Ian Arthurs Band

The Ian Arthurs Band started in the Spring of 2005. The group showcases a variety of influences including Stevie Ray Vaughan, Allman Brothers Band, Little Charlie and the Nightcats, Aretha Franklin, and Junior Wells. The group has headlined in New York and Western Pennsylvania area and has opened for the Kenny Wayne Shepherd Band and Rod Piazza and the Mighty Flyers. Their talents are comparable to the talents of their influences as they bring a new brand of blues without losing sight of the old.

Ian Arthurs has been playing guitar since he was 10 years old, under the guidance of Steve Delach and guitar greats Joe Negri, Jimmy Bruno, and Jack Wilkins. Ian plays both Jazz and Blues, and his influences range from Stevie Ray Vaughan to Pat Metheney. Ian is experienced in all corners of musical performance and recording. Ian and Matt Kennedy are gurus in the studio, recording, mixing and mastering the band’s tracks. Ian is a natural guitarist and vocalist. Audiences have been grooving to great guitar riffs and ripping vocals on tunes like “Whippin’ Post” and “Texas Flood”.

Matt Kennedy plays a driving bass with solos that soar. Matt is a recent graduate of Duquesne University majoring in Performance and Music Technology and Recording. His facility with the technical aspects of performance has been an asset to the band. Matt influences include Jaco Pastorious, Victor Wooten and Victor Bailey.

Dan Hrvatin was born on a cold-windy Chicago morning in Pittsburgh, PA on June 16th, 1984. Dan has always had a great appreciation for music. In the fourth grade he took up percussion and hasn’t stopped since. Dan started playing in the clubs around Pittsburgh at the age of 12, and went on to play major gigs through out the northeast. Dan has studied privately with Gabe Kocevar (Pittsburgh Artist) and Dave Throckmorton (Maynard Ferguson), and is always honing his skills.

Mark Baratz got his first taste of the blues after standing in with a group of studio musicians that included the Tower of Power horns. He played harmonica and sang for about five years with the Monday Blues Revue and provided all the harmonica tracks for the CD “Every Day is Monday When You’ve got the Blues”. The track, "Messin' with a bitter man" was recently picked up by XFM. The band performs three of Mark's original tunes “Dog Tired”, “You Ain’t Got Nothin’ on Me”, and “No Time for Manners”. His influences include Little Walter, Junior Wells and Rick Estrin.

Nicolai Schurko developed his groove with the keyboard under the guidance of Robert Doak, a retired jazz sessions player who teaches in Pittsburgh. Nick has played with Jazz greats Roger Humphries and Dwayne Dolphin.

Laura Benack got her singing talent the old fashion way: hard work and great genes. Both parents are professional musicians. Laura has a big voice with a smoky timbre. Audiences go crazy trying to figure out how such a big sound out of a petit woman.

Katie Baratz has done musical theater for 8 years and has recorded with the A Capella group, the Looney Tunes. Her influences include Etta James and Susan Tedeschi. She brings a great sense of soul and harmonies to her leads and back-ups.

Chelsea Baratz is a saxophonist based in NYC. She is a student at the New School and has performed throughout the city with music greats including Christian McBride and DJ Logic.