MEET US

We are adding new people to our group all the time! Here are some of the amazing people we have worked with so far. 

Nathan Dillon - songwriter/composer/guitar player/producer/gatherer of people

Nathan works hard to bring the right group of people together for each project. Co-writing with people across the country, composing for film, TV and video games and playing guitar on recordings are some of the things Nathan does.

Jake Belser - engineer/producer/professor/studio owner

Jake owns Primary Sound Studios in Bloomington, IN. He has engineered and/or produced sessions for such luminaries as John Mellencamp and Over the Rhine. He is Senior Lecturer in the audio program at Indiana University Jacobs School of Music.

Niko Albanese - drums/engineer/producer

Niko is the Studio Manager for Primary Sound Studios in Bloomington, IN. He spent many years in Nashville building a reputation and a golden-eared engineer and producer. He plays drums, produces and/or engineers everything from pop country to the heaviest of metal.

Minka Wiltz - songwriter/composer/singer 

Minka brings years of professional opera singing to Kitchen Sync. She is a writer of songs and one-person shows, as well as TV shows and movies. Minka brings a unique, cinematic perspective to everything she does.

Jonathan Haynes - songwriter/film historian

Jonathan writes songs and helps inform us about cinema. In addition to a degree in film from Indiana University, he also holds a doctorate in film studies from Berkeley College in California.

Sarah Menefee - singer/songwriter

Sarah has been singing with King Bee and the Stingers blues band for many years. She has the ability to match a song with just the right delivery. She is also an accomplished songwriter.

Wes Schrimsher - piano/sax

Wes studied at Berkeley College of Music in Boston. He has become a go-to studio musician for numerous projects in a wide range of styles.

Oliver Wittman - bass

Over plays bass with Kid Kazooey as well as for many other groups and artists throughout the midwest. His style range is as wide as his tone is deep.

Kristin Olson - drums/percussion/composer

Kristin is based in Los Angeles. She earned her Masters in Percussion at Indiana University before moving to LA in 2019. She has played with a wide variety of artists including most recently touring the world with Durand Jones.

Vince Ilagan - bass/composer

Vince is based in Knoxville, Tennessee. He has played with the experimental bluegrass group Circus Number 9 and was the touring bassist for Justin Townes Earle for many years. He holds degrees in Bass from the University of Tennessee.

Ron Kadish - bass

Ron has performed or recorded a staggering range of music. He has worked with rock and blues icons The Moody Blues, John Mellencamp, Marcia Ball and CJ Chenier.  He has shared the stage with pop/folk luminaries Mary Chapin Carpenter, Sarah McLachlan, and Paula Cole. His jazz credentials are stellar, having performed with David Baker, Gene Bertoncini, and Judy Carmichael and his classical collaborations include the Jerusalem Symphony Orchestra.

Ron has earned a Bachelors in Double Bass and a Masters in Jazz Studies from the  Indiana University Jacobs School of Music

Joe Donnelly - saxes/piano

Joe Donnelly is a multi-instrumentalist, composer and music educator. He's a saxophone player and utility guy in numerous bands, including the Acre Brothers, John Dehner and the Enthusiasts, The Bazargan Book Club, Splattertones, and Craig Brenner and the Crawdads. Joe has performed with generations of musicians coming through Indiana, in numerous and varied styles. 

He has a Masters in Music Education from VanderCook College of Music in Chicago, and is the Band, Choir and Rock n' Rhythm Director at Jackson Creek Middle School in Bloomington, Indiana. He was the 2019 Al Cobine Award winner as well as winning 2016 Monroe County Educator of the Year Award

Zach Proffitt - tech

Zach is the youngest person on our team. In addition to being able to repair our cars, he can also fix tape machines, recording consoles and just about any old thing. He also designed this website. He is an aspiring heavy metal singer, guitar player and engineer.