Peter and Alex Guitar Duo

Centreville residents Peter Douskalis and Alex Freidah, both 20, were high school seniors with a newly formed guitar band in 2005. A mere 2 1/2 years later, Peter and Alex found themselves opening up for the singer of the 54th greatest song of all time, according to Rolling Stone Magazine. The venue was the Strasburg Theatre in Strasburg, Va., and the lead act was Percy Sledge, made famous for his 1966 hit "When a Man Loves a Woman."

"TO BE ON stage with a man who was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame was such a huge honor," said Alex.
Officially named the Peter & Alex Guitar Duo, the 2005 graduates of Westfield High School are music majors attending Shenandoah University Conservatory and Peabody Conservatory, respectively.
"We were both raised on rock and roll. Alex is majoring in classical guitar and I am majoring in jazz guitar," said Peter. "So the whole point of our guitar duo is to take the aspects of jazz and classical music that we're studying while giving it a rock style. We're trying to do something unique but with all the influences of all the music that we listened to growing up."
Now for the first time, Peter and Alex are releasing their first professional CD. The CD release party will be held on Sunday, Aug. 12, at Jammin' Java, 227 Maple Avenue East, in Vienna.
"I am extremely excited for it," said Peter. "I have never had a professional CD on the market before so the fact that we have a CD of this caliber and we're doing this event at such a high-class place like Jammin' Java is very exciting for us."
He added: "People can expect to see an acoustic, instrumental guitar duo. Its going to be a very personal atmosphere, we're going to talk about the CD, make acknowledgments, and tell the stories behind the songs."
The doors will open at 7 p.m. and the show will begin promptly at 8 p.m. Tickets are $10 per person and can be purchased at www.jamminjava.com or 703-255-1566, ext. 8.
While currently going to school and playing in the summer, both Peter and Alex would like to pursue music as a full-time career.

SAID PETER: "I hope to make a living as a musician I hope to get my music into a lot of people's hands, but regardless of what I do I plan to make a living as a professional musician."
Alex agreed: "My goal is to make a living purely by playing guitar, whether that's a combination of gigs, teaching, giving lessons — basically anything I can do be a musician."
For more information, go to www.peterandalex.com or attend their CD release at Jammin' Java on Aug. 12. - the Connection Newspapers

“A nice variety of different styles of playing from two fine young guitarists”
Rick Whitehead

“Every once in a great while talent becomes obvious in young players. Guitarists Peter Douskalis and Alex Freidah exemplify this very nicely with the release of their first CD; a wonderful blend of jazz, classical and pop, threading through their arrangements of well-known tunes, but especially with their very own compositions! Both can play, both are creative, but most of all both are musically intuitive and sylistically attentive!”
www.MichaelFath.com

"This is a great CD! Whether you are a guitarist or just a music lover, there
is something on here for everyone". - Dan Leonard

- RW, MF, DL

What style of music do you play?
P: We are an instrumental acoustic guitar duo that plays jazz, classical, rock, and world styles.
A: We like to take a vast array of styles and find a way to incorporate them into our own playing. Peter is a jazz major and I am a classical major but we both
grew up on rock n roll and I think all of that shines through.

What can fans expect from your upcoming album?
P: This debut CD "Midnight Madrid" is an accurate representation of what Alex and I are both studying (Classical - Alex, and Jazz - Peter) as well as the fusion of rock and world styles that we grew up playing.
A: People can expect a very well recorded album that looks and sounds great. They can also expect to hear some different takes on some classic songs that they know as well as some innovative original ideas.

What can you tell us about your upcoming CD release party, on August 12?
P: The CD release party will be held at Jammin' Java in Vienna. We will play songs from our debut CD as well as several new songs and will acknowledge all of the people that helped make this CD happen as well as tell some of the stories behind the songs.
A: Doors open at 7, the show starts at 8. The CD will be sold at a special discounted price and we are all going to have a lot of fun.

When did you start playing guitar? What is your musical background?
P: I started playing guitar when I was in elementary school. I also used to play percussion and drums, however, guitar is my true love.
A: I started to play guitar in about 7th or 8th grade while living in England. It became really serious for me later on in high school though. That is when I found classical guitar and really decided that I wanted to study music. I now attend the Peabody Conservatory of Music and am half-way through my classical guitar performance degree.

Where did you two meet?
P: Alex and I met in guitar class at Westfield High School.
A: We met in guitar class. Freshman year I believe. However, we didn’t begin to play together until Junior year.

What gave you the idea to play together, and later record an album?
P: The idea was sort of a product of our teachers. Michael Fath and Ken Hall really pushed us together as a duo and the idea of recording the CD was really pushed by Michael Fath.
A: I think we both were trying to take guitar more seriously and do things with it, so naturally playing together made sense. It started with just some simple classical stuff but the more we played the more we realized that we should play more. We received a lot of guidance and encouragement as a duo from our high school guitar teacher Ken Hall and from our private instructor Michael Fath.

How did you get started with your band? Where does most of your fan base come from?
P: Alex and I got started together as a guitar duo in high school because our teachers really thought we played well together. Most of our fan base is in the Northern Virginia area a few groups of fans are growing in other parts of mid-Atlantic.
A: We hope to spread further and further as we play out more and more and reach new areas.

Do you have any future plans or concert dates coming up?
P: Alex and I will always be playing in future. August 26 and September 30 we will be playing the Jazz Brunch at Beans in the Belfry in Brunswick, Maryland. Also, starting in September we will be playing every Sunday morning brunch at Angie's Restaurant in Fairfax in the Twinbrook shopping center.
A: We are currently mulling over a few as well as doing for hire work such as weddings and Sunday brunch type events.

What is the best part of being a recording artist?
P: The best part of being a recording artist so far is that we have a professional CD that looks and sounds great. We have a product on the market that is well made.
A: Being able to hand somebody a CD that is professionally done and impressive looking and have your own name and face be on it.

What do you hope people will gain from your music?
P: I personally hope that people will just enjoy our music.
A: Hopefully they will find it enjoyable and intriguing.

What do you ultimately hope to achieve throughout your music career?
P: My goal is to make a living as a professional musician by playing guitar.
A: Ultimately I hope to have my music career be my career period. Through gigging, teaching, performing, and selling CD’s, I think it can happen.

-Interview with Megan McDonough - the Connection Newspapers