Aaron Nathans and Michael G. Ronstadt By Richard Cuccaro The best art takes us to a place of deeper understanding — of ourselves, the passage of time and of life itself. I found myself in such a place as I listened to “Cars Don’t Keep,” a song by Aaron Nathans, recorded with Michael G. Ronstadt on their album Crooked Fiddle (2014). Aaron’s expressive baritone, paired with Michael’s clear-voiced harmony, gave the song a sense of poignancy. Michael’s cello added gravitas to the otherwise silly notion of a young man falling in love with a motor vehicle. I swore I would not fall so deep / but I am only human … Those lyrics echoed in my mind as I contemplated my own youthful automotive follies. Aaron’s writing skills seep through the song as he wends his way through the years: In you I brought home my new son / kids grow up but they live on / Now I clear out your back seat / I know cars don’t keep. Finally: I send you off you for one last ride … I think I left my youth inside … Michael and Aaron share tracks on the album. Michael’s compositions are brilliantly complex melodies, as would befit a classically trained musician. The combination of the two players, as this profile’s title suggests, weaves gold. While the history of each musician has its differences, there is one common denominator: Each family has a prominent female figure. In Michael’s case it was his famous aunt Linda. For Aaron, it was his mother who was a choral singer (and still is —with the Columbus Symphony Chorus). Born to Make Music Michael G. Ronstadt was born in Tucson, Ariz., in 1984, into five generations of musicians. That’s as direct a path to a musical career as it gets. The Ronstadts have been pillars of the Tucson community for decades. There was a pioneer pharmacy and a wagon-making business that led to the Ronstadt hardware store. Every family gathering had perhaps 10 guitars and about 40 people singing. Michael decided to study cello in the third grade and studied guitar in a mariachi program in sixth grade. His father (Michael J.) came and played music for his elementary school classes. Early pop influences were Paul Simon, Tom Petty, The Beatles and mariachi music. He was into new age music like Deep Forest and Enya before liking rock ’n’ roll. In high school, he was in youth orchestra and had a rock band with his brother and some friends. He played cello with distortion and a wah-wah pedal. His father (who had his own trio) was the sound man and helped book local gigs. During that time, Michael liked ’90s rock like Radiohead, Muse and Coldplay. Throughout high school and college, he played guitar and cello in both classical and non-classical settings (the classical cello gigs brought in the money). He studied undergrad cello performance at the University of Arizona and received a master’s degree at the University of Cincinnati. Post-college, Michael became a much sought-after studio musician who has appeared on more than 100 albums in the last dozen years. Michael’s newest solo album, Foolish Fox, his fourth, was released in October. He appears regularly with Ronstadt Generations (with his father and brother, Petie) and in a number of side projects, the most prominent at the moment with Aaron. Michael heard Aaron when Aaron opened up for Ronstadt Generations five years ago. Michael joined him on one song and liked his shy but confident approach. He later telephoned Aaron, asking to play together. Thus, a friendship and musical partnership was born. The Journalist The path to a musical career for Aaron Nathans, by contrast, was labyrinthian and anything but direct. He was born in Paterson, N.J., in 1973. His family moved around a bit and settled in Bexley, Ohio, a suburb of Columbus, when he was 11. He finished high school in Bexley. His mother sang to him and he took lessons on piano, which he studied for eight years. While there was no rock music in the house — strictly classical — his father liked listening to Prairie Home Companion while driving and Aaron got acquainted with roots musicians like Greg Brown. He also took clarinet lessons and joined the marching band. Aaron’s early heroes were newspaper journalists, such as Chicago Tribune columnist Bob Greene, who was a Bexley native. Aaron visited the Soviet Union in his senior year of high school in 1990 just as Iraq invaded Kuwait. Auspiciously, a fellow exchange student played guitar and sang “Masters of War.” When Aaron got home, he delved into Bob Dylan’s discography. Aaron went to American University to study journalism. After graduation in 1995, during a stint with The Associated Press in Vermont, he wrote poetry during “down time.” The cadence of the poetic work led him to buy a guitar and take lessons. He pursued creative writing at a weekly writer’s group where he met his wife, Debra, a playwright (“She’s the best writer in the house,” he said). Following a job offer, they moved to Madison, Wis. — a nine-year stint. Aaron continued writing songs and started playing open mics. A cancelled open mic where he played a set of his songs in front of an audience became his first gig. In 2002, he started attending the Madison Songwriter’s Group to further develop his craft. He learned from everyone, but especially from Eric Hester, the group’s president. Another friend, Dale Kidd, widely known in Madison, put new music to one of Aaron’s songs and they became friends and songwriting partners. Sadly, Dale died in 2009. Aaron still misses Dale, even today, despite already having moved back East in 2006, where he continued as a business reporter. In 2005 he released his first CD, Same Old You. That same year, during summer vacation in Vermont, he met singer/songwriter Phil Henry, who introduced Aaron to the Northeast singer/songwriter scene and produced Aaron’s second CD, Alchemy of Memory (2011). This led to a showing at Kerrville Folk Festival where, in 2011, he was a finalist in the New Folk competition. We think Aaron’s journalistic storytelling skills, paired with Michael’s unique instrumental (and songwriting) chops, will continue to spin gold for as long as they choose to work together — a lengthy time, we hope! websites: michaelronstadt.com

