Pete Lanctot ’09 and bandmate and wife, Ginger Dolden, (both front and center) performed at Zoellner Arts Center on November 16, 2018, under the name of Pete and the Stray Dogs. It was Pete’s first performance at Lehigh since graduation. While touring, the duo contract and perform with New York-based musicians (from left) Katie Von Schleicher (keys), Chris Holdridge (drums), Jared Samuel (bass), and Adam Brisbin (guitar). Photo by Lynn Farley
After years of touring across America and Europe with his group, Pete and the Stray Dogs, Pete Lanctot ’09 returned to Lehigh for his first performance at the Zoellner Arts Center on November 16, 2018, for two shows.
Lanctot’s musical style was inspired by the Americana genre through New York City’s do-it-yourself scene. The music that Pete and the Stray Dogs write is based on American traditional songwriting but takes influence, approach, and aesthetic from New York City’s jazz, experimental, and indie music. Lanctot describes it as a combination rooted from folk, country and blues that is different than what you can find in Nashville. He said his music continues to shift and evolve.
Upon returning to Lehigh to perform, Lanctot said it was “surreal.”
“When we made it here, it was amazing to be performing in a place that was so formative to me as a musician and to be playing as a guest artist. It was wild to be asked and to play at the center,” he said.
Zoellner has a special place in Lanctot’s heart. He spent hours in the facility honing his craft and learning about music and himself.
Lanctot was initially attracted to Lehigh because of its music program. Being a music composition major, it was important for the school he chose to have a great music program and, fortunately, Lehigh fit the bill perfectly.
“I didn’t know what I wanted to do going into college, but I knew I wanted to be involved in music. I really admired the music program at Lehigh,” Lanctot said. “The Zoellner facilities and access to world-class musicians and teachers were super enticing for me. I really wouldn’t have gotten that anywhere else.”
After being accepted to Lehigh, Lanctot fully explored his passion for music. He joined organizations such as the Choral Arts Club and the LU Philharmonic Orchestra. Through Lehigh, he got to experience different musical styles from across genres and history.
“I was always encouraged to seek opportunities at Lehigh,” Lanctot said. “Whether writing music for ensembles or hiring professional musicians to premiere my music, Lehigh taught me to be open and try everything.”
Lanctot was inspired by his professor, Paul Salerni, National Endowment for the Humanities Distinguished Chair in the Humanities and professor of music, who encouraged him to be open to new musical ideas since there is not only one way to play music.
However, Lanctot amusingly said the best piece of advice he received from Salerni was, “If there is free food, take it,” because not all music gigs are lucrative.
“Pete was a good student who loved to do it all — write, sing, play. He was a composition major, sang in choir, and played the violin in the orchestra,” Salerni said. “Lehigh gave him the opportunity to do all those things, which is rare in an academic environment, and that broad combination of activities led to a career as a singer/songwriter.”
One of Lanctot’s most treasured memories while at Lehigh came during a late-night music session at Zoellner, where Lanctot discovered, to his dismay, that after hours of practicing and songwriting, he was locked in the performing arts facility and could not get out.
Thankfully, he found a janitor to unlock the door; otherwise, he would have had to spend the night there. Lanctot said there were many moments where he came close to sleeping there.
Between the two Zoellner performances with the Stray Dogs, Lanctot met with music majors to share tips about succeeding as a musician after graduation. Kevin Wyckoff ’20, who is majoring in mechanical engineering and music, asked Lanctot about his experiences in the music business.
“It was nice to be able to see and talk to this alumnus who had done a lot of what I am doing now at Lehigh and to see where life has taken him now that he’s left Lehigh,” Wyckoff said. “To have this connection, and then to see where you can go afterwards and retain everything you gained while at school, it was definitely a good experience to have.”
Lanctot’s advice to students is to explore Lehigh as much as you can.
“The resources are incredible,” Lanctot said. “There is so much going on. Be open to trying new things. Do things you are interested in. Try things out. You won’t always have that opportunity.”
After graduating from Lehigh, Lanctot moved to New York and performed as a solo act under his own name. When he met his bandmate, now wife, Ginger Dolden, they started performing together as a duo. When he started touring across the country, Lanctot would meet local musicians who matched his musical style. From this network, he has hired who he needs to perform with him and Ginger in different parts of the country. He said the term, “the Stray Dogs,” in his band name arose from the band of supporting musicians who are constantly changing. However, for the last few years, the “Stray Dogs” have been comprised of the same core group of New York-based musicians, although they still have a few rotating performers.
“We toured across the U.S., and that is where the name Stray Dogs came from — a roving pack of musicians constantly changing and loose. Everyone had to listen to each other,” Lanctot said about he and Ginger performing with different musicians wherever they go.
In early summer 2018, Lanctot and Dolden toured as a duo internationally across France, Spain and Italy.
While touring in Europe, Lanctot recalls performing in a bar in Paris for multiple engagements and, even though there was a language barrier, they received a great reception.
Lanctot said that Lehigh taught him the skills necessary for him to be a successful musician.
“There is no handbook to being a musician in 2018,” Lanctot said. “It is a lot of hustling and being creative. Lehigh got the thought-process ball rolling — that there may not be a prescribed way to do this, but you can figure out a way if you work and make it happen.”