meet the band

     Sara Dickson plays piano in the Malcolm Reynolds Trio. She has a degree in piano pedagogy at Campbell University and teaches private piano lessons in her home studio (www.SaraDicksonPiano.com). Sara is embracing and expanding on her classical training, composing mostly emotional and lyrical instrumental music with jazz, folk, and classical flavorings. She has a soft spot for the key of C# minor. Her husical influences range from Rachmaninoff and Chopin to Nickel Creek, Regina Spektor, Bob Dylan, The Wailin' Jennys, Keith Jarrett, Frank Sinatra, Eva Cassidy and Kristen Leigh Southworth. Sara is the prettiest member of the Malcolm Reynolds Trio.

     Justin Dickson plays trumpet and bass guitar in the Malcolm Reynolds Trio. He has a degree in music education from UNC-Greensboro, and teaches band and music history at Southwest Middle School in Gastonia, North Carolina. His musical heroes and influences include Louis Armstrong, The Beatles, Chet Baker, Wynton Marsalis, Keith Jarrett, and every teacher he has ever had. He was born and raised in Winston-Salem, NC, where he learned to play the trumpet in his school band program, just like his father and grandfather did. Since he was 16 years old, he knew he wanted to be a school band director. He is passionate about performing music, and teaching kids to perform and be creative with music. In September of 2006, he married Sara. They played music together during the wedding ceremony, and haven't really stopped ever since.

     Jonathan Eller plays guitar and bass guitar in the Malcolm Reynolds Trio. He has a degree in English from North Carolina State University. Jonathan’s earliest musical heroes were his mom (who plays piano beautifully) and Beethoven. One of his babysitters remarked that he was the first child that she had ever sat that requested she play Beethoven! Since then Jonathan has developed a very eclectic taste in music that includes everything from hip hop (Omega Sparx) to bluegrass (Doc Watson & Alison Krauss) to jazz (Oscar Peterson & Wynton Marsalis) to country (Buck Owens & Brad Paisley) and rock (POD, Third Day, Jesus Culture, Rush & Boston). While in college Jonathan picked up his brother’s beat-up dime store guitar with the determination to learn how to play if it killed him. It didn’t, and he’s been playing ever since. Most of his experience has been playing and leading worship for church, and he’s written numerous songs for that setting. Jonathan is a former member of the Christian band Crosswire.