Once described as a “true chameleon of genre”, Lano Pranzo is an avid composer and multi-instrumentalist. He has studied music at the College of Southern Maryland and was a 2021 graduate of Leonardtown High School. While primarily an orchestral percussionist since 2014, Pranzo has also studied classical guitar with Dr. B.A. Ferguson and is self-taught in several instruments in the woodwind and string families. He has had his compositions and arrangements performed at the College of Southern Maryland in Leonardtown and La Plata, Maryland, the Florida Institute of Technology in Melbourne, Florida, and at the Davies Concert Series in Temple Hills, Maryland.

Pranzo worked as a percussion tech for the Chopticon High School Marching Band in 2024 where the band won the "Best Percussion" caption award at every competition throughout the season and finished in 3rd place at the USBands A Class National Championships.

Pranzo plays vibraphone with the Southern Maryland-based jazz combo, the Reluctant Jazz Band, which performs popular jazz standards at various venues in the area. He plays drums/percussion and occasionally other instruments for the folk-indie-rock trio Fools of Fall. Pranzo has played timpani for the Southern Maryland Concert Band since 2022. He has been a percussionist for the Chesapeake Choral Arts Society as part of their accompanying wind ensemble and has appeared in the pit orchestra at Newtowne Players, Inc. from time to time, having played in productions of Into the Woods and A Midsummer Night’s Dream. 

As a composing and performing music student, Pranzo was very involved in the fine arts scene at the College of Southern Maryland. In 2023, Pranzo and Dr. B.A. Ferguson co-wrote and recorded incidental music for a children's theater production of Fantastic Mr. Fox, performed at the College of Southern Maryland. Pranzo, former classmates, and Dr. B.A. Ferguson recorded Episode 10 of Season 3 of SMT-Pod, the Society for Music Theory podcast, in which they discussed their experiences with model composition and the music theory curriculum at CSM. Furthermore, Pranzo has been a part of CSM’s Latin Ensemble, Ritmo Caché, since 2021 where he specialized in Latin percussion such as timbales and congas. In 2024, the Latin Ensemble performed a piece that Pranzo had specially arranged for the band.

Pranzo has served as both president and vice president of New Music at CSM, formerly known as the CSM Composers Club, which was established in 2022. The club has been advised by composers/current and former faculty members Dr. B. A. Ferguson, Dr. Mary K. C. Whitmore, and Dr. Ruby Fulton, who have graciously provided their wisdom to anyone who wishes to listen. The club’s first-ever Composer Showcase in 2023 featured several premieres of original works written and performed by Pranzo and his clubmates. The Composers Club, in collaboration with CSM’s digital media production students, has composed original music for student films. Pranzo contributed to the soundtrack of Campus Cop (2022) directed by Gio Guttadauro and Off-Key (2024) directed by Dante Manago. The Composers Club collaborated with CSM's dance ensemble by playing live music for their Spring 2024 performance.

In high school, Pranzo was the drumline captain of the Leonardtown High School Marching Band for two consecutive years and was a co-founder and co-leader of a percussion ensemble club. He was also involved in the wind ensemble/symphonic band, concert band, jazz band, pep band, and pit orchestra. In 2021, Pranzo was a recipient of the Patrick S. Gilmore Band Award, which is awarded to students for their performance, skills, leadership, loyalty and enthusiasm, and participation in other bands.

Pranzo is a passionate artist who hopes to continue honing his composition skills and premiering more of his works!