Music can call at any age. These NEO musicians started playing when the muse was ready; some early, some later.

CHAD PENGAL

Chad Pengal, 61, has been interested in bluegrass music since he was in seventh grade, but he didn’t get serious about playing it until his mid-50s.

“I always wanted to learn,” says the homebuilder and owner of Chadwick Homes in Mentor. To that end, 15 years ago, he bought a banjo and started experimenting. “I started plucking away but didn’t get anywhere. I wasn’t able to concentrate until my kids grew up and moved out. I was involved with them and their activities. Once my kids grew up, I found I had a lot more spare time to work on learning to play the instruments.”

In his 50s, he started taking lessons on a five-string banjo and was soon jamming with local musicians at one of their homes. That led to a band that played small, local venues for a year before members went their separate ways.

When Pengal met his now-girlfriend, Gloria Severino, he took his playing to a new level. Severino had recently left a popular Northeast Ohio club band after a 23-year career as a singer and musician. She saw talent in Pengal’s playing and talked him into starting a duo.

Today that duo – Pickin Rocks – plays bluegrass, country and Americana songs at bars, restaurants and wineries in Northeast Ohio. Pengal plays banjo and standup bass, while Severino plays acoustic guitar. Both do power vocals.

“I’ve always loved music,” says Pengal. “I like live music and going to small places and seeing talented musicians. All my family is musical. My dad plays button box with the Fairport Harbor Jammers. My sister has a band that plays around town. And my son is a full-time, professional musician in Nashville.”