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Drums are Music to Ears of Wisconsin CU Shared Service Centers President

GREENFIELD, Wis. - Some of us as children dreamed of one day playing in a rock and roll band. The president of Wisconsin Credit Union Shared Service Centers is living his dreams. Self taught, Rick Hagopian has toured internationally with Norwegian rhythm and blues songwriter Tina Lie. When he was...

By Staff Writer | Updated on April 06, 2004

GREENFIELD, Wis. – Some of us as children dreamed of one day playing in a rock and roll band. The president of Wisconsin Credit Union Shared Service Centers is living his dreams. Self taught, Rick Hagopian has toured internationally with Norwegian rhythm and blues songwriter Tina Lie. When he was in college, he played in a group with some friends, and he said “we were taken quite seriously by some record companies.” The group got some air time on the east coast, and Hagopian said they even made it to the Top 10 list in Boston. He’s recently joined another band that backs up singer/songwriter Brian McCullough, and he’s also opened for several national touring acts. Rick Hagopian has been playing the drums since he was in high school. He also taught himself to play the guitar and frequently picks up “an old beat up” acoustic guitar he owns to relax and wind down. Thinking back on when he was first learning the drums, Hagopian conceded that he never had electronic drums that would have let him rehearse quietly. “Drums are loud, and while there’s really no such thing as hitting a wrong note like with a trumpet, your neighbors can hear when you make a mistake,” he recalled. “Musicians are a very close knit group, so when you reach a certain level most of the jobs you get are by word of mouth and referrals,” Hagopian explained. While Hagopian may be living out one of his dreams, another fantasy – the life of a musician is a life of luxury – has already gotten a quick dose of reality. “Life on a tour is a lot of hard work. You’re often doing a show in one town, then just traveling to the next and doing the same. It’s not as luxurious as it’s made out to be. Some groups may have fancy buses, but right now I travel around in a truck or a couple of cars,” he said, adding that “once I thought I’d want to be a full-time musician, but now it’s a weekend thing.” – [email protected]

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