Who Are The Midway Ramblers?

The Midway Ramblers is an authentic and spirited Cajun band that knows how to entertain audiences of any age. To get that special Cajun sound the band members have lived and studied in Louisiana with legends of Cajun music. They maintain a very active schedule playing major festivals throughout the Midwest, including Taste of Chicago, Gumbo Ya Ya, and Evanston First Night as well as clubs such as The House of Blues, FitzGeralds’, and Schuba’s. The Ramblers have appeared at Brookfield Zoo’s Swamp Exhibit opening as well as its American Airlines sponsored Rhythm and Roots Festival 1998-2002. They also present educational programs on the Cajuns to social groups and cultural institutions including The Old Town School of Folk Music, The Chicago Cultural Center, The Terra Museum, The Shrine to Music Museum and present programs to elementary through university students. They have appeared on WGN-TV, "190 North" with Janet Davies on WLS-TV, on “Contempo” with Bobbie Markbreit, and on WLUW-FM (Loyola University Radio). They have been featured in The Chicago Tribune, River North News, The Northbrook Star and several issues of the Reporter Progress Newspapers.

DENNIS NUCCIO (button accordion) principal owner of Anthony Blair Studio, teaches piano and shares the band's enthusiasm for Cajun music. Dennis has been visiting Louisiana since the mid ‘70's. He became interested in Cajun music after seeing Cajun legends at the New Orleans Jazz & Heritage Festival and, in 1990, decided to learn to play it. He also studied at Davis and Elkins College and at workshops around the Midwest and has visited and studied with Cajun musicians in Louisiana. Dennis also maintains an active schedule playing solo piano in Chicago.

EARL THOMPSON (guitar/vocals) is a professor of Spanish and chair of the Department of Foreign Languages at Elmhurst College. He learned to play the guitar while in the Peace Corps in Chile. Earl is the lead vocalist of the Ramblers. His voice has been characterized as one that "you could build a band around." Earl and Dennis have attended Cajun music festivals in Louisiana since the mid '80's. He also has studied with Cajun legends in Louisiana and at various workshops around the country. Earl's background in diverse cultures and ethnic groups enables him to have special insight into the development of the history, language, and music of the Cajuns.

DENISE THOMPSON (fiddle/vocals) has become increasingly interested in the music of the Cajuns of southwest Louisiana over the past decade. Through frequent travel to Louisiana and formal study at the Augusta Cajun Music Workshops at Davis and Elkins College, she has become quite knowledgeable about Cajun history, culture and music. And with her graduate level degrees in foreign languages (she is an adjunct professor of Spanish at Elmhurst College), Denise believes that she has found a perfect fit for exploring the culture, language and music of the Cajuns. Denise has a background in classical and jazz piano as well and has performed with jazz bands and small jazz groups in the Chicago area.

BILL SUDKAMP (triangle/rubboard) has a degree in chemical engineering and owns a printing business in the western suburbs. Bill is one of the most accomplished players outside of Louisiana and helps the band capture that unique Cajun rhythm. He is well known in the Midwest as a caller for square and contra dances.

STU GREENSPAN (bass guitar) has been a Chicago area professional for over two decades, playing bass and guitar with a wide variety of jazz, pop, and ethnic ensembles. He is a founding member of the popular Jamaican group Waterhouse, the contemporary jazz septet Trapeze, and the Cerqua Rivera Art Experience, a highly acclaimed fusion of jazz music, modern dance, and visual art. As a studio musician and engineer, Stu contributes to sound designs for the Steppenwolf, Goodman, Northlight, and other theater companies. He is currently on the music faculty of Columbia College and the Francis W. Parker School.

LEO PEÑA (percussion) was born September 22nd, 1975 in the suburbs of Mexico City. Leo moved to Chicago at age 15 and began playing drums in various high school bands, exploring almost all styles of music from punk, to jazz, to classical, to reggae, to Latin folk to blues. By age 18 he had completed his first studio project. Leo attended Elmhurst College after high school and continued experimenting musically in hip hop and acid jazz, while majoring in Philosophy and Spanish Lit. Leo has played in the Chicago area extensively with numerous bands, including traditional Mexican "Bandas" and Tex-Mex groups, a Grateful Dead tribute band, jazz trios, Hip Hop groups, industrial bands, and his own rock band, Perv-54. When Leo was asked by Earl (his Spanish professor at the time) to play a gig with the Midway Ramblers, Leo jumped on board initially to expand his repertoire, but fell in love with the "organic purity and emotional honesty" of the music and hasn't looked back since then.

(Thanks to the late Joe Bauer for individual photos of Denise, Dennis, Earl and Bill.)