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Thursday, March 28, 2024

‘Harmonica man’ from Naperville is playing blues big time in Boston

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Naperville native Matt “Charles” Prozialeck recently was featured in a Boston area music publication written by music reporter Bill Copeland.

According to the article titled, “Harmonica man Matt Prozialeck shines as member of Erin Harpe & The Delta Swingers,” (Bill Copeland Music News, Nov. 3, 2017), the self-taught harmonica player has been performing with the Boston blues band going on three years.

The 2008 Naperville North High School graduate who went on to graduate from Northern Illinois University is enjoying his music career in Boston quite frankly “because the Beantown band plays 150 shows a year.”

Prozialeck (pro-zhel-ick) had met Erin Harpe & The Delta Swingers in Pennsylvania while he was visiting his Uncle Chuck, a blues fan who has been a fan of the band for some time. “When I’d go visit them, they’d take me to blues and jazz shows,” Prozialeck said. “He told me ‘Hey, this singer Erin Harpe’s in town, and you’d like her music.’ We went to the show. He was apparently talking to her between sets or something, talking up my harmonica playing, without my knowledge. They asked me to sit in on a few songs.” Harpe and her Delta Swingers must have been impressed. They kept in touch with Prozialeck.

A year later, Erin Harpe & The Delta Swingers were on the first week of a seven week tour when their guitarist left the band. Harpe assumed responsibility for all of the band’s guitar parts. The band’s previous harmonica player, Richard “Rosy” Rosenblatt, had to step down as he owns and operates VizzTone Records and cannot tour.

“They were going to have me sit in when they played Navy Pier in Chicago,” Prozialeck began. “I happen to e-mail asking about set lists and they go ‘You wanna join?’ And I was like, ‘eh-OK.’” The young harmonica player flew out to Denver to play with them. From there, Prozialeck and the band traveled to Midland City, Texas to play at the Pulse City Blues Festival with no rehearsal. No pressure.” He chuckled at the memory.

The rest of this story featured in Bill Copeland Music News is linked here.

“The band’s recent release, Big Road, is enjoying success having appeared on several national blues music charts and is receiving rave reviews,” notes Linda Prozialeck. “It was recently included as a top 25 blues radio chart for October 2017 in Living Blues magazine.”

For more info about the group or their album, visit www.erinharp.com.

For Matt “Charles” Prozialeck’s bio, visit MattCharlesBlue.com.

Story and photo submitted by Linda Prozialeck with permission by Billy Copeland. “My husband and I have lived in Naperville  for 26 years ( Matt was raised here),” said Linda Prozialeck.

 

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PN Editor
PN Editor
An editor is someone who prepares content for publishing. It entered English, the American Language, via French. Its modern sense for newspapers has been around since about 1800.

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