Local progressive-rock band to perform at Bates College

In a departure from the Bates College Noonday Concert series’ usual classical and jazz offerings, a progressive rock band featuring two prodigiously talented students from the Lisbon area performs at 12:30 p.m. Tuesday, March 2, in the Olin Arts Center Concert Hall, 75 Russell St.

Bates Noonday Concerts are open to the public at no charge.

Derek’s Trick Bag is led by Derek Thibault, a 12-year-old lead guitarist, and drummer Tynan Nida, 13, both students at Lisbon’s Philip W. Sugg Middle School. The band plays jazzy, technically advanced rock, including songs by guitar superstars Joe Satriani and Steve Vai, as well as rock icons Frank Zappa and Van Halen.

“The abilities of both boys were obvious from the first time I heard each of them play,” says Edward Judd, who teaches music at Sugg and works with the pair in the school’s jazz and concert bands. “Their ability to pick things up quickly was impressive, and they have a sense of style and musicality that I only tend to see in older students.”

Rounding out the band are the boys’ fathers, rhythm guitarist Gerry Thibault and bassist Don Nida.

“It’s high-energy, that’s for sure. The boys really fly,” says the elder Thibault, who is a plumber in the Bates College Facility Services department and also plays with a classic-rock combo, the Easy Living Band.

For more information, call 207-786-6135.