Artist Bio

The youngest of four, John Trones was born and raised in Minneapolis, Minnesota. From an early age his parents encouraged the musical talents of John and his three sisters; Julie, Debbie, and Mary Beth. With Mary Beth at the piano, the siblings began performing at a variety of venues; coffee houses, churches, and special events, including the 1991 International Special Olympic Games.

Their tightly woven harmonies and melodic vocals gained them generous acclaim and they were soon dubbed, "The Trones Family Singers." "No," Trones emphasizes, "there were no lederhosen or performance costumes made from old draperies," referring to any comparisons to the Von Trapp Family Singers of The Sound Of Music fame.

Trones attended college in Santa Barbara where he initially studied psychology, but shifted his focus to theatre arts and graduated from the University of Minnesota. Combining his love of music and acting, he immersed himself in musical theatre, playing leads such as Joseph in Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat, Curley in Oklahoma!, and everything in between. "I'd had a chance to play a lot of incredible roles that I'd always wanted to play, but it was time for a new challenge.

John decided that it was time to start writing. "Performing is such a high for me, but performing your own material adds an element of sheer terror to the equation. If it doesn't fly, you have no one to blame but yourself." Trones wrote, produced, and starred in a series of three successful musical-comedy cabaret shows at the Bryant Lake Bowl Theatre in south Minneapolis. His sold-out performances won the praise of critics and fans alike. "The musical Boy, Oh Boy! was an unqualified hit at The Bryant Lake Bowl, selling out performance after performance...phenomenally successful", wrote theatre critic William Randall Beard.

Following in the footsteps of his sister, pianist and recording artist Mary Beth Carlson, Trones began collecting music for his debut recording, Forward , fulfilling a life-long dream.

The album, released in October '99, was executive produced by BMG recording superstar Jim Brickman, and includes new, original Brickman music, as well as guest appearances by Brickman, Mary Beth Carlson, Marilyn Harris and Mark Wolfram.

The album Forward is a collection of contemporary and Broadway influenced standards and original romantic ballads that perfectly blend the strength of Trones' vocal performance with the beautiful clarity of the flowing piano compositions.

Dinah Eng of Gannett News Services wrote recently in her nationally syndicated column,
" John's smooth, sensitive style is easy on the ear and sure to please the romantic at heart."
-Dinah Eng (Gannett News Services)

In August of 1999 Trones was on the road with singer Olivia Newton-John and pianist Jim Brickman's U.S. tour. He later joined Brickman on his tour of Southeast Asia, with concert dates in Thailand, Taiwan, and Malaysia.

December 1999 John toured with Brickman, recording artist Anne Cochran, and violinist Tracy Silverman as guest vocalist with Jim Brickman's Holiday Tour . The holiday tour culminated with a Millennium Concert in Toledo where John sang with the Toledo Symphony.

In March of 2000 John served as creative producer for the Jim Brickman PBS Special, "My Romance", which was shot in Salt Lake City and was seen by millions of viewers nationwide.

In the spring of 2000, Trones toured Asia with Brickman, performing concerts in Hong Kong and Beijing. While in Hong Kong, John co-produced (along w/ Jim Brickman) new singles for Asian and Philipine recording artists' Andy Lau and Sharon Cuneta.

In the summer of 2000, Trones was cast as a lead in the independant film, Palatable Friendship, which filmed in Minneapolis over the summer months. The film was written and directed by Rusty Marcellini.

Over the past several years, John has been involved in numerous television and film projects, including a lead role in the cable sitcom Paradise Inn. When not in front of the camera, John has been studying film production and is currently completing his first screenplay with writing collaborator Brad Scalia.

2001 was a busy theatre year for John. He opened in Party in May, at The Loring Playhouse, playing the role of "Philip", and in June took over the role of "Kevin" until the show closed in late July. The Minneapolis Star & Tribune gave Party a glowing review, and the show nearly sold-out it's three month run. Next came the role of "Rob" in The Twilight of the Golds at Cedar Riverside Theatre for Ensemble Productions. Lavender Magazine named Twilight one of the ten best productions of the 2001 Minneapolis/St. Paul Theatre Season, and noted John's performance as "one of the outstanding performances of the 2001 Minneapolis/St. Paul Theatre Season. John ended the year by playing "Jesus" in Rick Anderson's production of Godspell at The Loring Playhouse. The production won rave reviews from critics and audiences.

In February of 2002 John began work on his first Christmas album, Holiday, scheduled for release November 1st, 2002. Holiday is a collection of romantic Holiday vocals, and includes collaborations with some of John's favorite musicians: Jim Brickman, Mary Beth Carlson, Martha Mathewson, Dana Mathewson, Joanna Jahn, Deb Trones Becker and Julie Trones. Current projects in the works are an upcoming appearance as "Judas" in Terrance McNally's Corpus Christi, several album release-related events; concerts, listening/release party, and in-store appearances. Check the calendar page for details. Recording is scheduled to begin in February 2003 on a new album featuring guest musicians Martha Mathewson and Dana Mathewson."