SAVINO LATTANZIO (Savi Kumu Kika)
A native of Venice, he began to play at age of 12.
He plays acoustic and electric guitar, string bender, 5 strings banjo, lap steel guitar, mandolin, fiddle, dobro, bass and harmonica, in addition to singing.
He worked as a session musician and sound engineer in salt engraving participating in the realization of recordings for various solo artists and groups.
For three years he went out on tour with singers from the San Remo music festival. He has played in groups whose styles include jazz, rock, blues, country, bluegrass, folk, swing, salsa etc. in Italy and abroad, participating in various radio and television programs.
He is enrolled as composer and author in the SIAE and he has registered around 40 compositions.
In the Eighties he begins to teach music, particularly guitar, banjo and bass, in several schools in his town.
Impassioned of country music and bluegrass, he formed one of the first Italian country music bands:
"The Amazing Dancing Bear". Subsequently he founded the Bluegrass Oglers, with whom he participated in the first Italian country music festival. .
He frequently traveled the USA, where he had the opportunity (and the honor) to play with some legendary musicians (Bill Monroe, first among others).
Now plays the lap steel guitar with with the "Honolulu Hula Boys" and other instruments with the duo "Old Country Pickers".