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Business Owners (And Married Couple) Rock It With 20 Years In Ossining

OSSINING, N.Y. -- For 20 years, the Riskos have been a mainstay in the Ossining community.

Mike and Miriam Risko are celebrating 20 years in Ossining with a concert Saturday.

Mike and Miriam Risko are celebrating 20 years in Ossining with a concert Saturday.

Photo Credit: Courtesy of Tricia Robbins

Mike and Miriam Risko, who run Mike Risko Music School and Store, will be celebrating 20 years with a performance by the Mike Risko Band at Maya Riveria Bar and Restaurant in Briarcliff Manor on Saturday from 9 p.m. to 11 p.m. There is no cover charge for the performance. Saturday is also the birthday of Miriam Risko.

"We're going to be celebrating all year long," Mike Risko said. "It should be a really fun night. We love what we do and we love working together. It's great to be excited about your career and line of work."

Mike said that he and Miriam are always bouncing ideas off each other, even in the middle of the night, to keep everything new and fresh.

"What we do for a living is our hobby," Risko said. "When I'm not at work, I'm either practicing guitar or investing iin new equipment. This is my lifestyle. My kids are young musicians, it's fun to share the music."

The Mike Risko Band plays a mixture of everything including pop rock and classic rock.

"We're an entertaining party band," Risko said. "We play music that everybody knows and we put our own twist on it. We're good at improvising and jamming, taking our music to the next level. It's always been our thing."

Risko said he loves playing all kinds of music and couldn't pick a favorite. He said being on stage is an energizing feeling.

"It proves why we're doing this," Risko said. "It's exhilarating to get up on stage and share that experience with everybody. It's an emotional thing to express yourself through instrument and voice."

At the music school, the Riskos have taught thousands of students over the last 20 years and Mike has written guitar instructional books that are sold all over the country.

"We have a great staff and we work with all kinds of students," Risko said. "It's been an amazing experience for us and we are constantly looking to make more innovative and exciting."

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