The Coastal Breeze Party Band is a seven-piece variety band from Columbia, SC that is truly one of the most versatile bands playing live music today!  Offering a vast selection and variety of styles from Jazz Standards and easy listening tunes, for background music, to some of the most popular party and dance songs ever recorded, The Coastal Breeze Party Band covers it all!  

Boasting two of the Southeast's finest lead vocalists, superior backup vocals, a tight rhythm section, fantastic soloists, and a powerful horn section, The Coastal Breeze Party Band is ready to provide quality entertainment for your event!  From Motown, Disco, Soul, Jazz, Pop, Rock, and Dance... we've got your event covered!  We also feature the best Beach music hits for all the Shagger's out there!  

Because we provide our clients with so many options, The Coastal Breeze Party Band is a perfect choice for all occasions ranging from the wildest street dance to the most formal black tie affair.  Let us work with you to develop a custom song list that works for your event!  Whatever the occasion, you simply cannot go wrong with The Coastal Breeze Party Band. 

The Coastal Breeze Party Band is:

Jenny Burkholder, Lead Vocals - Jenny has been singing all of her life.  She is a Columbia, SC native and holds a business degree from The University of South Carolina.  Jenny studied voice and piano at Columbia College in Columbia, SC.  She also performed in her high school chorus and served as piano accompanist.  She has performed lead vocals in various groups since 1988, including The O'kaysions, Atlantic Coastline, Cross Current, The Don Boyd Orchestra, Natural Blonde (duo), and The Diamond Band.   Jenny also sang for years in the 150+ voice choir of the First Baptist Church of Columbia.  Jenny was a member of Who's Who in Music in 1984.  She is also a songwriter.  Jenny has been with the Band since 1991.

Scott Burkholder, Drums/Vocals - Scott studied Percussion at the University of South Carolina and performed in USC's Left Bank Jazz Band.   He has performed on stage with jazz artists such as Marian McPartland, Chris Potter, Louis Bellson, and Randy Brecker.  Scott has toured the East Coast with the O'Kaysions (of "I'm a Girl Watcher" fame), and appears on numerous recordings with Columbia, SC's Ross Holmes.  Scott currently occupies the drum chair for the First Baptist Church of Columbia orchestra.  Scott has played gigs and recorded with The Helms/Boyd Orchestra (Big Band Jazz), The Jazz Guitar Summit (jazz), Cross Current (Top 40), Kevin McGee (pop), Michael Smith (pop rock), Culture Shock (80's rock), and The Diamond Band (Variety).  Scott has been drumming with the band since 1991.

Gary Cappuccio, Guitar/Vocals - Gary studied Guitar, and music theory at the City University of New York.  Gary also studied guitar with Howard Morgan and Chuck Wayne, both nationally recognized guitar instructors that have authored many books on guitar playing. Gary played and recorded with various New York based groups. Gary has toured nationally and internationally, with Gloria Gaynor along with playing concerts and live TV spots. Recently, Gary has been playing with local Columbia, SC bands such as the Ross Holmes Group, the Bob Knox Orchestra, and the Gene Dykes Orchestra.  Gray also provides lead and background vocals of various styles.  Gary performs as a solo artist using both his guitar and vocal talents.

Joey Hodge, Lead Vocals - Joey is honored to be singing for The Coastal Breeze Party Band.  Joey is a native of Columbia, SC and a graduate of The University of South Carolina.  You may have heard the phrase "Don't quit your day job", well; singing was Joey's day job for seven years.  During that time, Joey performed in Charlotte, San Antonio and at the Alabama Theatre in Myrtle Beach.  Joey also had the honor of working with the USO and the Department of Defense where he performed for US forces stationed in Spain, Italy, Turkey, Egypt, and on the deck of the aircraft carrier USS America.  Joey has been making music with the band since 1998.

Gary Hodo, Saxophones - Gary is from Birmingham, Alabama.   He has played in two US Army Bands, the University of Alabama Jazz Band, the Columbia Jazz Band led by the great Roger Pemberton, and the Helms-Boyd and Jimmy Farr Orchestras.   In 2000, he toured England and France with the University of South Carolina Left Bank Jazz Band.  For the past 23 years, he has held a "legit" seat in the saxophone section of the Columbia Community Concert Band.   Gary has played huge concerts in the back-up bands of such entertainers as Bob Hope, Stevie Wonder, Jim Neighbors, and Freddy Hart.  He is also Coastal Breeze's resident shrink, holding a doctorate in clinical psychology.  His "day gig" is with the South Carolina Department of Mental Health. 

Joe Miller, Trumpet/Vocals - Joe is from Columbia, SC.  Joe played lead trumpet with the Gene Dykes Orchestra and the Highway One Big Band at the age of 16 while still in high school.  After graduating high school in 1986, Joe was offered a gig and played saxophone, trumpet, and trombone with the O'Kaysions, while studying music performance at the University of South Carolina where he played in USC's Jazz bands, the USC Concert band, 4 Jazz Combos, the Marching band, the Basketball pep Band, and the USC Naval ROTC Marching Bands.  After life on the road with the O'Kaysions and the good times at USC, Joe joined forces with The Soundsation's where he led the horn section and was also a featured vocalist. 

In 1994, Joe started his own Jazz Quintet "Capital Jazz" and left the Soundsation's to pursue jazz.  In 1996, Joe toured Hilton Head Island with the Mutual Fun Variety Band until 1999 when he decided to pursue other interests... his family!  Joe has also shared the stage and played with many other bands and artists over the years including:  Herman's Hermits, Chris Potter, The Drifters, Clark Terry, Total Confusion, The Jimmy Farr Orchestra, The Tony Torre Orchestra, The Composers Art Orchestra, Fresh Air, Roger Pemberton And the Community Jazz Band, Dick Goodwin, The Root Doctors, Swing Set, The 282nd Army Band, The Columbia High School Band of Gold (GO CAPS!), and the 5 points Wild Irish Band!  In 1999, Joe got a call from Scott Burkholder to join the band... and the rest is history! 

Kyle Whitlock, Keyboards - Kyle is from Columbia, South Carolina-where he is a studio composer of many genres of music, and also a musician-for-hire in many different jazz and variety music ensembles.  He also composes music for radio and public television.  He has played keyboards and drums/percussion professionally for over 30 years, and has written a huge catalog of instrumental compositions. Kyle began releasing these songs on CD in 1999.  His writing encompasses a blend of musical styles and themes including Modern jazz, Progressive Rock, R & B, New age, Electronic, World, and Solo piano.  His compositions run the gamut going from rocking Jazz-Fusion music to very reflective pieces that take the listener on a musical and aural journey.

In Junior high and high school Kyle played drums and percussion instruments in concert and marching bands. Later he earned a Business Administration degree from the University of South Carolina. Throughout college He studied with a private tutor and learned the fundamentals of music theory and composition. 

Through the years Kyle's musical experiences have been many. He learned many styles of music while performing in jazz, rock, blues, R & B, gospel and other musical ensembles. His performances have taken him coast-to-coast throughout the United States. He has played venues in New York, Nashville, and Las Vegas.  He was a member of the Contemporary Jazz group Kom'en In'trist from 1993-2005. This group produced one CD of all original music.  Kom'en In'trist has performed at some of the largest music festivals and venues in the Southeast, including Columbia's Three Rivers Festival.

Currently he is collaborating with musical friends from around the world on a variety of long-distance musical projects, using the Internet as a tool for creating new music.  He is a member of the Funkdawgs, the world's first virtual jazz-fusion group.