Long afternoons of piano lessons are hardly the ideal pastime for the average five year old American boy, but in Esteban Proano's case, they served their purpose. "All my friends were outside playing basketball while I was inside playing 'Old McDonald Had A Farm'", Esteban says with a laugh. Though eventually giving up lessons for other interests, seven years of instruction would instill in young Esteban a solid musical foundation which would be instrumental in his musical endeavors later in life. Shortly after graduating high school, he decided to purchase a midi keyboard and attach it to his Macintosh computer, which he had heard was the ideal platform for music professionals. Though playing the piano wasn't at the top of his list of priorities as a child, Esteban had always maintained a keen ear for music, and it showed almost immediately after first experimenting with his production software. Applying his skills to hip-hop, his favorite genre, Esteban quickly developed into a very skilled producer, landing tracks on a slew of Bay Area hip hop releases. The most notable of these tracks was "In The Bay We Hustlin", which was featured on rapper Errelevent's Redefinition. The single, which received significant airplay on San Francisco's 106 KMEL and XM Satellite Radio, firmly established Mr. Proano (now known to fans as Equivalent Exchange) as a legitimate force in the hip-hop production world. The future is bright for Esteban, as he has expanded his horizons and expertise during his tenure as Music Specialist at the University of California, Los Angeles' student-run campus television network, ResTV. Handling all soundtrack work for the station's twenty plus shows, Esteban has developed in to a well-rounded composer. Rock, R&B, electronica, and even film scores are no problem for him, as he actually composed the scores of two finalists in the 2008 Campus Film Festival, a nationwide collegiate film competition. He continues to flex his muscles behind the hip-hop boards, and has just released a 16-track free album Spitz Unlimited Vol. 1: "Destroy & Rebuild" (that he produced entirely) with Errelevent. More Spitz Unlimited volumes produced by Equivalent are on the way, as well as tracks with heavy hitters from the Bay and beyond. When asked about the origin of his name, Esteban replied "Its a fundamental principle of the world. Equal effort produces equal gain - equivalent exchange. I know that hard work will pay off in the future. In terms of success, its not a question of 'if', its a question of 'when'"! T: 650-438-2536 E: Esteban.Proano@gmail.com W: www.myspace.com/EquivalentExchangeProd

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