Andrea Setaro

The Internet Café is a place where the pros can polish their technique and novices can get their feet wet, said Sunday Open Mike Night emcee Jay Pat Dalton, of Bayhead, a professional guitarist and harmonica player. "Some people who come here have been playing for a long time. Some people who come here, come here because they can’t get a gig anywhere else," he said. "It’s not a talent show. It’s a very encouraging and nurturing environment. Everyone is very pro-each other."

That nurturing environment has helped Andrea Setaro, 18, grow as an artist.

After just one year of consistent Sunday night performances, Setaro, who graduated from Red Bank Catholic High School in June, has been accepted at the prestigious Berklee College of Music in Boston.

Thanks to the open mike nights, "I am a lot more comfortable and a lot more confident," said Setaro, who learned to play the acoustic guitar from an instructional home video.

Setaro, who also writes original songs, said she uses the venue as a testing ground for new material.

"I like to try new songs out and see how they feel in front of an audience," she said.

According to Dalton, Setaro is an open mike success story

"Andrea is one of the people I’m really behind," he said. "She’s going to do really well at Berklee. The fact that she’s played in public puts her ahead of some of her peers because she’s always [practicing]," he said,

In the world of open mike nights, professional aspirations are indeed prevalent. - Atlanticville

By Jack Kearns Long Branch - "Song writing and the music business." That's what the talented young acoustic guitarist Andrea Setaro said she is studying at college. She has been performing since her high school days at Red Bank Catholic, when she first sang publicly at 17.

The question came after her set at SICA in Long Branch on Saturday afternoon, at an outdoor concert. She said she loves music as a performer, but also wants a career in the music industry. If the talent she used to fashion "Find My Way," "Home," and "Munchkin" is an indication, she will be a success in finding her wishes.

The "Find..." lyrics talk about finding a path through the uncertainties of life as a young person looking for a tomorrow, and, thinking of her childhood, wishing "....if it were only like back then". As for "Munchkin", it's a song about her grandfather and his "munchkin," - Andrea. Her dulcet voice, mellow and clear, lets her music gently nestle in a listner's ear.

Setaro is a student at Berklee College of Music, in Boston. She will get her Bachelor's degree there in 2007. Home for the summer with her parents in Tinton Falls, she has two jobs: a beach badge attendant in Sea Bright, and at the "What About A Bagel" store in Cobblestone Village on Park Avenue in Oakhurst. The energetic young lady will also be looking for appearances, some already on her agenda for the summer months.

Setaro has done gigs at the Internet Cafe in Red Bank, the Indigo Coffeehouse in Aberdeen, and CBGC's in NYC (it's near Chinatown), as well as in Boston during the school year. She has copywrighted a couple of songs but says she has to be frugal about that effort, since the process is not free.

The Memorial Day weekend was on her mind as she closed Saturday afternoon's solo acoustic guitar set with "Home", a song about someone going to war and "....missing a certain person." The small audience listened quietly, softly applauding.

- The Link News