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Member:
In 1986, Tom joined up with the Ed Hause Band and performed with them full-time for twenty years. Over the last two decades, Tom became involved with several other polka bands in the Milwaukee area. One such band was the Gentleman Jim Orchestra, of which he was the drummer for a couple of years in the early 1990's. Between 1995 and 2000, Tom was also a bass player for the Sidemen, an award-winning band fronted by Cleveland's Eric Noltkamper. Currently, Tom is the full-time drummer for two area bands and the leader of his own band. Tom regularly helps out bands as a sideman, whether it is playing drums, accordion, tuba, keyboard, or bass guitar, and has performed with over fifty bands throughout his career so far. As one of Milwaukee's busiest polka musicians, he plays approximately 175 events a year. Tom's musical career so far includes many notable highlights. In 1993, the MIDI Magic Polka, an original composition on his "Don't Shoot the Accordion Player" recording, reached the top ten polka charts on the west coast. In May of 1994, he was requested to lead a polka band for a Republican fundraiser here in Milwaukee at the Mecca Convention Center, which included about a thousand high-profile celebrities such as Former President George Bush and Former Wisconsin Governor Tommy Thompson. In November of 1998, at the age of 28, Tom was inducted into the Wisconsin Polka Hall of Fame as a recipient of the Sideman of the Year award. His band was inducted in 2000 as the recipient of the Horizon award for best new/young band. Tom received a second Sideman of the Year award in 2006. Tom runs a business called Polkasound Productions out of Milwaukee, Wisconsin. It started in 1990 as a four-track recording studio, which has since grown into a 24-track digital studio with its name a respected record label in the polka industry. Polkasound Productions also administrates several websites, including Wisconsin Polka Music. (WPM is one of the top-ranked polka websites in the world, receiving an average over one million hits a year.) In September of 2005, the Milwaukee music scene lost one of its most educated and respected members: Tom's father, Jim Brusky. Jim's versatility as a musician made him a priceless asset to many bands in the polka, traditional jazz and dixieland jazz scenes. He's proudly shared the stage with everyone from shy amateurs to Guy Lombardo's Royal Canadians. Having a varied musical background, Jim was an accomplished arranger whose support and advice were an important factor in Tom's success as a musician. A "closet songwriter", Tom occasionally composes new music, both inside and outside the polka genre. He has written/composed over thirty songs to date:
Aside
from his work in music, graphic design, recording, and website
administration, Tom works a day job in an unrelated profession
he's
been involved with for over fifteen years. HOBBIES &
INTERESTS - PAST & PRESENT
Artwork - From 1984 to 1992 (age 14 to 22) Tom was an avid artist specializing in oil landscapes. He created about 150 works in oil, acrylic, charcoal, graphite, and ink during this period. Click on the thumbnail images below to view some of his creations.                                        Coin Collecting -
It's not too often you receive an Adams
dollar or a Kennedy half-dollar in
your day-to-day transactions, but then you're
probably not
doing business with Tom Brusky. Tom makes sure these coins remain
in circulation. Through both pure luck and planned
purchases, Tom has amassed a collection of every major type of U.S.
coin
minted for general circulation since 1800. To
view pictures of his two century type collections,
click on the links below. (Note: Due to their extreme rarity and
thus high cost, the 1800 dollar, 1804
half-dime, and 1836 Gobrecht dollar
are
reproductions.)
Diecast Police Cars - In 2001, Tom combined his hobby of collecting diecast police cars with his capabilities as a graphic designer and spent a little over a year custom-making limited editions of various Milwaukee-area police agencies. Tom either donated his cars or sold them at auction on eBay. Some of his cars sold for over a hundred dollars. Click on the small images to see full size pictures.       
Kittling - Wisconsin's Cutest Cat - Tom's pride and joy since 1993. Music - Studio Recording - Regarded as a polka music production powerhouse, Polkasound Productions Recording Studio operated non-stop for ten years, from 1990 to 2000, churning out many polka recordings, countless demos and other projects. Having come back into service on a limited basis in 2005, Polkasound is where Tom records the music for his own CDs. The studio is a 24-track digital facility which can be expanded to 40 tracks when needed. Computer-based MIDI sequencing software is synchronized with the 24-track hard disk recorder for maximum flexibility. Traveling & Taking Pictures - Tom always travels by car, and wherever he goes, his camera goes with. Click to view a selection of photos that Tom made available as complimentary desktop wallpaper for your computer. Web Design - Tom has literally created over a thousand web pages since 1996. This link will take you to a page that chronicles the evolution of this website's design. Some of Tom's other site creations are: X-Box Gaming - Though his spare time is limited, an occasional free night may find Tom in the midst of a world war battle or in the cockpit of a Rebel Alliance star fighter. Favorite Food: Macaroni & cheese Favorite Beverage: Chocolate milk Favorite Milwaukee Pizza: Filippos (68th & Lincoln) and Maria's (51st & Forest Home) Favorite Color: Orange Favorite Polka Bands: Jeff Pecon, Eddie Rodick, and the late Gaylord Klancnik An obscure claim to fame of Tom's is a computer solitaire win in 78 seconds with a score of 9,616 (draw-one, standard scoring). |
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