About circle 65
Add content
Vincent Troy
Lead Vocals, Guitar
Mike hayden
Lead Guitar, Vocals
Tom Bartush
Bass
Mario Benincasa
Keyboards, Saxophone, Vocals
Mario joined Circle 65 in 2012. He plays the saxophone, keys, does background vocals, and on
occasion plays the guitar to help bolster the band’s sound. Mario is from Kingston NY. He
graduated SUNY Oneonta with a bachelor’s in history; while there, he performed with every
band/musical group the college had to offer. This helped diversify his musical ability and made
him an asset to any band he has performed with. Besides music, he enjoys a good burger,
weight lifting, and telling a good dad joke.
Jim Kuzmyn
Drums
Jim has been a member of Circle 65 since early 2015. His fascination with drums started when he was very young. Jim sat in his room playing along to a radio for hours using a makeshift drum kit made out of his mother's pots, pans, and whatever else he could find, until his parents got him his first drum. In elementary school, his father encouraged him to take up another instrument as well, and he started playing the trumpet making it up to first chair in the school band very quickly, while still playing and favoring the drums which are his passion. Jim graduated from Marist College with a Masters Degree in Computer Information Systems and is currently an IT Manager. He loves collecting and playing vintage drums, lifting weights, and enjoying an occasional bourbon, craft beer, cigar combination.
Vicki Youlio
Trumpet, Flugelhorn, Vocals
Vicki was excited to hear from her old Kingston High School classmate, Mario, about needing a trumpet player for his band, and joined Circle 65 in November of 2018. Vicki earned her bachelors degree in music education from Penn State University and participated in several classical ensembles, as well as the Penn State Marching Blue Band. She also earned a masters degree from the Hartt School of Music at the University of Hartford and has been teaching high school and middle school band in the Hudson Valley ever since. Aside from her musical interests, Vicki is a member of CrossFit 845 in Wappingers Falls and enjoys tailgating at Penn State football games.
Edwin Gonzalez
Percussion
Edwin joined Circle 65 in late 2018. The band has welcomed him with open arms. Playing percussions for the Band has been a blast for him. Playing percussions with the older guys of the Lower East Side of Manhattan, is how he got his start as a teenager. Moving to the Hudson Valley Eddy has broaden his abilities to play with a wide range of Genres. Since playing with Circle 65 Eddy has honed his skills with the incredible song list the band performs and has become some sort of a Secret Sauce for the band…
Brendan Sohan
Trombone, Vocals
Brendan joined Circle 65 in 2015 and has enjoyed every second of it since. While you can catch him behind the vocal mic taking lead and singing backup, he started playing trombone about 25 years ago. Being completely mesmerized and in love with the instrument, Brendan furthered his education in music by attending The University of New Hampshire. With a background in classical and orchestral music, his influences include Tchaikovsky, Mahler, Dvorak, Elgar, Gershwin, Miles Davis, The Skyliners, The Temptations, Frankie Valli, The 4 Tops, (literally anything doowop and Motown related), Weezer and The Foo Fighters. He very much looks forward to seeing you from his side of the stage.
Keith Heilmann
Sound Engineer
Keith holds an Engineering degree from Brooklyn Polytechnic University with experience as an Engineering manager at IBM, as well as Engineering Director at GlobalFoundries. Keith’s most valuable experience was gained at the White House where relationships and personal policies can only be discussed and negotiated in the environment requiring perfect sound. This high bar drove Keith to ensure he had the best equipment and capability to fulfill the demands of this Clientele leading to over 16 years of Audio Engineering. You will be impressed with the Circle 65 sound wherever you may find us.
