Professor the Pilot

Formed in early 2009, Paul Lewis and Dominic Vaia realized their many similarities and passion for songwriting. Their musical influence came from a variety of different styles including Dave Matthews, John Mayer, Radiohead, and Bob Dylan. Having only been acquaintances, the song writing conformed almost immediately. They thought of themselves as a Dave Matthews and Tim Reynolds combination, strictly acoustic, but it took months of practicing and playing together to evolve the music into Professor the Pilot’s true sound. However, there was a major obstacle that made songwriting difficult. Dominic was attending Arizona State University studying aviation while Paul was attending DePaul University studying history. All writing would have to be done via internet and practice time could only happen during school breaks. Incredibly, with only nine months experience and being apart for most of the year, Professor the Pilot (Stellanecks) first EP “Sweep the Sky” was recorded in December of 2009 and shared all throughout the mid-west. That summer of 2010, Professor the Pilot was playing shows at bars and drawing a descent sized crowd. They soon realized that their music was catching the ear of every audience so they dedicated the next year to writing new music. Professor the Pilot- “We never thought of our music as a money making scheme, nor did we ever think the music could go anywhere”. In late October of 2010, Professor the Pilot acquired a musical student from Columbia College, Gordon DiQuattro. Gordon brought a key element to the band, saxophone. Professor the Pilot was set to record their new album, “City Dwelling Thieves” in early January so with little time to waste, Gordon began working towards the new album. Professor the Pilot’s music and fan base has grown in a positive direction little by little each day and they continue to work hard for what lies ahead.