Family at St. Joseph Church tours with bluegrass music

Davanzo Family Band placed third at Tulsa State Fair competition

Published: March 9, 2015

By Aprille Hanson
Associate Editor

Courtesy Davanzo family

The Davanzo Family Band plays a mix of bluegrass and gospel covers. Parents Bridget (left) and Carmen Davanzo and children Nick, Brittany and Monica Davanzo are members of St. Joseph Church in Conway.

Courtesy Davanzo family

CONWAY — For Carmen and Bridget Davanzo, seeing their children excel and having the opportunity to play music together in the Davanzo Family Band is a blessing.

“There’s been challenges as a family, just learning how to get along as a unit, share time and space,” Bridget Davanzo said. “I like to think that’s why we’re so close, the music.”

The Davanzo Family Band played about 20 to 25 shows last year and averages about that many each year during the spring, summer and fall.

Carmen plays the guitar, Bridget plays bass, daughter Brittany plays fiddle, daughter Monica plays mandolin and son Nick plays the banjo.

With that many shows, there’s bound to be some bumps along the way.

“I’ve been hit in the head a few times with the neck of an instrument. We’d give each other the death stare,” son Nick said of him and his sisters — Monica, a senior at St. Joseph High School in Conway, and Brittany, a sophomore at the University of Central Arkansas. “It’s gotten us a lot closer, just spending a car ride for six hours with somebody on the way to perform; it’s something we can all do and all have in common.”

The band, which performs a mix of bluegrass and gospel covers, has played a variety of venues, including churches, festivals, parties for organizations like the Knights of Columbus and even at the Little Rock Farmer’s Market.

“We’re really blessed. You think about it more when you stand in front on a stage, you realize hey this is where we’re supposed to be,” Bridget Davanzo said.

Churches often hand out fliers about the band and some are surprised by the Davanzo’s religion.

“They’ll look at us and go, ‘Catholic?’ I wonder if we’re the only Catholics they’ve ever met, especially in the mountains near the Hector area, north Arkansas,” Bridget Davanzo said. “They’re such wonderful people and open to us. It’s just a fun experience.”

The family works hard to manage their performances around children Nick and Monica’s school activities and Carmen’s other band obligations, including his own called “Moving Grace” and as a guitarist in the band “Living Grace,” with State Sen. Jason Rapert.

At a rally to elect Sen. Rapert Oct. 21 at the University of Central Arkansas, the Davanzo Family Band opened for Grammy-award winner Ricky Skaggs, a country and bluegrass singer, with “Moving Grace” backing him.

“In the summer we play every day, about 40 minutes to an hour,” Nick said. “We play with our Dad a lot. He asks us to jam and we just play little things with him.”

Nick, 15 and a sophomore at St. Joseph High School, did not grow up wanting to play the banjo, but his sisters got first pick at an instrument so his choices were limited.

“My dad played guitar so he taught all of us guitar and then we kind of argued who got to play and so we switched instruments. I had last choice,” he said.

Nick won the open banjo division at the Oklahoma State Picking and Fiddling Championships at the Tulsa State Fair this past fall. He received a sterling silver belt buckle with rose gold plating and $300. He also placed second in youth guitar.

“There were people that were just as good as me, if not better,” Nick Davanzo said about beating about 10 other contestants. “They judge you on your style, execution (how smooth and how well you played it), your arrangement (how you put the pieces together) your originality.”

Monica, 18, placed first in youth guitar and second in open mandolin in the competition. Brittany, 19, did not compete individually this year, but she competed with the Davanzo Family Band when they won third place in the band competition.

The Davanzos know God is guiding their music.

“Everybody’s got different gifts, and I think he gave me this one,” Nick said. “Without him, I wouldn’t be able to play.”