Record Deal Gives Momentum to Professor Joe Cancellaro's Latest Band

Campus Communications Staff / Mar 17, 2026

photo of four musicians with their instrumentsProfessor Joe Cancellaro (left) is the bassist for the band The Second Summer.
Joe Cancellaro, a Columbia College Chicago professor and composer, plays bass in a newly signed band, showing students that opportunities for creative collaboration extend far beyond college.

Thanks to a mother who surrounded him with music, Joe Cancellaro, a professor at Columbia College Chicago’s School of Audio and Music, grew up knowing that making music would be a lifelong passion. 

“Once I heard Stravinsky and Bartók at a very early age, I knew what I was going to do for the rest of my life,” he says. 

Over the years, Cancellaro has built a wide-ranging career as a composer, performer, and educator. He has written classical compositions, scored films, played in bands, and taught music to college students, drawing from influences that span classical music, jazz, and progressive rock. 

Now that lifelong musical journey has taken a new turn. Cancellaro plays bass in the Chicago rock band The Second Summer, which recently signed a record deal with the independent Chicago label Hardstop Records after their single “Try” gained radio airplay. 

A Second Chance 

The band — guitarist and lead vocalist Steve Gatland, guitarist Matt Broder, drummer Tony Holmes, and Cancellaro on bass — blends the driving rhythm of ’90s college rock with melodic power-pop hooks. Their debut album “undertow” introduced listeners to the band’s guitar-driven sound, and the group is currently recording a follow-up album on the Hardstop label this spring. 

Named after Chicago’s brief return of warm weather in early fall, the band’s title also reflects the members’ stage of life. 

“We’re called The Second Summer because we’re older,” Cancellaro says. “We’re getting a second chance at this.” 

The group has steadily built a following across the Chicago music scene, performing at venues such as Gallery Cabaret, the Underground Lounge, Montrose Saloon, and the Pop Overthrow Festival while earning radio play on stations across the US, Europe, and Australia.  
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Bringing It Back to the Classroom 

For Cancellaro, those performances and recording sessions also shape the way he teaches composition and sound design at Columbia. Drawing on his work with the band, he regularly connects real-world creative experiences to what students learn in the classroom. 

“To have the experience of gigging, whether it’s a rock band or writing film music, all of that informs what I bring back to the class,” Cancellaro says. “Everything I do feeds into how I teach.” 

For updates about The Second Summer and upcoming shows, follow The Second Summer on Instagram.  
 

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