Mitch Amatrudo, Nashville Drummer

Hello and thanks for stopping-by ! I retired as a Firefighter in 2022 and moved to Nashville in March of 2024. Live music is nearly non-existent in Connecticut, and after nearly 30 years without playing-out, it was time for me to get out there and play with good players again. I am a good, solid drummer with good time and great stage presence.

I can also strum a guitar and bang-out some stuff on keyboards, however my forte is with harmony vocals. I love to arrange vocal harmonies, and I can hit all of the high harmonies with ease. I'm even a decent lead vocalist.

I was raised on rock and became interested in Country music in the 90's. I enjoy playing and listening to a wide range of music.

At this time I am living in downtown Nashville while looking for property in the area. I plan on building a home that will have recording and rehearsal space, and I even have a van !

In 2016 I created a project called "Sole Survivor" which is 12 songs that I recorded entirely on my own in my home studio. You can learn more about that project here.

I'm excited about meeting other Nashville musicians and playing again. Thanks for listening ! Also check-out MitchAmatrudo.com , and "Mitch Madness" on YouTube for more cool stuff !

CONTACT: mitch@mitchamatrudo.com
(615) 881-4268

Bio

Mitch Amatrudo was born in 1961 in Connecticut. In the 5th grade he took trumpet lessons at school in Branford, CT. He quickly became one of only a few students town-wide to advance to a chair in the intermediate level concert band while still in elementary school. His first achievement in music came that same year, when he earned an award for the most improved new music student. Mitch went on to play trumpet for 3 more years, ultimately earning the 1st trumpet chair in the concert band.

In High School, Mitch switched from playing trumpet to drums and percussion, and soon Mitch became a popular attraction at High School concerts as the drummer for the stage band, as well as the lead percussionist in the Marching Band. During High School, Mitch also picked up guitar and piano. Though he had no formal instruction in either, he had a natural ability to play by ear, and impressed his family and friends with his ability to emulate his favorite songs. Mitch began drumming and singing in garage bands in the 10th grade, and within a year he had become locally known as being "the best drummer in town".

Mitch was a music major specializing in percussion for 1 year at the University of Bridgeport. At age 20 he took out a personal loan to purchase his first recording equipment, a Teac 4-track reel-to-reel system. He would spend his spare time recording covers of his favorite rock songs in his bedroom, always doing all of the instruments and vocals himself. Eventually he started recording his own material.

By the early 80's, Mitch was gaining valuable experience playing drums in Connecticut clubs, including world-famous "Toad's Place" in New Haven. In 1987 he packed his bags and headed out to Los Angeles. He played in many of the popular LA nightclubs and recorded many demos with various bands and musicians, meanwhile still recording demos at home.

Mitch returned to Connecticut in 1995, began a new career as a Firefighter, and soon upgraded to a modern computer based studio at his home. He retired in 2022 and relocated to Nashville in March of 2024.

Equipment List

SOFTWARE:
Steinberg Cubase 11 Pro DAW
Wavelab Studio 6
Melodyne Editor
EastWest piano and full orchestra samples

INSTRUMENTS:
Alesis QS-7 Synthesiser/Controller
Fender Telecaster
Takamine Acoustic
Epiphone 12-String
Paul Beard Gold-Tone Resonator
Ibanez Bass
Vintage Ludwig Drums
Percussion Instruments (various)
Banjo

MICROPHONES:
Neumann TLM102
Shure KSM27

STUDIO HARDWARE:
RME Fireface 800 interface
Alesis AI3 adat
Presonus Digimax D8 preamplifier
Neumann KH-120 studio monitors
JBL studio speakers
Alesis RA100 Power Amplifier
Johnson J-Station Guitar Amp Modeler
Headphones by Sennheiser/Sony/Ultrasone

OUTBOARD GEAR:
dbx 266XL Compressor/Gate
Lexicon MPX100 Effects Processor
Alesis Microverb 4 Reverb
Alesis M-EQ230 Equalizer

DRUM MICROPHONES:
Shure Beta 52A   kick
Shure PG52        floor tom
Shure PG56        toms/snare bottom
Shure SM57        snare top (w/ Granelli 90° mod)
Shure PG81        overheads
Audix F15          hi-hat
Oktava MK319    room