

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I've performed professionally with three (3) different Dave Matthews tribute/cover bands.

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When I was 15, I started a garage band in the Sunset District of San Francisco with my friend Mike Zussman. We were called "Waiting for Kathleen". Our biggest groupies were Jasmine, Jenny Walsh, & Kathleen.

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I'm known to sing all 10 verses of "Desolation Row" by request at late night parties and soirees - especially those hosted by Jill Fromewick.

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I usually drink about 1/2 a gallon of ..FRESH SQUEEZED.. orange juice (FSOJ) every day!! - A habit that monetarily rivals many nicotine addicts!

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No, I don't squeeze it myself.

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For 2 years I was concertmaster of the Young People's Symphony Orchestra in Berkeley, CA (led by David Ramadanoff).

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I group different types of orange juice into a 4-tier hierarchy:

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..1st TIER..: UN-pasteurized, UN-strained (PULP!), NOT from concentrate, unadulterated F.S.O.J.
-- The best 1st tier juices are found at upscale markets that put their own label on the bottle, e.g. Whole Foods, Fresh Market, Greenlife, and even Harris Teeter. One excellent non-supermarket brand of 1st Tier FSOJ is Natalie's Orchid Isalnd*
--These juices are consistently sweet, flavorful, and naturally nutritious though highly perishable, so you gotta drink 'em fast!

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..2nd TIER..: 'FLASH-pasteurized', UN-strained, NOT from concentrate, fairly decent FSOJ, e.g. Odwalla, Samantha (Fresh Samantha), Naked Juices, etc.
-- A significant step down from 1st tier; remember "pasteurized" means BOILED (which means less sweet and fewer vitamins), so who really wants to drink boiled oranges?...even if they ARE "flash-boiled"???

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..3rd TIER..: [coming soon]

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..4th TIER..: [coming soon]

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*O.J. NOTES: --- I have now seen Natalie's Orchid Island FSOJ availalbe in both UNPASTEURIZED (1st Tier) and PASTEURIZED (2nd Tier) form; Check the bottle to be sure you're buying the highest grade version of this juice!! ..