Speakers

John Tosco is Founder and Executive Director of Tosco Music, a nonprofit organization that has been enhancing Charlotte’s community through music for more than 30 years. Tosco Music produces a quarterly concert series called Tosco Music Parties (TMP’s). Each TMP features an eclectic mix of all styles of music and Tosco’s trademark sing-alongs with the audience. Tosco Music Parties started as informal song circles and jam sessions in John’s living room and now take place at the 1,200-seat Knight Theater. Tosco Music’s community outreach includes youth music scholarships, performance opportunities for local talent, monthly open mics, senior sing-along parties, ticket scholarships, and providing music at community events that are free and open to the public. John studied at Berklee College of Music in Boston, MA. He then moved to Denver, CO and founded the Wild River Band which toured the Midwest from 1981 to 1983 and performed at The Grand Ole Opry in Nashville, TN. He moved to Charlotte, NC in 1984 and taught guitar at the Community School of the Arts and at Central Piedmont Community College for nearly 20 years. John opened Tosco Music Studio in 2002 where he continues to teach guitar, bass, mandolin, and ukulele to students of all ages. toscomusic.org