Last Modified: Friday, October 28, 2011 2:42 PM

BY CLIFF SEIBER / AMERICAN PRESS

It is probably safe to say this local musical group is unique — the Whip-poor-wills is likely the only band with this instrumentation: mandolin, cello, guitar and violin. It’s also unlikely that a professional sound comes from two high school seniors, a sophomore and an eighth-grader.
Thomas Townsley is a senior at St. Louis Catholic High School. Three siblings, Theresa, Danley and Adele Romero are a senior, sophomore and eighth-grader, respectively. The four live in Sulphur.
Defining the type of music the quartet turns out “is the hardest part,” Theresa Romero said.
She and Townsley agree that if the Whip-poor-wills has to be pigeonholed, “indie folk” may a good description.
“We take a lot from bluegrass, but I guess you could say we play mostly roots music,” Townsley said. “And I have written a few original songs.”
The group picks tunes from a broad range of genres. It even does its own arrangement of “Habanera” from George Bizet’s opera Carmen” featuring Theresa on guitar.
Since there is no published literature for the quartet’s unique instrumentation, the members work out their own arrangements of well-known folk and bluegrass tunes. Townsley has created some original compositions.
“What I love about our music is that it transcends generations — people of all ages can enjoy it,” Townsley said. “We are trying to expose older music to younger people and newer music to older generations.”
Townsley picked up the mandolin with a few informal lessons from Jonathan Areno of Sulphur  and using modern technology even has a teacher in Italy. Using the Skype telecommunications system, he studies with Carlo Alanzo in Savona.
“I get a lot of satisfaction from creating something beautiful to share with others,” Theresa Romero said.
“I never thought I would be playing music in downtown Lake Charles,” Townsley said.
The Whip-poor-wills has played three gigs at Stellar Beans coffee house on Broad Street. The band also performed at the Associated Louisiana Artists’ Gallery by the Lake for the Gallery Promenade last month and will entertain for ALA’s “Affaire d’Art” fundraiser at PPG’s Porter Hall on Nov. 3.
“We are available for other venues,” Townsley said.
As for their future, Townsley, son of Rex and Tommie Townsley, says he intends to do something with music.
“I plan to study music in college and get a bachelor’s. I’d like to work in recording, producing and touring”
He is looking at Loyola University in New Orleans.
“New Orleans is such a rich place for music, where jazz and rock had their beginning,” he said.
Theresa Romero is also looking to study music in college, possibly working toward a career as a music teacher.
Danley hopes for a career in some kind of exercise medicine or physical therapy.
Adele hasn’t given it much though yet.
They are the children of Lorena and Danley Romero Jr. They are members of the Francis G. Bulber Youth Orchestra. Theresa plays viola there.
“I would like to thank the youth orchestra and especially my teacher, Sherry Green.”
Tickets for “Affair d’Art” are $125 per couple. For reservation information, call ALA at 436-1008.