The Chris Skebo Ensemble was formed in 2003 for the specific purpose of playing the compositions of Chris Skebo.  The ensemble is a core of three members:  Mark Verstraete, Jeffrey Skebo and Chris Skebo; plus an additional cast of recruited musicians.  Other ensemble members have included:  Hannah Habermann, Jeffrey Bowlby, Nick Karpinsky, Fil Stasiak, Rebecca Boucher, Seth Larson, Joe O’Kelly and Rachel Peters; all of which are current or former students of Wayne State University in Detroit, Michigan. 

 

Mark Verstraete:  Mark is a music technology major at Wayne State University, and one of the core members of the ensemble.   Mark’s history of playing with Skebo goes al the way back to his middle school days.  Mark is an accomplished pianist and has performed on and premiered nearly every one of Chris Skebo’s compositions.  Mark is the founder of an upcoming modern art music record label. His label will be releasing the first album by the ensemble in the late summer of 2006.  Mark currently works for Yessian Music, one of the biggest advertising music suppliers in the United States.

 

 

Jeffrey Skebo:  Jeffrey, who is Chris’s younger brother, is one of the most versatile percussionists you will ever meet.  From rock to avant-garde and everywhere in between, Jeff can get the job done.  A private student of Mark Logsdon and Keith Clayes, Jeff has quickly become one of the most in-demand concert percussionists in the Metro-Detroit area.  Jeff is currently a music performance and music education double major at Wayne State University.