Aaron Nathans and Michael G. Ronstadt

By Richard Cuccaro

The best art takes us to a place of deeper understanding — of ourselves, the passage of time and of life itself. I found myself in such a place as I listened to “Cars Don’t Keep,” a song by Aaron Nathans, recorded with Michael G. Ronstadt on their album Crooked Fiddle (2014). Aaron’s expressive baritone, paired with Michael’s clear-voiced harmony, gave the song a sense of poignancy. Michael’s cello added gravitas to the otherwise silly notion of a young man falling in love with a motor vehicle. I swore I would not fall so deep / but I am only human … Those lyrics echoed in my mind as I contemplated my own youthful automotive follies. Aaron’s writing skills seep through the song as he wends his way through the years: In you I brought home my new son / kids grow up but they live on / Now I clear out your back seat / I know cars don’t keep. Finally: I send you off you for one last ride … I think I left my youth inside … Michael and Aaron share tracks on the album. Michael’s compositions are brilliantly complex melodies, as would befit a classically trained musician. The combination of the two players, as this profile’s title suggests, weaves gold.

While the history of each musician has its differences, there is one common denominator: Each family has a prominent female figure. In Michael’s case it was his famous aunt Linda. For Aaron, it was his mother who was a choral singer (and still is —with the Columbus Symphony Chorus).

Born to Make Music

Michael G. Ronstadt was born in Tucson, Ariz., in 1984, into five generations of musicians. That’s as direct a path to a musical career as it gets. The Ronstadts have been pillars of the Tucson community for decades. There was a pioneer pharmacy and a wagon-making business that led to the Ronstadt hardware store. Every family gathering had perhaps 10 guitars and about 40 people singing. Michael decided to study cello in the third grade and studied guitar in a mariachi program in sixth grade. His father (Michael J.) came and played music for his elementary school classes. Early pop influences were Paul Simon, Tom Petty, The Beatles and mariachi music. He was into new age music like Deep Forest and Enya before liking rock ’n’ roll. In high school, he was in youth orchestra and had a rock band with his brother and some friends. He played cello with distortion and a wah-wah pedal. His father (who had his own trio) was the sound man and helped book local gigs. During that time, Michael liked ’90s rock like Radiohead, Muse and Coldplay. Throughout high school and college, he played guitar and cello in both classical and non-classical settings (the classical cello gigs brought in the money).

He studied undergrad cello performance at the University of Arizona and received a master’s degree at the University of Cincinnati. Post-college, Michael became a much sought-after studio musician who has appeared on more than 100 albums in the last dozen years. Michael’s newest solo album, Foolish Fox, his fourth, was released in October. He appears regularly with Ronstadt Generations (with his father and brother, Petie) and in a number of side projects, the most prominent at the moment with Aaron. Michael heard Aaron when Aaron opened up for Ronstadt Generations five years ago. Michael joined him on one song and liked his shy but confident approach. He later telephoned Aaron, asking to play together. Thus, a friendship and musical partnership was born.

The Journalist

The path to a musical career for Aaron Nathans, by contrast, was labyrinthian and anything but direct. He was born in Paterson, N.J., in 1973. His family moved around a bit and settled in Bexley, Ohio, a suburb of Columbus, when he was 11. He finished high school in Bexley. His mother sang to him and he took lessons on piano, which he studied for eight years. While there was no rock music in the house — strictly classical — his father liked listening to Prairie Home Companion while driving and Aaron got acquainted with roots musicians like Greg Brown. He also took clarinet lessons and joined the marching band. Aaron’s early heroes were newspaper journalists, such as Chicago Tribune columnist Bob Greene, who was a Bexley native. Aaron visited the Soviet Union in his senior year of high school in 1990 just as Iraq invaded Kuwait. Auspiciously, a fellow exchange student played guitar and sang “Masters of War.” When Aaron got home, he delved into Bob Dylan’s discography. Aaron went to American University to study journalism. After graduation in 1995, during a stint with The Associated Press in Vermont, he wrote poetry during “down time.” The cadence of the poetic work led him to buy a guitar and take lessons. He pursued creative writing at a weekly writer’s group where he met his wife, Debra, a playwright (“She’s the best writer in the house,” he said). Following a job offer, they moved to Madison, Wis. — a nine-year stint. Aaron continued writing songs and started playing open mics. A cancelled open mic where he played a set of his songs in front of an audience became his first gig. In 2002, he started attending the Madison Songwriter’s Group to further develop his craft. He learned from everyone, but especially from Eric Hester, the group’s president. Another friend, Dale Kidd, widely known in Madison, put new music to one of Aaron’s songs and they became friends and songwriting partners. Sadly, Dale died in 2009. Aaron still misses Dale, even today, despite already having moved back East in 2006, where he continued as a business reporter. In 2005 he released his first CD, Same Old You. That same year, during summer vacation in Vermont, he met singer/songwriter Phil Henry, who introduced Aaron to the Northeast singer/songwriter scene and produced Aaron’s second CD, Alchemy of Memory (2011). This led to a showing at Kerrville Folk Festival where, in 2011, he was a finalist in the New Folk competition.

We think Aaron’s journalistic storytelling skills, paired with Michael’s unique instrumental (and songwriting) chops, will continue to spin gold for as long as they choose to work together — a lengthy time, we hope!

websites: michaelronstadt.com | aaronnathans.com