Cipparone to Demarco

North Bay has been home to a wide variety of talented musicians since its founding in 1882. This page lists musicians and bands from Cipparone to Demarco.

Antonio “Tony” Cipparone. Photo courtesy of the Falconi Collection. Photographer unknown.

Cipparone, Antonio “Tony”

Antonio was born on Aug 5, 1903 at Pietrafitta, Cozenza Italy, and came to North Bay in 1912. In 1934, he was married and joined the Temiscaming and Northern Ontario Railway Band. He was a member of the band when it went to the Toronto Exhibition for competitions. He played the saxophone and clarinet for various bands; the 8th Field Squadron Band, the North Band Citizens' Band, the North Bay Area Band, and the North Bay Concert Band. Antonio gave instructions to amateur musicians. Aside from the reed instruments, his greatest love musically was playing the accordion. He played in a church orchestra and when CFCH opened in North Bay, he arranged for a fifteen minute gospel program immediately following the newscast. Reverend R.A. Bambay, who conducted his funeral and who was a very close friend of his, made the following statement about him: "If there are musical instruments in the afterlife, I shall expect to hear him play again. His love for music was very profound." He was the owner of Sunnyside Barber Shop for 15 to 20 years. After this, he joined the Canadian Pacific Railway in 1942 and retired as a trainman in 1968. Antonio had two children with his wife Natalina Carfagnini. He died May 24, 1979, when he was 75.

Steve Clarke. Photo courtesy of the Music City Collection. Photographer unknown.

Clarke, Steve

Steve gained his passion for drums from his father and older brother. He played with many local bands including the Avanti's, Cecil, Od's Lifelings, the Phoenix Four, Nickelodeon, Buster, Skyhook, McGale's Navy, Fluid Drive, Don Brose and the Chords, and the Tune Dogz, the Prophets and Weekend Crew. A business owner, he operated RePercussion Drumshop on Algonquin Avenue and for a time, worked in sales at Boart Longyear. During the height of his musical career, it was stated that he was known as one of the areas finest rock and blues drummers.

Tim Clarke. Photo courtesy of the Falconi Collection. Photographer unknown.

Clarke, Tim

Tim was born in Toronto and came to North Bay in 1959 when he was twelve. From Grade 9 to 13 Tim was the lead drummer for all the bands at Chippewa High. For one summer session the same year he moved to north bay, he played for the National Youth Orchestra. He was taught by the percussion teacher, John Weir. Tim played percussion instruments for the 8th Field Squadron Band, the Algonquin Regiments and the North Bay Area Band and for the North Bay Symphony. He has also played for the Norm Mauro Orchestra, the Dave Edwards Quintet, Rip Barham and the Sophisticats, and the Bruno Quartet. Besides the large groups, Tim also drummed for the Shadows, Descendants of Tyme, Night Shift and After Hours Jazz. After finishing high school Tim attended teacher’s college and took music courses from the Ministry of Education. He was awarded the honour of being included in Canadore College's Excellent Teacher Program, and was appointed to the Ontario Educational Leadership Centre as a percussion instructor. He taught music at Ecole Secondaire Algonquin for eight years. Tim's greatest pride in education is the large number of former students he had who now teach music. Tim spent many years with the military reserve bands maintaining the grand traditions of military band music in North Bay. He was also a leading force in the establishment and maintenance of the North Bay Community Concert Band. Later, Time would enjoy music through teaching private drum lessons and by attending the odd gig. Tim married Sigrid Bruse and they had two children.

Cliche, Peter

Peter started playing professionally straight out of school in the early 1970’s. He began as a multi-instrumentalist sideman, traveling the countryside developing his skills. He plays the fiddle, mandolin, guitar and banjo. As his experience grew, his confidence in solo work became more of a focus. Eventually, he found the recording studio to be another way in which he could balance work on the road. In 2000, the studio ended up presenting an opportunity to create music for TV and film. Having spent enough time recording and engineering in his own North Bay studio, he has produced and recorded several albums for others as well as his own. Peter continues to play live, record often, and teach anyone who seeks his advice.

