Casual Sax Bio

Casual Sax is an Okanagan-based quintet whose musical roots go back to the mid-'90s as a group of friends decided to get together to play for a Halloween dance. Bringing together members of the John Noren Band and the Okanagan R&B Band, these six lads packed the house at the Paddlewheel Hall in Okanagan Landing in what was to be a fundraiser for the newly formed North Okanagan Musicians' Association. As a casual six-piece R&B outfit, drummer Vlad Forgac came up with a play on words and Casual Six was born. The success of this one-night, one-off spurred the lads into turning their fun into regular appearances and fundraisers at the quaint little hall on the lake. Halloween, Valentines, Okanagan Regatta dances followed and all rocked the house until the little hall burned down and the musicians' association packed it in. But the spirit of the band lived on. And while some members moved on, others came in to take their place. Two members, guitarist Ron Clempson and drummer Vlad Forgac (of the John Noren Band), both moved away at one point only to come back a year or two later without missing a beat. The latest addition to the core - which includes former Okanagan Blues Band members Steve Durant (keys, trumpet, vocals) and Gary Clark (tenor sax) - is accomplished bassist Roy Pesklewis, who joined the band in 2003. With a solid core once again, the band was faced with filling yet another sax vacancy. But this time, Gary Clark stunned all by declaring he was ready to go it alone - creating a conundrum. After all, this put the band at five members and the band's name was Casual Six. What to do? The dreaded 'find a band name' meeting was planned and as usual, it was a disaster. Name after name after name was called out to jeers and boos, laughter and ridicule - as is always the case for bands. Trouble was, a gig was fast approaching and a name was mandatory - even No Name Band was taken, despite consideration. So, out of pure laziness, or pure genius (the two are so closely related), a name was created by changing a single letter. From Casual Six emerged Casual Sax. And suddenly, the marketing opportunities were endless and the ideas flowed and continue to do so, well until long time drummer Vlad Vorgac decided mid 2009 to pursue his career in Vancouver so the band again had to search for a new band member. We were very fortunate to find Rennie Sirianni whose casual personality and accomplished drumming style is a good fit for the band. Once again we have achieved a solid core and are ready to play on.

| Rennie | Gary | Steve | Roy | Ron |