playing harmonious lines back-to-back like best buds, and the next we're trying to one-up each other's solos with dramatic stage moves
fueled by sibling rivalry! Our unique “twinmanship” is a bond that can't be broken. We are best friends and it really shows in our music
and in our performance.
MM: Who picked up a guitar first?
TIA and TANYA: We had both expressed lots of interest in music as we
played in the school's wind ensemble with Tanya playing the Flute and
Tia playing the Clarinet, but we didn't quite realize how far that would
go! One day, when we were about 13, Tanya was suddenly struck with the
idea for the twins to start learning guitar. Our parents told us that if we
would dedicate ourselves to learning the guitar and be diligent about
practicing, they would get us guitars and pay for private lessons. Tia had
recently switched from clarinet to bass clarinet in school and started
gaining a soft spot for the lower frequencies, so after Tanya picked out
her guitar, Tia decided to pursue the bass and we both began taking
lessons at the same time.
MM: If you could bring back ANY musician to jam with, who would it be?
The TWINS: If we could each invite any musician to jam with us, we would
choose our biggest inspirations: JIMMY PAGE of LED ZEPPELIN and
GEDDY LEE of RUSH. We would have dueling guitar and bass solos all
night long!
Maverick: My dream would be to co-write (and harmonize) with PAUL
SIMON. He’s my idol. I used to have a fantasy as a child that he’d need a
backup singer at a concert and I’d get the opportunity to prove I knew
every song lyric and vocal harmony. I suppose it’s still possible…
Victoria: If I could bring back any musician, it would have to be "The Rev" from AVENGED SEVENFOLD. He has always been one of my
favorite drummers and biggest influences. On top of being a great drummer he was also an amazing songwriter. I would love the
opportunity to sit down with him and trade solos, granted mine wouldn't be anywhere near as good, and then be able to sit down and talk
to him about his influences and writing process.
MM: You're the newest member, how did Flight Of Fire find you?
Victoria: That's a funny story actually. I entered this year’s “Hit Like A Girl” contest with my Avenged Sevenfold cover of "Nightmare", and
they just so happened to be sifting through the contest entries and found mine. Afterwards they all added me on Facebook, and seeing
they were also Berklee, I added them back. About a week after that one of my best friends, Sam, told me about this flyer for an all-girl
Rock band looking for a drummer that he saw in one of the Berklee buildings. He took a picture of the poster and when he showed it to
me I realized it was all the musicians who had added me on Facebook a week ago and I instantly reached out and began talking to
Maverick. We set up a day to meet and hang out, and all immediately clicked and had a great time together. After that they gave me a
bunch of their songs to learn and set a day to jam together. Playing with them that day was awesome, I have never been able to sit down
and lock in with musicians like I was able to with Tia and Tanya before, and it felt so great. After we played they offered me the spot in the
band and I've been having an absolute blast with them since!
MM: Tell me about your musical background and training.
Victoria: Well my dad plays guitar and sings and my mom used to work for SONY MUSIC, so they wanted to start me on an instrument
early. Going through GUITAR CENTER catalogues when I was three, as I've been told, I was always insistent on playing the drums so the
following year my parents bought me a starter set for my birthday and found someone crazy enough to teach a 4 year old. I've studied
privately ever since in New Jersey, with STEVE DECKER being my prominent drum set teacher. Steve always made sure we covered all the