Corbeil, Jack

Jack was born in North Bay where he played with the popular band Nickelodeon before starting the original Buzz Band. Jack played the keyboard and sang lead for the Dinosaurs. He then played in various bands in the New Orleans area before deciding to return to North Bay.

Critchley, Norman

Norman grew up in the Kirkland Lake area and studied violin with the Royal Conservatory of Toronto. An accomplished jazz musician, he played the saxophone and clarinet in the late 1940’s with swing dance bands like the Jerry Fuber All Stars and his own Norman Critchley's Orchestra. Norman studied architecture and in 1955, he moved to North Bay, married his partner Betty, and along with Lucien Delean, started an architectural practice that lasted over 50 years. Norman played occasionally with groups like the Northernaires, Norm Mauro, Rip Barham, and the Victor Chorus. In 1967, he was first violin and concertmaster for the North Bay Centennial Orchestra. He also worked with others to form the Community Concert Association. In the late 1970s, he was president of the Northern Musical Arts Association and a founding member of the North Bay Symphony Orchestra, playing violin for 33 years. He served as concertmaster for many of those years, as well as a board member, a fundraiser, a donor and at one time, president. Norman was also elected president of the North Bay and District Chamber of Commerce at the first meeting of the 1964 board of directors.

Curly McFarlane and the North Range Cowboys

Curly McFarlane and his "North Range Cowboys" include brothers Don and Stan and sister June. They began their musical careers in North Bay as the first live country band on CFCH radio in the early 1930's. They played lively country music at dances in the Top Hat Pavilion, Harmony Hall, Hostess Room and many other halls throughout Northern Ontario. Curly, Don and June left North Bay for the south and continued entertaining at country fairs, the CNE bandshell, night clubs, and eventually went on to perform for a radio and television program called "Holiday Ranch" for many years.

William Decaro. Photo courtesy of the Falconi Collection. Photographer unknown.

Decaro, William

William was born in 1904 in Villa Rosa, Sicily. He came to Canada in 1906. When he was eight he started playing music. He could play the French horn, the saxophone, the violin, the guitar and the mandolin. He was taught music by Egidio Virgili and was a member of the Midnight Serenaders, the Rocky Lucenti Orchestra, the Jack Cangiano Orchestra and the Bert Lehman Orchestra. He was with the Christopher Columbus Band when it won multiple awards at the Canadian National Exhibition. On many occasions, he played with Alfie Parisien. William was also a member of the Temiscaming and Northern Ontario Railway Band and the Premier Band of 1926. His love of music inspired his son, Rudy, who went on to become a professional pianist. He was a bridge builder and painter with the C.P.R. and for a time, he was a salesman in stores with P. Adams and Harry Mulligan. William died in 1948 at the age of 42. He was married to Mary Scavuzzo and they had three children.

Demarco, Dave

Dave is a guitar and vocalist who played for Fluid Drive along with Denny Jackson and Ted Chase. He is a folk-singer and life-long resident of North Bay. Dave eventually made a name for himself as a well-known radio personality. In 1989, he joined the sales team of Re/Max North Bay Realty Inc. He is a proud father of two daughters.

James Vincent Demarco. Photo courtesy of the Falconi Collection. Photographer unknown.

Demarco, James Vincent

James was born in1882, Teramo, Abruzzo, Italy. He was twenty-two when he came to Canada. While in Italy, he worked on his parent’s farm, as well as their flour mill and bakery. Along with his two brothers, James started working in Nova Scotia with the Canadian Pacific Railway; laying railway ties. Eventually, they worked their way to North Bay. James became a contractor who helped lay the infrastructure for the downtown area. His love of music lead him to encourage his family to learn and play instruments. He was the manager of the Christopher Columbus Band of 1913 and bought musicians their uniforms. As manager of the Christopher Columbus Band, he attended the musical competitions at the Toronto Exhibition. James was married to Antonetta Fabiano. They had eight children. He passed away on Sept. 9, 1957, aged 77.