Born: May 10, 1961 Primary Instrument: Bass, electric
Born in Huntington, New York, Sokol's early exposure to Henry Mancini, Herb Albert, and Burt Bacharach, and 20th Century Classical composers via his dad's Living Room Hi-Fi during the 1960s and 1970s, created a a foundation for a life as a player, composer, and producer.
Billy studied piano in grade school and started on String bass when he was 13.
Growing up at a moment in time when your typical neighborhood garage band would cover Return to Forever, Mahavishnu, Jeff Beck, Yes, and Pink Floyd, Billy gravitated towards instrumental music.
Billy studied improvisation and figure studies with Darrell Dobson and attended Ithaca College School of Music. During his years in Ithaca, Bill played in a series of jam bands before moving to Long Island.
From the mid-1980s through early 1992, Billy wrote and performed original rock and roll and jazz throughout the NYC area in bands Braubeat and Spaghetti Western.
Starting in 1992, Bill Sokol began composing, performing and recording with long-time friend and fellow bassist David Satnick. Donovan's Brain comprised Mr Satnick and Billy on basses, Chris Casper on drums, and Dan Gandel on Vibes.
In the late 1990s Bill Sokol continued to write and record with Chris Casper along with Jeff Mitchell on reeds, and Gary Quenqua on keyboards.
From early 2001 through 2004 Bill Sokol and later Circus of Saints recorded and performed in solo, duet, trio, and quarter formats in Tampa, St. Pete, and Clearwater at clubs and concert venues.
Since 2004 Bill Sokol has been focusing on small groups built alternatively around loose and improvised performances built around simple instrumental compositions OR highly composed recordings. Many of these compositions were done with Glenn Trojnar (harmonica) and Mr. Sokol's Piccolo Fretless Bass
In 2006 Billy wrote an original score for a theatrical production of “Misery” based on the Stephen King story. In 2007, Billy was commissioned to compose an original score for the Dayton Ballet's upcoming production of Streetcar Named Desire. Billy continues to compose, record, and perform songs written for the Piccolo Fretless Bass.
