Hollertown's roots go back to 2005, when Nick Backer and Chuck Andreatta joined a band called the Woedoggies. Tom Lalley stepped in as a lead singer a few years later, and since then fiddler Lee Benaka, bassist Jerry Del Rosso, and vocalist Belen Pifel have joined the band.
Belen Pifel
(vocals)
Belen's passions include sheet metal, air conditioning, and the Keegan Theater, where she is a featured actress. Some say Belen acts like a singer and sings like an actress, but Hollertown is thrilled to have Belen in the band. Wait 'till you hear her sing Lee's song "Wedding Vows"!
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Chuck Andreatta
(banjo and vocals)
Chuck started playing banjo while in high school. In college he played in various bands, including the in-house band at Busch Gardens, Williamsburg. In his 20s, Chuck learned the clawhammer style and played in an old-time band. After that he played in a variety of square and contradance pickup bands, as well as two stints playing in community theatre productions of the Broadway musical The Robber Bridegroom. Chuck was happy to play both bluegrass and clawhammer banjo styles when he and Nick started the WoeDoggies in 2005, the band that eventually became Hollertown.
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Jerry Del Rosso
(bass)
Jerry hails from Pennsylvania and also plays with Doug Stevenson and the Spades, and a couple of other fine bands. Previously Jerry played with Kid Goat and many, many other bands.
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Lee Benaka
(fiddle)
Lee played classical violin throughout his childhood and into college. After taking a break for a few years, Lee started taking old timey classes at the Old Town School of Folk Music in Chicago. After several years of instruction from from Steve Rosen and Paul Tyler of the Volo Bogtrotters, Lee started to help teach old timey fiddle at the Old Town School, as well as play in a bluegrass band (The Tall Hogs) and an alt-country band (Whiskeytit). After he moved to Washington, DC, in the late 1990s, Lee played with the Starlingtons for several years before joining Hollertown in 2011.
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Nick Backer
(mandolin and vocals)
Nick received a mandolin as a high school graduation gift, having played piano and trumpet growing up. His oldest brother's banjo playing inspired him to pick up a stringed-instrument and explore bluegrass. College brought him to New Orleans where he helped start the Gumbograss band Uptown Okra. Two years later, the celebrated vocalist John Boutte joined the band and released the albums "Potluck Dinner" and "Carry Me Home." Their 2002 Jazz Fest show led to further festival appearances and an international tour with stops in Venezuela, Fiji and New Zealand. Returning to the D.C. area, Nick joined Chuck to start the WoeDoggies in 2005, the band that would eventually become Hollertown.
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Tom Lalley
(guitar and vocals)
Tom has been with Hollertown since 2009. A native Washingtonian, Tom's musical career started out playing trumpet and French horn at St. John's High School but he picked up guitar in college and never looked back. For many years, music was just something he did with friends and to unwind after a long day of work. In 2001, Tom connected with a group of musicians that came to be known as the Takoma Zone. They would gather at the Electric Maid in Takoma Park and perform for each other. Most went on to become performing musicians. Tom's first "real" band was Nog, a rock n' roll band that played around D.C. and broke up in 2009.
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