Our Story
Bobby Flores, a Grammy Award-winning musician/arranger, is a multi-instrumentalist, vocalist, arranger, producer, composer and first-call session musician. He studied music theory and classical violin at Trinity University under the late Dominick Saltarelli, jazz guitar with Jackie King, and classical guitar with David Underwood. Bobby is featured on over four hundred albums, CDs and singles, including performances with numerous artists on major labels. He composes music for radio and television commercials airing throughout the U.S., Europe, and Australia. Bobby has been performing professionally since the age of seven and is at home in the country, pop-rock, jazz, blues, Latin and classical genres. By the time he was in his teens, he was opening for artists such as Marty Robbins, Johnny Rodriguez, Tanya Tucker and Conway Twitty. By the middle 80’s, Bobby had become bandleader, show opener and fiddle player for Johnny Bush and the Bandoleros, vocalist/guitarist for Top 40 and rock bands, “Gone City” and “The Boiz,” and was also performing with the Trinity University Community Orchestra. In 1988, along with brother, Greg, and sister, Sandra, Bobby formed the band Angel Fire and opened for numerous country superstars including George Strait and Garth Brooks. His musical journey since then has included stints as fiddle player for David Kersh, Jake Hooker, and lead fiddle player for Ray Price for 5 years as well as performances on the Grand Ole Opry. He now fronts his own band, Bobby Flores and the Yellow Rose Band, and has founded and runs the Bulverde Academy of Music, a unique, live-performance music academy.
RJ Smith is a classically trained violinist as well as an outstanding fiddle player. She began studying violin at the age of 9, and at 16, joined a top high-school orchestra program at a local private school. During her 2 years there, she served as the principal 2nd violinist and a 1st violin section player. R.J. also served as the concertmaster of another local youth orchestra and played percussion in a youth concert band. She began studying classical piano and voice during this time as well. After graduation, R.J. enrolled in college in South Carolina. There, she majored in Spanish, but continued her violin studies through all 4 years with a minor in music. Along with her violin studies, she studied piano, percussion, theory and orchestration. R.J. also performed with the University orchestra as well as in the pit orchestra during performances of the university opera association. She was also selected for and performed with the first South Carolina All-State Collegiate Orchestra. After college graduation, R.J. spent 3 years riding colts as an apprentice horse trainer. This brought her to Texas, where she heard western swing and the music of Bob Wills for the first time. In May of 2006, she gave up her ranch job to focus on her first love, music, and began studying fiddle, with a focus on western swing and jazz. In February of 2007, she met and began studying fiddle with Bobby Flores at the Bulverde Academy of Music. She has been playing with Bobby Flores and the Yellow Rose Band for the last 3-½ years, and instructing at Bulverde Academy of Music. In addition to performing regularly, she is a recording studio technician, and has recently played on several albums.