John Santa

John Santa is an award winning audio and video producer who lives in Chapel Hill, North Carolina. An accomplished musician, Mr. Santa was the front man of The John Santa Band in the mid 1970s. Mr. Santa has worked with such notables as National Geographic, UNC Healthcare, Kyle Petty, The Discovery Channel, and Oprah Winfrey. In addition to scoring soundtracks, he is currently appearing with Jeff Wiessman, Greg Eldred, and Keith Carroll in the bluegrass band, EightTwentyThree. Mr. Santa is also a frequent speaker and guest educator at colleges and high schools in North Carolina (http://www.uncp.edu/digital_academy/dcc_2007/presenters.htm).

John Santa founded the [http://www.whit.biz/santa.htm RDU Session Players] in 1980 and has since overseen that organization's rise from a small group of friends who met quarterly, to an assemblage of musicians and spectators that perform across North Carolina monthly. The RDU Session Players also are known for their annual Marathon Jam, founded by Mr. Santa, which has raised considerable funds for numerous charitable causes including: The Sheppard Wasdell Teacher Excellence Award at Apex High School in North Carolina, The Community Music School in Raleigh, NC, which provides musical instruments to underprivileged children, and created scholarships in the names of several family members of the RDU Session Players who have died. 2008's Marathon Jam is raising money for The Fisher House (http://www.thepilot.com/stories/20080118/extra/extra/20080118bluegrassmar.html). This organization provides lodging for the families of military personnel who have been wounded and are receiving treatment away from their homes (http://www.fayobserver.com/article?id=281552).

In early 2007, Santa published his first novel, [http://www.bluegrassbook.com "Bluegrass Is My Second Language"] .