Nino & Friends

Often touted as “the best children’s entertainer” by parents, children and educators, Nino has been working with children for over ten years. He started guitar lessons over 25 years ago, with dreams of being a rock star. After several years of late nights playing in smoky bars with his band, he realized that scene was not for him. After volunteering at a “Head Start for Homeless” program, he decided to go into teaching and studied Early Childhood Education in Graduate School. While teaching at a daycare center he realized that he could combine his love of music and children by performing for them. Then tragedy struck. A four-year-old friend was in a terrible car accident and ended up in a hospital in a coma. In order to do whatever he could to help her recovery, he recorded some of her favorite songs onto a tape in his basement. As she came out of the coma, but was still partially paralyzed, he frequently visited her in the hospital and played songs for her, changing them so she could participate (e.g., "If you're happy and you know it, stick out your tongue…"). When he saw the incredible positive effect the music had on her and the other children in the hospital, he decided to record a CD. The first one (Our Time) was so popular, that he has since written and recorded two more CDs (Imagination Vacation, and The Best Things in Life) Over the past 10 years, Nino has been in charge of Music & Movement programs at more than twenty early childhood schools. He has played guitar for thousands of children at day care centers, nursery schools, hospitals and festivals. He has also performed at hundreds of birthday parties and special events. His unique blend of rock and roll, folk songs, children’s classics and funny original songs is always a pleasure for children and adults alike. Currently, Nino is working on his fourth CD and developing his idea for a children’s television show for preschoolers.