The father-son duo of Tony Gambaro and Carson Gambaro take the lead as the buglers for the Saratoga meet
It was the Friday before the opening of the Saratoga Race Course meet. While preparing his band Ten Most Wanted for a wedding, Tony Gambaro received a phone call from Sam Grossman, as many people known him as Sam the Bugler.
The long-time bugler contacted Gambaro to let him know that he wasn’t coming to Saratoga due to a health setback. Because of that, Grossman asked Gambaro if he was interested in taking the spot since he has the ability and experience.
This hasn’t been the first time that Gambaro was asked to be a substitute trumpet or horn player. He played as a fill-in for Bon Jovi and Tower of Power on brief tour dates.
Though, this was different. Gambaro was being asked to take the lead as the Saratoga bugler.
Gambaro was interested in the position. However, he also had other commitments with his band, which was formed about seven months before the COVID-19 pandemic, for weddings and corporate events that included Albany Medical Center’s Light Up the Night. Not only that, there was tight time frame for a decision.
“Sam asked me if he could give NYRA my phone number,” Gambaro said. “Sam said, ‘I don’t know if you want to do it or not. I told them you are the best trumpet player in town.’ I said, ‘Yeah, sure, give them the number.’ I hadn’t had time to think about it. During those couple of days, I was playing in my group. Things were moving quickly.”
Gambaro agreed to become the bugler for the meet. His initial idea was playing most of the weekdays while his son Carson Gambaro took over the weekends.
Like his father, Carson Gambaro is also used to being a substitute player, whether it is with Ten Most Wanted or another band. Not only that, he has also played at sporting events.
While attending Syracuse University where he graduated two months ago, not only did he learn about broadcast journalism, he also learned about being a member of the pep and marching band that played at the Atlantic Coast Conference (ACC) men’s basketball tournament in March.
That was a sharp contrast to his musical experience at Stillwater High School where he was also a Section II and Wasaren League champion in the 400-meter and 1,600-meter relay teams.
“In high school, there was no musical emphasis. When I got to college, there were people who could play. I didn’t want to be left in the dust,” he said. “I got fired up by those moments. During the timeouts, it’s time for the band to play. That’s when you can play freely. It’s not a chore. It’s energizing.”
The idea of a father-son duo developed during an interview with Teresa Genaro and photo session by Erica Miller – both of the Daily Gazette. After the interview, they agreed to meet at the track for the photos.
“Erica told us to stand in a ‘V’ while playing the post together,” Tony Gambaro said. “That was the first time we played together while we took the photo. She asked if we were going to do it together on Opening Day. I told her that wasn’t really the plan. She said, ‘You ought to because you sound tremendous.’”
Since Opening Day, the father-son duo has been thinking of ideas while doing some research on engaging the Saratoga crowd during the call to the post. Along with playing a few introductory notes from Frank Sinatra’s “New York, New York” and Sam and Dave’s “Soul Man,” they are experimenting with other songs.
“I have watched a lot of YouTube videos on anything out there with the call to the post,” Tony Gambaro said. “I know Sam’s [Grossman’s] style. I told my son that we need to come up with a different angle.”
“If we are going to do this, we have to remake it,” he added. “We have to be a little bit more creative by looking at these songs and finding out what we can do that’s eight seconds long and gets to the point. In the next couple of weeks, we are trying to expand on it so we aren’t doing the same three songs every other race.”
Through opening weekend at the track, Carson Gambaro also believes he has become acclimated to the call to the post as racing fans believes he is similar to Grossman’s style. Simultaneously, he has learned as a Saratoga bugler.
“I feel like I am settling in,” Carson said. “I’ve established myself as much as Sam the Bugler did. A lot of people said it’s like Sam never left. That makes me feel good because we are trying preserve a special condition. There are lot of things that I have learned over the last couple of days. It’s a concept learning process.”
For Tony Gambaro, who also provides a detailing service for his Yacht Docs business during the spring at the Harris Bay Club in Lake George and periodically sells new construction real estate, being the Saratoga bugler adds onto an impressive 49-year resume.
Along with learning how to play the horn at 8 years old for the drum and bugle corps band in Gloversville, the 57-year-old has been recognized by the late jazz trumpet extraordinaire Maynard Ferguson while playing for the Syracuse University Jazz Ensemble and attending Onondaga Community College.
He was also a member of the Blues Others Brothers that traveled nationally and internationally, and he played for local bands the Burners UK and New York Players. He also led Ten Most Wanted at WNYT’s Chris Onorato and Ashley Miller’s wedding in May 2021.
“Nothing in my life has come close to this with regard to playing horn,” he said. “This is something else. To have my son next to me is insane. This has been unbelievable.”
“For the first two days, I couldn’t have script it any better. The whole father-son angle, you cannot make it up,” he added. “It’s really taken hold. I really appreciate all of the attention and PR. It’s a true-to-life feel-good community story.”
